Brendan O'Connor
CEO & Founder, The Brushton Group | Relaunched January 2025
About Brendan
Builder, Operator, and Strategic Advisor
Brendan O'Connor is a senior executive and operational leader with over 25 years of experience scaling global channel and partner ecosystems at Microsoft, Cisco, and Sage. His career has been defined by organizational transformation, cross-functional change leadership, and a relentless focus on measurable business outcomes.
Throughout his career, Brendan has designed scalable channel operating models, architected partnerships across VAR, distributor, MSP, GSI, and hyperscaler ecosystems, and driven channel-first cultural transformation in SaaS companies scaling ARR from $175M to $400M+.
He is experienced at influencing without authority, balancing partner recruitment with productivity optimization, and implementing data-driven performance management systems that drive accountability across distributed global teams in U.S., EMEA, and UK markets.
Education
Master of Science in Industrial Administration (MBA equivalent)
Carnegie Mellon University, Tepper School of Business
Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering
Carnegie Mellon University
Awards & Recognition
Microsoft Gold Star Award
Recognized in 2006, 2009, and 2015 for exceptional performance and significant contributions to global business success
Top Quota Achievement Award (2019)
Achieved 181% of quota attainment for the company's most strategic partnership account
U.S. Patent Holder
Patent No. 8,209,321: Emphasizing Search Results According to Conceptual Meaning
Areas of Expertise
Career Highlights
A Track Record of Impact
Sage Software
2022 - 2025Senior Director, Global Alliances & Partners
- Negotiated a 5-year Strategic Collaboration Agreement with AWS, securing multimillion-dollar co-investment
- Led channel-first organizational transformation across sales, marketing, product, and customer success
- Generated $350M+ in incremental channel-sourced and channel-influenced revenue
- Increased AWS partnership revenue by 900% through revitalized partner-led sales programs
- Grew mid-market revenue 35% through cross-functional collaboration and partner-led innovation
The Brushton Group
Relaunched January 2025 - Present | Originally 2018 - 2022CEO, Strategy Consultant
- Designed $75M channel incentive and pricing program that increased distribution revenue by 29%
- Restructured Intuit's QuickBooks Online partner incentive model, driving cloud revenue 2.6x higher
- Achieved 83% revenue growth for ASG Technologies through redesigned GTM strategy
- Advised founders and executives on market entry, commercial model design, and B2B deal structuring
Cisco Systems
2016 - 2018Executive Director, Offer Monetization Office
- Developed the 'Flat SKU' model to simplify SaaS software sales across partner channels
- Piloted GSI-led EA sales initiatives that doubled bookings year-over-year
- Contributed to Cisco's '2T360' acceleration program, supporting 290% increase in channel-driven services revenue
Microsoft Corporation
1998 - 2016Senior Director, Enterprise Partner Incentives
- Founded and scaled the Dynamics Deal Desk ($1.4B business)
- Co-architected Microsoft's Licensing 6.0 and the original Enterprise Agreement model
- Designed and launched the first Cloud Solution Provider incentive model
- Managed $1B+ global incentive budget, scaling cloud adoption across Azure and Office 365
- Achieved 161% growth in EA and cloud service adoption
Work with Brendan
Bring decades of enterprise leadership experience to your next strategic challenge.
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