Andy Lees (right), speaking to Ina Fried at AllThingsD’s AsiaD Conference in 2011.

Microsoft has announced an executive shakeup that sees Andy Lees, who most recently worked on investing in a Barnes & Noble subsidiary, promoted to head of corporate development and strategy at the Redmond-based corporation. According to Bloomberg, the move was made to help Microsoft thwart off competition from Apple, Google and other firms within the tech space.

Lees, once responsible for heading the Windows Phone division at Microsoft, has reportedly been on the job since last month and reports to CFO Peter Klein. After a new wave of Windows Phone devices failed to garner any traction in the smartphone industry in late 2011, Lees has reportedly been working on ”a time-critical opportunity focused on driving maximum impact in 2012 with Windows Phone and Windows 8″ with CEO Steve Ballmer over the past year.  Continue reading →