New Microsoft Philippines managing director named

MANILA, Philippines - Microsoft has announced the appointment of John Bessey as the new managing director of its Philippine subsidiary. 

Bessey will officially take on his new role on Oct. 1. He will be taking over from Rafael Rollan, who has been Microsoft Philippines’ managing director since 2007. 

Under Rollan’s leadership, the local subsidiary enjoyed consistent growth and saw the expansion of its citizenship initiatives aimed at enabling underserved communities to gain access to technology, as well as the implementation of projects dedicated to enhancing local education.

“I feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to lead a very strong and dedicated team in the Philippines,” Bessey said. 

“At the same time, I am excited at the prospect of further exploring opportunities where our customers, partners and the country can benefit from technology. Over the years, we have seen how technology can impact people’s lives and we will continue our initiatives in empowering the underserved sectors and helping improve the Philippines’ IT infrastructure,” he added.

With a career spanning some 20 years in the IT industry, Bessey joined Microsoft New Zealand in 2006 as partner director for small and medium-sized businesses. 

As part of the leadership team, Bessey was instrumental in making New Zealand a successful Microsoft subsidiary.

Prior to Microsoft, Bessey spent more than 10 years at Gen-i, one of Microsoft’s largest partners in New Zealand, working in both New Zealand and Australia.