At first when I read that Mark Penn would become responsible for strategy at Microsoft, I though this was crazy. I don’t know Mark Penn but I understand that he is brilliant if not a bit strange. But what would a 60 year old political advisor that lives in Washington DC have to offer a technology company like Microsoft especially one that disparately needs to major strategic choices driven by changes in technology and customer behavior.

Then I realized that he was the perfect person. It is all about politics. Continue reading →