Former XO Communications Exec Joins EarthLink

Keefe said he hopes to be a leader in the industrywide transition to cloud computing. "The future of our industry really lies in the cloud," he said. "I feel like we all, in this industry, we have to take a look at ourselves and capabilities and almost reinvent ourselves with respect to where the industry is moving.

"I also wanted to get more focused on the indirect channel. When you look at EarthLink, you can see from top to bottom, there is a real commitment to the channel and providing a great experience for our partners," Keefe said.

[Related: 20 Tips On How To Be A Better Channel Exec ]

While at XO Communications, Keefe also held the roles of vice president of business operations and vice president of strategic marketing and loyalty. Both positions followed a career in sales and several leadership roles at telecommunication companies including Teleport Communications Group, BI Performance Systems and Northern Telecom.

"Paul has a proven track record managing both internal and external relationships and will position EarthLink to further capitalize on those valued partnerships," said J.R. Cook, vice president of channel sales at EarthLink, in a release. "Paul clearly appreciates what EarthLink has built in evolving into a nationwide provider of IT service and IP communications and is committed to leading his team and their partners through that continued evolution."

"I am very excited to be here at EarthLink," said Keefe. "EarthLink has a phenomenal network and a great footprint. Our support tools are best in class and we have a great, innovative product line," he said. "EarthLink has done such a phenomenal job with their cloud offering and has shown a real commitment to developing services in the cloud. For me, [EarthLink] was the only choice for going to a service provider."

PUBLISHED JUNE 28, 2013