Microsoft has traditionally separated its squadrons of executives into “corporate vice presidents” and “senior vice presidents” — the latter title naturally being reserved for the higher-ranking and more-experienced of the company’s bigwigs.

But no more, the company says. The title of “senior vice president” is going away at Microsoft, as first reported this afternoon by ZDNet’s Mary Jo Foley. To be clear, the executives are staying, and keeping their internal status, but the days of the SVP title are ending.

Why? Here’s the company’s official statement from the company …

Microsoft has eliminated the title of Senior Vice President. This does not change the level or compensation of any of our executives, it’s just part of an ongoing effort to make our title structure as streamlined and consistent as possible. Streamlining our title system will also make it easier for our senior leaders to move into new roles across the company, as we tackle new opportunities.

Microsoft SVPs affected by the change include S. “Soma” Somasegar, now corporate vice president of the Developer Division; general counsel Brad Smith, now executive vice president for legal and corporate affairs; and Rick Rashid, chief research officer.

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