Our View from VMworld 2011
Posted on Fri, Sep 16, 2011 @ 09:16 AM
We’re finally coming down from the VMworld 2011 high, as the show themed “Your Cloud. Own It.” hit records of more than 19,000 attendees and 175 breakout sessions.
It’s an invigorating feeling to be among providers like VMware, our customers and other IT leaders, as together we learn to leverage virtualization and the cloud to make information technology a total business solution. In this post, we examine some of the underlining themes and takeaways from VMworld 2011.
The Cloud Era Is Here
In his keynote, Paul Maritz, chief executive officer of VMware, said that the new way of computing is “not just about technology,” but that it will require changes in people, processes and business operations to reach the highest potential.
Imagine upgrading your vehicle from a Honda to a Ferrari. If you change the car, but not your driving style, you’ll see less improvement than you would if you learn to take advantage of the features a Ferrari has to offer. Similarly, upgrading to virtual and cloud technology can drive considerable business results, but only if strategically engineered and managed.
Post-show survey results revealed that while nearly 75 percent of VMworld attendees are currently building or operating in the cloud, with 58 percent of the remainder planning to do so in the best year, more than half of all respondents’ organizations do not have cloud management strategies.
As discussed in a recent MCPc roundtable session, overcoming the challenges along the path to the cloud is complex and takes input from an entire organization. To transition to the cloud successfully, we recommend customers strategically “walk their way to the cloud,” a concept VMworld confirmed.
Next-Gen Applications & Automations
Application development was highlighted as a component critical to cloud adoption, as organizations await a “new generation of applications.” While many of today’s apps are coded to compute serially or linearly, end users have called for more rapid responses. Business needs include access to cloud-based infrastructures, up-to-date data and real-time computing.
Automating virtualization and cloud management was another key topic discussed by VMware representatives — expect to hear more on this in the coming months. While current environments have historically been created and administered manually, the expectation is improvements in vSphere and the management toolsets such as vCenter Operations and vCloud Director means these technologies will be far more “public utility” in form and function. Finally, elastic cloud infrastructure has arrived with the “plumbing” able to be turned on like a light bulb; as long as your organization is ready to make the people and process changes needed to embrace this tectonic shift in compute power
Virtualization and cloud automation would enable IT managers to spend less time on administrative tasks, and focus more on taking advantage of agility enabled by the cloud, to help their organizations improve business processes, innovations and information access.
IT: Delivering Solutions
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It’s no longer about delivering technology. It’s about delivering solutions.
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It’s no longer about STRICT CONTROL and LOCK DOWN of mobile device management. It’s about managing the users so they can connect to the enterprise from any device, easily and securely.
These two trends were evident throughout VMworld 2011, and they reflect a business practice we believe in at MCPc: With the proper infrastructure and tools in place, leveraging technologies like virtualization and cloud can put IT in a position to truly advance the business as a whole. As the roles of CIOs evolve, IT’s strategy must also advance to address holistic, modern business needs.
Keynotes & Comments
Check out the recorded keynote sessions on VMware.com. Maritz in particular provided an inside look at how cloud computing is shaping the next generation of IT. Tuesday’s address from VMware chief technology office and senior vice president of research and development, Steve Herrod (@herrod), showcased a comprehensive cloud infrastructure for the enterprise.
What did you think of VMworld, and what takeaways do you plan on incorporating into your business’ IT strategy?
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Andy Jones is Senior Vice President of Sales. He has more than 15 years of IT industry experience, and is an expert on cloud, virtualization and managed services solutions. Connect with Andy on LinkedIn.
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