By Martin Kidston/Missoula Current

A software company based in Missoula has landed a former product development and marketing executive from the Microsoft Corp. to serve as its new strategic adviser and board member.

Orbital Shift, Inc. on Tuesday said that Dave Danford had joined the company's board after completing a 25-year career with Microsoft, where he headed the teams responsible for large-scale commercial and consumer products.

"The leadership skills and understanding of the challenges facing our customers – large and small – adds significant value and to Orbital Shift as we move into a rapid-growth phase,” said Kevin O'Reilly, founder and CEO of Orbital Shift. “(Danford) recognizes the remarkable promise of our technology and our commitment to keeping customers at the center of our focus."

Orbital Shift, based in Missoula with offices in Bozeman, delivers cloud-based workforce management software applications used by organizations in more than a dozen industries.

The Company's software enables companies to schedule workers, manage labor costs and automate hours worked over a flexible mobile feature that's designed to engage employees, empower managers and inform executives.

“The mission of Orbital Shift is to create innovative, employee-focused business applications that provide organizations a competitive edge,” said O'Reilly. “Orbital Shift is well positioned to lead the high-growth market of SaaS-based workforce management products by leveraging a proven product, satisfied customer base and innovative technology solutions.”

Danford, who also serves as a member of the advisory board for the University of Montana's School of Business, earned his master's in business administration from UCLA. He joined Microsoft in 1991 after serving with a Silicon Valley startup.

With Microsoft, Danford led the product development and marketing teams responsible for commercial and consumer products, including SaaS-based business applications, enterprise mobility, IT infrastructure and e-commerce software.

Orbital Shift recently announced the successful closing of $1.25 million in venture capital financing by Next Frontier Capital. The company has been recognized as one of the state's most promising high-tech businesses.

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