# Lydia Smyers

> Lydia Smyers is Vice President of Customer and Partner Solutions for U.S. Telco, Media, and Gaming at Microsoft, leading a team of more than 400 professionals serving the top 200 enterprises in those sectors. Based in Massachusetts, she has spent over a decade at Microsoft in roles spanning U.S. Education, Americas Northeast, and now the converging industries of telco, media, and gaming. Before Microsoft she held senior executive roles at Oracle, Red Hat, and Ernst & Young, building a career defined by large-scale partnerships, channel strategy, and technology-driven transformation. She was named to CRN's Top 100 Women of the Channel five consecutive years and spoke at MWC Barcelona 2026 on AI and its societal implications.

- **Role:** Vice President - Telco, Media, Gaming US at Microsoft
- **Organizations:** Microsoft, Oracle, Red Hat, Ernst & Young, Friends of Marblehead Public Schools, MassCUE, Marblehead Family Fund
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Master of Business Administration (MBA), Duke University - The Fuqua School of Business, Bachelor of Science, Chemistry, Trinity College-Hartford
- **Known for:** Named to CRN's 'Top 100 Women of the Channel' five consecutive years (2009-2013), Leads a team of over 400 Microsoft professionals serving the top 200 US enterprises in Telco, Media, and Gaming, Over a decade of progressive leadership at Microsoft spanning Education, Americas Northeast, and now Telco/Media/Gaming

## Career timeline

- **Early career** — Management Consultant at Ernst & Young, advising clients on large-scale business, process, and technology transformations
- **Mid-career** — Partner Sales Manager at Red Hat Inc.
- **Pre-Microsoft** — Group Vice President, Worldwide Alliances & Channels Programs at Oracle Corp., with global responsibility for Oracle PartnerNetwork (OPN) programs, strategy, marketing, and communications
- **~2014** — Joined Microsoft; served as Senior Director of US Education Marketing, overseeing go-to-market strategies and the Educator Network program serving over 1 million teachers
- **~2016-2017** — General Manager, U.S. Education Windows & Devices at Microsoft, leading national sales teams for Windows and Device solutions across K-12 and higher education
- **2018** — Spoke at the Learning Impact Leadership Institute on 'Empower the Students of Today to Create the World of Tomorrow'
- **~2020-2022** — Vice President, U.S. Education at Microsoft, overseeing educational initiatives and developing learning solutions across the United States
- **~2022-2024** — Vice President, Americas Northeast Region at Microsoft, leading enterprise sales for the Northeast US
- **2025** — Promoted to Vice President - Telco, Media, Gaming US at Microsoft, leading 400+ professionals serving the top 200 US enterprises in those sectors
- **2026-02** — Speaker at MWC Barcelona 2026 in session 'AI and Us: What Are We Really Building Toward?'

## Achievements

- Named to CRN's 'Top 100 Women of the Channel' five consecutive years (2009-2013)
- Leads a team of over 400 Microsoft professionals serving the top 200 US enterprises in Telco, Media, and Gaming
- Over a decade of progressive leadership at Microsoft spanning Education, Americas Northeast, and now Telco/Media/Gaming
- Built and led Oracle's global partner network as Group VP, Worldwide Alliances & Channels
- Featured speaker at MWC Barcelona 2026 on artificial intelligence and its societal implications
- Authored multiple thought leadership pieces for Microsoft on AI, education, and future of work
- Served on boards including Friends of Marblehead Public Schools, MassCUE, and the Marblehead Family Fund

## Latest updates

- **2026-02** — Speaker at MWC Barcelona 2026 in the session 'AI and Us: What Are We Really Building Toward?'
- **2025-04** — Authored 'Leading the AI Revolution: Insights from Microsoft's Work Trend Index' on Microsoft in Business Blog, focused on AI agents and workforce transformation
- **2025-01** — Announced new chapter as VP - Telco, Media, Gaming US at Microsoft via LinkedIn post

## Links

- Website: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/industry/microsoft-in-business/author/lydia-smyers/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lydiasmyers/
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/lydiasmyers
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lydiasmyers/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/lydia-smyers
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-31