Surgient announced the appointment of Craig Parks to vice president of marketing.

Parks will be responsible for building on Surgient’s standing  in the virtualization market and for expanding the company’s market footprint. He and his growing marketing team will also drive product marketing, corporate communications and channel program strategies.

“Surgient’s growth is matching the exponential pace of the broader virtualization market due to the rapid adoption of our heterogeneous and scalable enterprise solutions,” said Tim Lucas, president and CEO of Surgient. “Craig’s diverse background and leadership comes at a time when we are experiencing dramatic customer traction by enterprise IT organizations within the Global 2000. We are pleased to have Craig join our team to help drive our ongoing growth.”

Parks brings more than 25 years of marketing experience to Surgient, having helped build high-growth technology companies throughout his career. Most recently, he served as chief marketing officer of Biophysical Corporation, where he introduced the company‘s brand, drove its market visibility and expanded its channel strategy. Previously, he founded Socket Public Relations/Austin, a leading technology communications firm, where he led the overall operations of the firm and provided strategic counsel to technology clients in the enterprise software, hardware and Internet industries.

After substantial growth, SocketPR was acquired by Hill & Knowlton, one of the top three global communications firms. Following the acquisition, Parks served as executive vice president and general manager for Hill & Knowlton’s tech practice under the brand Blanc & Otus/Austin. Previously, Parks held positions as vice president of corporate communications and investor relations for Boundless Technologies, and as manager of marketing communications for The Continuum Company.