Irwin had been Acting President and CEO of the Columbus, Ohio-based company following the passing of former CEO Samuel Starr in late 2006.

Irwin has been Sterling's top sales executive and a key member of the company's executive team since joining the company in 2002. Prior to taking the post as President, Irwin was Senior Vice President, America's sales. In this role, Irwin was responsible for strategic leadership of the Sterling Commerce Americas sales team, where he helped transform the company's sales organisation.

"Bob is an outstanding leader who has played an integral role in Sterling Commerce's dramatic growth over the past five years," said Ray Wilkins, Group President - AT&T Diversified Business. "His ideas, energy and breadth of experience will enable him to hit the ground running. We're looking forward to great things from the Sterling Commerce team under Bob's guidance."

"I am proud to take on this role as we continue to focus on helping our customers establish business without borders," Irwin said. "In today's global economy, Sterling is uniquely positioned to help businesses operate effectively, in real time, across boundaries of space, size and technology. With the backing of a global technology leader like AT&T and a service-oriented approach, I am confident that Sterling will reach new heights."

Irwin has more than 21 years of experience through work at IBM, several technology consulting practices, and as an information technology (IT) executive.

As an IT executive at leading financial services and healthcare companies, Irwin gained invaluable experience in the technology field. This experience built upon his work at IBM, where he began his career as a major account salesperson for four years, followed by three years as a major account sales manager. After IBM, he built three successful technology consulting practices in the areas of software development, network engineering and business management. Irwin received his Bachelor ofof Science degree from Ohio State University in 1982.

Sterling Commerce has provided business process solutions to Fortune 500 companies and the world's largest banks for over 30 years. Formerly a division of Sterling Software, Sterling Commerce became an independent corporation through an initial public offering in March 1996. SBC Communications acquired Sterling Commerce in March 2000. With the merger of AT&T Corp. and SBC Communications Inc. in November 2005, Sterling Commerce became a subsidiary of AT&T.

Now one of the world's largest providers of business process solutions, Sterling Commerce continues to develop innovative software and services that help organisations to optimise the performance of their partners, suppliers and customers. The company has more than 2,400 employees worldwide, with direct sales offices and development and support centers in more than 35 locations around the world, including Bangalore, London, Paris, Sao Paolo, Tokyo and Toronto.