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VMware Delivers ‘Cloud-Smart’ Approach for the Multi-Cloud Era at VMworld 2021

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Back view of employee have online web conference with colleagues - VMware News and Stories

VMware Anywhere Workspace Makes Collaboration Using Zoom Simpler and Safer for Hybrid Workforces

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VMware Helps Secure the World’s Digital Infrastructure and Anywhere Workspaces

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VMware Expands SaaS Innovations on Industry-Leading Horizon Platform

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businessman working in office - VMware News and Stories

VMware Named a Leader in the 2021 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Unified Endpoint Management for Fourth Year in a Row

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5 Considerations for a Return-To-Office Strategy

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How Victoria University Revolutionized Its Learning Model

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5 Trending Careers Because of COVID-19 and Remote Work

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5 Ways to Make Remote Work Really Work—Today and Tomorrow

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Special Report Pandemic Education Trends - VMware News and Stories

Special Report: The Future of Education

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Hindsight Is 2020: What the Pandemic Taught Us About Supporting an Anywhere Workforce

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Introducing VMware Cross-Cloud Services to Deliver Freedom, Flexibility and Security for Customers Across Any Cloud

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PALO ALTO, Calif. -- VMworld 2021 -- At VMworld 2021, VMware, Inc. (NYSE: VMW) announced its strategy to help customers navigate the multi-cloud era with the launch of VMware Cross-Cloud services. This group of integrated services will help deliver a faster and smarter path to cloud for digital businesses, providing customers with the ability to build, run and better secure apps across any cloud with freedom and flexibility.  

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Today, the average organization is running roughly 500 apps to drive their business,1 and those apps are distributed across clouds. Seventy-five percent of VMware customers are relying on two or more public clouds, and 40% are using three or more.2 This multi-cloud approach increases app velocity and innovation and allows organizations to be much more agile and resilient. However, a multi-cloud environment is far more diverse, complex and distributed than anything organizations have managed in the past. This complexity often forces trade-offs between moving fast and managing risk, resulting in slower execution while increasing costs. VMware's strategy is built to help customers eliminate the tough choices and challenges by giving them a powerful combination of freedom and control in their multi-cloud business.

“Multi-cloud is the digital business model for the next 20 years, as entire industries reinvent themselves,” said Raghu Raghuram, chief executive officer, VMware. “It’s no longer about a ‘cloud first’ approach—it’s about being ‘cloud smart’. Organizations should have the freedom to choose the ’right’ cloud, based on their strategic business goals. With our cloud-agnostic approach, we are uniquely positioned to meet our customers where they are and take them where they want to go. We give every organization the power to accelerate their innovation and control their own destiny in the multi-cloud era.”

“During the past year, organizations fully embraced digital transformation as they were forced to respond to many dramatic changes, accelerating their innovation timelines at record paces,” said Richard Villars, group vice president, IDC. “Organizations rely heavily on cloud technologies to evolve and scale as they pivot to competing in a digital-first economy. VMware’s multi-cloud-focused strategy puts it in a strong position to help enterprises take full advantage of multiple clouds and their resources in their own data centers to improve resiliency and the trusted use of technology for delivery of better experiences and business outcomes.”

VMware Cross-Cloud Services for All Apps

To help customers navigate the multi-cloud era, VMware Cross-Cloud services will deliver three key advantages: an accelerated journey to the cloud, cost efficiency, flexibility and control across any cloud. VMware Cross-Cloud services expands the capabilities of VMware’s product portfolio for a multi-cloud world and will allow customers to pick and choose the services needed on the desired cloud to meet evolving business demands. VMware Cross-Cloud services is comprised of five core building blocks:

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At VMworld 2021, VMware is also announcing a variety of new innovations that span VMware Cross-Cloud services, including:

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Customers Accelerate Multi-Cloud Journeys with VMware

SGB-SMIT group is the number one medium-sized manufacturer of transformers for data centers in Europe. “A multi-cloud environment is the basis of our virtual company. We are regularly introducing new cloud-based apps, to disconnect from the old way of working,” said Salvatore Cassara, chief information officer, SGB-SMIT Group. “To do this, we need the flexibility to scale quickly and move workloads between cloud providers without restrictions. VMware brings together our different cloud elements and really allows us to reinvent how we collaborate, and ultimately enable innovation throughout the company.”

Western Union is a world leader in cross-border business payments. “Over the past year, we have focused on innovating to truly rally around our customers and deliver the best experience,” said Sada Iyer, head of infrastructure, Western Union. “Like many financial organizations, part of our technology modernization journey is moving to the cloud. With VMware, we have the flexible multi-cloud model required for the digital age as we look to accelerate innovation across our global platform.”

VMware Strategy and Innovations Designed to Fuel Growth for Partners in Services and Cloud

VMware <a href="https://blogs.vmware.com/partner/2021/10/partner-announcements-vmworld21.html">announced</a> several new partner program innovations aligned to its customer first, partner-led strategy, including VMware Cloud Universal enabled for reseller partners, and VMware Success 360, which allows partners with master services competencies (MSCs) to, for the first time, offer their own customer success services for all the stages of the customer journey with VMware solutions. In addition, new and refreshed VMware Customer Lifecycle Incentives are designed to fuel partner growth in services and cloud.

For the latest news on how VMware is delivering a smarter path to cloud for digital businesses, visit the <a href="https://news.vmware.com/vmworld-2021-media-kit">VMworld 2021 media kit</a>.

VMworld 2021 is the world’s premier cloud computing and digital infrastructure event. VMworld features 600+ unique sessions and labs, more than 75 sponsors, and several networking events to accelerate the journey to a software-defined business—from mobile devices to the data center and the cloud. VMworld attendees will have unparalleled access to the knowledge and tools they need to master the new cloud landscape and transform their business. To learn more about VMworld, please visit: <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.vmworld.com&esheet=52471361&newsitemid=20210804005382&lan=en-US&anchor=www.vmworld.com&index=10&md5=6bae07ad0e79fa107c34cb3656669e8d" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">www.vmworld.com</a>.

VMware is a leading provider of multi-cloud services for all apps, enabling digital innovation with enterprise control. As a trusted foundation to accelerate innovation, VMware software gives businesses the flexibility and choice they need to build the future. Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, VMware is committed to building a better future through the company’s 2030 Agenda. For more information, please visit <a href="http://www.vmware.com/company" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">www.vmware.com/company</a>.

VMware and VMworld are registered trademarks or trademarks of VMware, Inc. or its subsidiaries in the United States and other jurisdictions.

Samantha Mayowa, VMware Global Communications, + 1 (781) 552-3062, <a href="mailto:smayowa@vmware.com">smayowa@vmware.com</a>

Samantha Mayowa, VMware Global Communications, + 1 (781) 552-3062, <a href="mailto:smayowa@vmware.com">smayowa@vmware.com</a>

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VMware Unveils ‘Cloud Smart’ Approach for the Multi-Cloud Era! Read more about VMware Cross-Cloud Services, announced at VMworld 2021:

VMworld 2021: VMware Unveils Cross Cloud Services

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VMware Delivers ‘Cloud-Smart’ Approach for the Multi-Cloud Era at VMworld 2021 - VMware News and Stories

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Company Also Receives Highest Product Scores in Three of Four Use Cases in 2021 Gartner® Critical Capabilities for Unified Endpoint Management Tools Report
PALO ALTO, Calif.&#8211;(BUSINESS WIRE)&#8211;VMware, Inc. (NYSE: VMW) today announced it has been positioned by Gartner, Inc. as a Leader in the 2021 Magic Quadrant for Unified Endpoint Management (UEM). According to Gartner, VMware has been evaluated for its ability to execute and completeness of vision. This is the fourth consecutive year VMware has been named a Leader for VMware Workspace ONE in the Gartner market evaluation for unified endpoint management.
In addition, Workspace ONE has received the highest product scores across three of the four defined use cases – Security-Centric, Remote Worker, and Modern Windows Management – in the 2021 Gartner Critical Capabilities for Unified Endpoint Management Tools report.
“When it comes to enabling an anywhere workforce, one size will not fit all. To accommodate the various ways employees prefer to work, IT teams are equipping them with a mix of devices, with different form factors, operating systems and apps,” said Shankar Iyer, senior vice president and general manager, End-User Computing, VMware. “We continue to innovate Workspace ONE to help IT make sense of this complex end user computing environment and we believe this recognition by Gartner validates our commitment to our customers in this endeavor.”
Workspace ONE is one of the core technologies that comprise <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vmware.com%2Fsolutions%2Fanywhere-workspace.html&#038;esheet=52484118&#038;newsitemid=20210831005362&#038;lan=en-US&#038;anchor=VMware+Anywhere+Workspace&#038;index=1&#038;md5=a72a798257c57514ea7a69328dd469fe" rel="nofollow">VMware Anywhere Workspace</a>, an integrated solution that enables employees to work from anywhere with more secure, frictionless experiences. It brings together Workspace ONE with VMware Carbon Black Cloud and VMware SASE.
Workspace ONE UEM, part of the Workspace ONE platform, provides a comprehensive solution that enables companies to manage and better secure any device across all platforms. It incorporates modern device management, application management, and security that’s effective outside the corporate perimeter. It empowers IT to:
<ul class="bwlistdisc">
<li>Intelligently manage every device on every platform: Workspace ONE UEM takes a user-centric approach to manage and secure devices and apps, taking advantage of native MDM capabilities (iOS and Android) and mobile-cloud management efficiencies (Windows, Mac, and Chrome) to simplify management of all devices at scale with a single powerful solution.</li>
<li>Automate the onboarding process over the air: New devices register over the air (with zero touch from IT) during initial power-up with customizable configuration tools like Windows 10 Drop Ship Provisioning, automated device enrollment with Apple Business Manager, zero-touch enrollment of rugged devices, and more.</li>
<li>Flexibly support all use cases: BYOD, corporate-owned, frontline, or purpose-built. Workspace ONE UEM has IT teams covered in all scenarios.</li>
<li>Easily manage apps and provide a consistently positive self-service employee experience: Workspace ONE UEM helps employees work effectively from anywhere by providing a self-service unified app catalog that is consistent in look, feel, and function across all devices and platforms. The app catalog optimizes productivity with unified one-touch access to all types of apps—native, SaaS, virtual, and web.</li>
<li>Make data-driven decisions and automate important repetitive processes: Dashboards can be customized in infinite ways to give admins the data that matters most, and analytics help IT resolve issues that can negatively impact the overall security risk posture and user experience. Using dynamic policy engines, admins can automate routine processes to minimize manual tasks for the IT team. Similarly, they can empower employees with self-service capabilities to reduce support requests.</li>
<li>Secure devices, apps, and data at rest and in transit: Workspace ONE UEM reinvents device hygiene by addressing security on multiple fronts and providing rich management controls, device posture checks, and per-app tunnel capabilities as a foundation for organization’s zero-trust network access (ZTNA) initiatives.</li>
</ul>
Additional Resources:
<ul class="bwlistdisc">
<li><a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vmware.com%2Flearn%2F1053407_REG%3Fcid%3D7012H000001KZTzQAO&#038;esheet=52484118&#038;newsitemid=20210831005362&#038;lan=en-US&#038;anchor=Access&#038;index=2&#038;md5=b9e8a043de3466ee4085c1d42c438ec5" rel="nofollow">Access</a> a complimentary copy of the August 2021 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Unified Endpoint Management</li>
<li><a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vmware.com%2Flearn%2F1053172_REG%3Fcid%3D7012H000001KZTzQAO&#038;esheet=52484118&#038;newsitemid=20210831005362&#038;lan=en-US&#038;anchor=Access&#038;index=3&#038;md5=0377c4a126006712e30e280dd5c37a52" rel="nofollow">Access</a> a complimentary copy of the August 2021 Gartner Critical Capabilities for Unified Endpoint Management Tools</li>
<li>Learn more about VMware’s digital workspace platform, <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vmware.com%2Fproducts%2Fworkspace-one.html&#038;esheet=52484118&#038;newsitemid=20210831005362&#038;lan=en-US&#038;anchor=VMware+Workspace+ONE&#038;index=4&#038;md5=37de7dbfa8f7bafd67d15182ea3fdc33" rel="nofollow">VMware Workspace ONE</a></li>
<li>Bookmark the <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fblogs.vmware.com%2Feuc%2F2021%2F08%2Fhorizon-control-plane-update.html&#038;esheet=52484118&#038;newsitemid=20210831005362&#038;lan=en-US&#038;anchor=VMware+End-User+Computing+Blog&#038;index=5&#038;md5=821e4a16788224deac9c910c4923880a" rel="nofollow">VMware End-User Computing Blog</a></li>
<li>Follow VMware Workspace ONE on <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2Fworkspaceone&#038;esheet=52484118&#038;newsitemid=20210831005362&#038;lan=en-US&#038;anchor=Twitter&#038;index=6&#038;md5=b8b8d2e25820389d7260bd7ca6240b09" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a>, <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fvmwareworkspaceone%2F&#038;esheet=52484118&#038;newsitemid=20210831005362&#038;lan=en-US&#038;anchor=Facebook&#038;index=7&#038;md5=c89e01c417a5b749ce727bced5ab80e1" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a>, and <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fcompany%2Fvmware-workspaceone%2F&#038;esheet=52484118&#038;newsitemid=20210831005362&#038;lan=en-US&#038;anchor=LinkedIn&#038;index=8&#038;md5=ed084da817615be2011015a089f2942f" rel="nofollow">LinkedIn</a></li>
</ul>
Gartner, Magic Quadrant for Unified Endpoint Management Tools, <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gartner.com%2Fanalyst%2F94176&#038;esheet=52484118&#038;newsitemid=20210831005362&#038;lan=en-US&#038;anchor=Dan+Wilson&#038;index=9&#038;md5=9c074c89bbbb0bf0a192b3aa44b4e17e" rel="nofollow">Dan Wilson</a>, <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gartner.com%2Fanalyst%2F48076&#038;esheet=52484118&#038;newsitemid=20210831005362&#038;lan=en-US&#038;anchor=Chris+Silva&#038;index=10&#038;md5=b46eb6b9d2d393de006b16e6bede2dff" rel="nofollow">Chris Silva</a>, <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gartner.com%2Fanalyst%2F97722&#038;esheet=52484118&#038;newsitemid=20210831005362&#038;lan=en-US&#038;anchor=Tom+Cipolla&#038;index=11&#038;md5=4eeec387d0de5c72c6729fd5cb0082ad" rel="nofollow">Tom Cipolla</a>, 16 August 2021 
Gartner, Critical Capabilities for Unified Endpoint Management Tools, <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gartner.com%2Fanalyst%2F94176&#038;esheet=52484118&#038;newsitemid=20210831005362&#038;lan=en-US&#038;anchor=Dan+Wilson&#038;index=12&#038;md5=a8c0308868fa2be58af89a55056b0bb1" rel="nofollow">Dan Wilson</a>, <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gartner.com%2Fanalyst%2F48076&#038;esheet=52484118&#038;newsitemid=20210831005362&#038;lan=en-US&#038;anchor=Chris+Silva&#038;index=13&#038;md5=020a35999aa1bf3d72b6d59d78fbcd7c" rel="nofollow">Chris Silva</a>, <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gartner.com%2Fanalyst%2F97722&#038;esheet=52484118&#038;newsitemid=20210831005362&#038;lan=en-US&#038;anchor=Tom+Cipolla&#038;index=14&#038;md5=e92a4507f57bf09405023a941ce896ba" rel="nofollow">Tom Cipolla</a>, 17 August 2021
Gartner and Magic Quadrant are registered trademarks of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and is used herein with permission. All rights reserved
Gartner Disclaimer
Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner&#8217;s research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.
About VMware
VMware software powers the world’s complex digital infrastructure. The company’s cloud, app modernization, networking, security, and digital workspace offerings help customers deliver any application on any cloud across any device. Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, VMware is committed to being a force for good, from its breakthrough technology innovations to its global impact. For more information, please visit <a href="https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&#038;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vmware.com%2Fcompany.html&#038;esheet=52484118&#038;newsitemid=20210831005362&#038;lan=en-US&#038;anchor=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vmware.com%2Fcompany.html&#038;index=15&#038;md5=428e2f4e73de08afa347235fb8cdfe58" rel="nofollow">https://www.vmware.com/company.html</a>.
VMware, Workspace ONE and Anywhere Workspace are registered trademarks or trademarks of VMware, Inc. or its subsidiaries in the United States and other jurisdictions.
 
View source version on <a href="http://businesswire.com">businesswire.com</a>: <a href="https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210831005362/en/" rel="nofollow">https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210831005362/en/</a> 
Angela Leaf VMware Global Communications Phone: +1 860 480 3367 <a href="mailto:aleaf@vmware.com" rel="nofollow">aleaf@vmware.com</a>
Source: VMware, Inc.
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VMware Named a Leader in the 2021 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Unified Endpoint Management for Fourth Year in a Row - VMware News and Stories

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VMware Expands SaaS Innovations on Industry-Leading Horizon Platform - VMware News and Stories

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The pandemic continues to affect every corner of the world. Some regions have their highest infection rates so far, while the virus appears to be more controlled in other areas. Facing these varying circumstances, global companies are taking a localized approach to returning employees safely to the office.
But not everyone is lining up to get back to their cubicle. Many employees have expressed a desire to continue to work from home. Others wish to work a few days from the office and the rest from home.
Leaders from Box, Google and VMware shared thoughts on different policies and factors businesses should consider to support a safe, hybrid work environment.
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Return to Office Strategy" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/y-SE2iAM4ls?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
<h2>1. One Size Will Not Fit All</h2>
Put simply, hybrid work is all about enabling seamless collaboration with employees – whether those interactions take place in-person, in an office, or remotely from home or another location. When it comes to supporting a remote workforce, one size will not fit all.
“The hybrid work model is going to look different for every organization. It may even look different for different groups of employees working at the same organization,” commented Shankar Iyer, general manager of VMware’s end-user computing business.
He said businesses must prepare to support multi-modal work styles. Employees will expect their employers to provide them with the tools and technology they require to be productive from anywhere.
Scott Porter, managing director for Chrome Enterprise at Google, shared, “Our return-to-office strategy is centered around flexibility. We anticipate 60% of Google employees coming into the office in a hybrid manner – maybe 3 days in the office and 2 from home. Another 20% are likely to choose a new office location to work from. And the final 20% are likely to permanently work from home. I think this situation typifies the type of outcome we will see across most companies in the future.”

What the Pandemic Taught Us About Supporting an Anywhere Workforce

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<h2>2. Equality of Experience</h2>
Varun Parmar, former chief product officer at Box, believes that the most important thing an enterprise can do to support its hybrid workforce is to deliver a great user experience – no matter how or from where an employee logs in. Those that do not deliver in this area will see talent leave in hordes, he warned.
He also cautioned companies to not leave anyone behind when it comes to delivering a great experience to a globally distributed team. “In this new world, you cannot presume every team member of a global team is going to be present for every meeting,” he said.
Parmar predicts this will give rise to a new technology stack that allows for both synchronous and asynchronous collaboration. “This will enable an equality of experience. It is critical that teams think through how meetings are recorded, documented and shared out with all team members in a way that is accessible, searchable and secure.”
<h2>3. Employee Experience Is a Security Feature</h2>
Even the most seasoned security professional will squirm with all this talk about giving employees seamless access to more resources from anywhere. To ease concerns about maintaining security while providing employees with access to critical apps and resources, new security models are emerging.
Iyer explains, “Traditional security tools like VPNs and firewalls are insufficient or incomplete. The modern security model that is being propagated is a zero-trust security model where you can secure the entire distributed edge. This helps not just IT but employees too. Afterall, if IT doesn’t have the right security policies and model in place, they can’t deliver great experiences to employees.”
Iyer hits on an important point. Providing a great user experience while locking down corporate assets are often inaccurately positioned in opposition of one another. Folks at Box see it differently too.
“At Box, one of our fundamental concepts is ‘user experience is a security feature.’ If you don’t deliver a great user experience, employees will look for easier workarounds. This introduces shadow IT and increases risk in the enterprise,” Parmar commented.

To better protect distributed workforces, here are five steps to help reduce risk.

<h2>4. Foster Productivity, Not Burnout</h2>
All three leaders recognize the move to remote work meant less hours in the office, but ultimately more hours logged online. While productivity has been sky-high, they have remained steadfast in making sure employees are not stretching themselves too thin between work and personal engagements.
Parmar says, “Instead of listening to your favorite podcast on your commute home, you are now sitting in a virtual meeting. Meeting fatigue is a real thing. And as leaders, we cannot turn a blind eye to it.”
One way Box is combating employee burnout is implementing Fresh Air Fridays. Once a month, employees enjoy a long weekend. The hope is that employees use the time to disconnect and reenergize, so they come back to work on Monday ready to reengage.
Google and VMware have similar policies in place where employees can take “reset days” or “pandemic leave” in addition to their usual paid time off programs.
Porter believes having the right computing devices (he recommends a Chromebook with built-in LTE wireless capabilities) will help employees make the transition to the “next normal.” He explained, “As COVID restrictions have lifted and you are out and about – say getting your car serviced at a garage – you can actually be productive at the same time. This will help employees better balance work with personal commitments.”

Companies are redefining work as something people do, not someplace they go.

<h2>5. Bring the Lessons of 2020 with You</h2>
While a challenge for many companies to implement overnight, remote work has had its benefits. So many, in fact, that it’s a widely held belief that it is here to stay for good.

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Talent acquisition is one area Iyer believes is forever changed – for the better – due to the shift to remote work. He said, “From a business standpoint, we are getting talent from places we’d never imagine we’d be able to recruit from. Those people have been incredibly productive and made a huge impact on the organization.”
Parmar speaks of a philosophical shift that will drive Box forward in the future. “We’ve adopted the philosophy ‘work is what you do, not where you do it’ and we want to enable Boxers with choice. We believe the world is moving toward a hybrid workplace and we want to make sure at Box we are supporting both remote and in-person collaboration.”
Leaders at every organization – no matter the size or industry – are grappling with when and how to safely return employees to physical offices. Every solution will look different and supporting a hybrid workforce will require constant evaluation and adjustment along the way. For more tips from these leaders, watch the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-SE2iAM4ls">full conversation replay</a>.

VMware Staff

Leaders from Box, Google and VMware share thoughts on policies and factors businesses should consider in their return-to-office strategy.

5 Factors to Consider in Your Return-To-Office Strategy

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VMware Helps Secure the World’s Digital Infrastructure and Anywhere Workspaces - VMware News and Stories

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VMware Anywhere Workspace Makes Collaboration Using Zoom Simpler and Safer for Hybrid Workforces - VMware News and Stories

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The start of the pandemic sent shockwaves through Australia’s fourth-largest export sector: <a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/australian-international-education-cheap-fix#:~:text=International%20education%20earned%20Australia%20A,is%20bedevilled%20by%20policy%20uncertainty">higher education.</a>
Overnight, students suddenly grappled with delayed graduation and disrupted education. Among those most impacted was the group of nearly 90,000 international students. Many students from China, for example, were unable to return to Australian universities after traveling home for Lunar New Year. Universities also <a href="https://www.universitiesaustralia.edu.au/media-item/covid-19-to-cost-universities-16-billion-by-2023/">risked losing $3.1-4.8 billion in 2020 fees</a> alone.
To tackle these challenges, Victoria University (VU) embraced an open digital-centric approach. And the success of its transition can be attributed to their forward-looking technology strategy. With operations across more than 10 physical locations, VU delivered a modern digital experience for over 40,000 students and staff:
<ul>
<li>Anytime, anywhere online engagement.</li>
<li>Replicating offline to online experiences.</li>
<li>Creating better work flexibility for staff.</li>
</ul>

Podcast: Zoran Sugarevski, Executive Director of Information Technology Services at Victoria University, discusses innovation in education technology and how he’s shaping the new student experience online.

<h2>Revolutionizing the Learning Model</h2>
Even before the pandemic struck, VU already used data analytics and a learning approach called the “VU Block Model.” Described as a revolution in Australian education, VU Block Model keeps the traditional duration of a semester (16 weeks). But it allows students to focus on one subject at a time for four weeks, which proved to boost student performance.
VU’s foresight in re-imagining the university curriculum by introducing VU Block Model three years ago enabled many students to perform at the same level—and in some cases better—during the pandemic. While the <a href="https://hbr.org/2020/05/are-you-stuck-in-the-anxiety-distraction-feedback-loop">pandemic provided anxiety induced distractions</a> for many, students were able to minimize study related distractions by focusing their attention on one subject at a time while adapting to their new <a href="https://www.vu.edu.au/about-vu/news-events/media-releases/student-success-rolls-on-thanks-to-vu-s-block-model">virtual environment</a>.
<h2>The Early Bird Has the Roadmap</h2>
And so when it comes to VU’s overall technology strategy, VU has also embraced a progressive approach—a five-year plan which explores current and emerging technologies to create a different, personalized student experience. When the pandemic hit, VU was in its third year of the plan, which helped accelerate the transition to remote learning.
“We&#8217;ve been investing significantly over the years, especially around video conferencing, online learning and collaboration tools,” said Zoran Sugarevski, Executive Director of Information Technology Services, Victoria University. “VMware has been an instrumental partner over many years in reducing our data center footprint, as well as expanding our capacity and capabilities to use technology to better respond to situations like COVID, which has been critical.”

Is online learning the future of education?

<h2>Flexible Learning Anytime and Anywhere Online</h2>
One example is the emphasis on engagement platforms. Prior to the pandemic, VU built a <a href="https://www.vu.edu.au/about-vu/news-events/media-releases/victoria-university-app-wins-australia-s-coveted-good-design-award">multi award-winning mobile app</a> for students and an online engagement platform to connect students. Students are also provided a personalized set of information, whether it be due dates or upcoming assessments.
“Sometimes it&#8217;s difficult for students to gain access to online tools and materials. So being able to put them in a virtualized environment enabled students to migrate from on-campus to online and access all their learning materials remotely,” said Sugarevski.
With technology, the university also replicated connection and interaction—a treasured element of university life made even more precious for students isolated in lockdown.
“It&#8217;s one of the things I think every student values, which is establishing friendships on campus,” emphasized Sugarevski. “And our mobile app has been instrumental to be able to connect students who have similar interests while they&#8217;re learning from home.”
Other measures included ensuring that students with poor infrastructure can access tools like video conferencing.
“VMware solutions do not use a lot of resources to deliver service into the student&#8217;s home,” said Sugarevski. “This allows VU to ensure that there is sufficient capacity within certain areas and that we can moderate traffic and prioritize traffic back into the university.”
Ultimately, the goal was to produce an environment where students and teachers could create productive sessions even during lockdowns. And VU delivered.
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Today, 95% of VU’s faculty and staff use collaboration tools and video conferencing extensively. And this revealed unexpected benefits.
Besides having the flexibility to work anywhere, Sugarevski said, “We&#8217;ve also seen the working hours of employees significantly improve. In the case of Melbourne, being in lockdown and needing to homeschool children had a significant impact on many in our workforce. No longer are our working hours a straightforward 8-to-5. Technology gives us the flexibility to work different hours. I think, moving forward, we will see a lot more employees working from home and adopting new solutions.”
<h2>Future of Education</h2>
VU is just one example of how barriers to technology adoption, due to reticence or culture, disappeared with the arrival and continuation of the pandemic.
While some on-campus teaching might resume in Australia, most classes will be delivered in digital mode. From more immersive experience to personalized, data-driven education, higher education will continue to turn towards the new hybrid model of working and learning.
“I think this is the opportunity for a lot of organizations, and in particular Victoria University, to leverage the likes of VMware and other suppliers. So now is the right time to further invest into those solutions, and I think the adoption rate is going to be far greater,” said Sugarevski.

In the wake of the pandemic, Victoria University enabled “anywhere, anytime” online learning due to its progressive technology roadmap.

Victoria University Embraces a Personalized Online Learning Approach

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The proportion of workers who transition to new occupations will be <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/future-of-work/the-future-of-work-after-covid-19">as high as 25% by 2030</a>. What will some of those occupations be? RADIUS staff explores five careers trending because of the pandemic and the rise of remote work.

The pandemic shook workplaces up. Most employees (72%) say they would prefer a hybrid mix of in-person and anywhere working. Fortunately, <a href="https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/issues/crisis-solutions/covid-19/global-cfo-pulse.html?utm_campaign=sbpwc&#038;utm_medium=site&#038;utm_source=articletext">more than half of businesses today expect</a> remote work to be a permanent part of their workforce strategy.
That’s good news—but only for some. Many jobs that went away aren’t coming back. Nearly 100,000 businesses permanently shut down, according to <a href="https://www.yelpeconomicaverage.com/business-closures-update-sep-2020.html">Yelp.com&#8217;s Local Economic Impact Report</a>. And with technology, especially robotics, automation and artificial intelligence (AI), coming into their own, it’s not surprising that nearly 4-in-10 workers (39%) <a href="https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/issues/upskilling/hopes-and-fears.html">believe their jobs will be obsolete within five years</a>.
Still, there’s a silver lining. Emerging careers using digital technologies expanded, driven by the need to:
<ul>
<li>Enable distributed workers.</li>
<li>Support new business requirements.</li>
<li>Protect the safety, health and well-being of employees.</li>
</ul>
Here are five careers—and tech—accelerating because of COVID-19 and remote work:
<h2>1. Chief Automation Officer</h2>
Digital transformation continues apace. In fact, it sped up during COVID-19. A full 75% of enterprise leaders surveyed by <a href="https://news.vmware.com/nologies/global-survey-digital-investments-growth-business-resiliency">MIT Technology Review Insights</a> believe digital transformation efforts accelerated because of the pandemic. And this acceleration was substantial—by three or four years, <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/how-covid-19-has-pushed-companies-over-the-technology-tipping-point-and-transformed-business-forever">according to McKinsey</a>.
A cornerstone of transformation is automation. Technologies such as robotic process automation (RPA) and automation tools are transforming companies. So, too, can the right <a href="https://www.vmware.com/digital-foundation.html">digital foundation</a>. A secure, flexible digital foundation underpinning transformation projects lets teams integrate tomorrow’s technologies while making the most of what they have today. It replaces manual processes with automation to dramatically boost business agility and operational efficiency.
But because tools are increasingly easy to use, non-technology users are creating islands of automation across enterprises. This can fragment data and slow decision making. A chief automation officer is needed to head a strong automation center of excellence that manages all automation initiatives, ensuring consistent quality and standardization of tools.
<h2>2. Virtual Events Planner</h2>
When COVID-19 hit, some of the biggest business and technology conferences in the world were all canceled. But gatherings like this are extremely popular because it’s where exciting new ideas and products are debuted, and customers get a chance to trade stories.
Many events turned virtual. But with mixed results, at first. Attendees missed the buzz of live panels and demos. Speakers recorded their speeches in empty studios devoid of feedback, often because enterprises lacked the right knowledge and solutions to ensure shows could go on.
Virtual events professionals sprang into action. They began working with IT teams to quickly digitize events. And this meant taking advantage of <a href="https://www.vmware.com/cloud-solutions/multi-cloud.html">multi-cloud infrastructure</a>, webinar tech, video conferencing platforms and other tools to make virtual connections.
<h2>3. Employee Experience Manager</h2>
Scoring high in customer experience is considered critical for business success. And a primary contributor to a good customer experience is employee experience.
If employees are happy, <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11747-019-00655-9">they do a better job supporting customers, making them happier, too</a>. Now, with workers distributed—sometimes across the world—it’s both harder and more important to keep tabs on their satisfaction. Among other things, it means ensuring that people have the right technologies to do their jobs. This means accessing the right data and applications, collaborating with remote peers, and securely getting the job done through an <a href="https://www.vmware.com/welcome/anywhere-workforce.html">anywhere workspace</a>.
Assigning an employee experience manager to keep on top of the employee experience is becoming business critical. And this role continues to evolve—as part of IT and HR organizations—moving into an executive leadership position.
<h2>4. Safe Facilities Designers and Operations</h2>
Once companies start welcoming employees back to work—whatever the conditions—businesses will need different kinds of physical spaces:
<ul>
<li>Safe distancing between desks or cubicles.</li>
<li>Plastic shields.</li>
<li>Properly sanitizing supplies and equipment.</li>
<li>And much more.</li>
</ul>
Someone needs to take charge of these activities. This gives rise to new generation of employees who are responsible for managing intelligent facility designs and operations. For example, many companies are designing “hoteling” offices now that not everyone is coming into the office every day. Under hoteling, employees make a reservation for a desk or conference room (unlike “hot desking,” which is more of a free-for-all). When they arrive at work, everything they need is waiting for them.
This person also collaborates with IT to provide the right equipment and customized support for individual employees exactly when they need it.
<h2>5. Health Monitors/Contact Tracers</h2>
The people side of No. 4 is having health monitors and contact tracers to ensure employees themselves, in addition to facilities, are safe. This might include:
<ul>
<li>Taking the temperature of every person entering a building.</li>
<li>Enforcing mask-wearing mandates.</li>
<li>Sending unwell workers home.</li>
<li>Meticulous contact tracing should someone test positive.</li>
</ul>
To do this right requires building modern <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/">cloud-native apps</a> capable of tracing contact between extended networks of people. Such apps should also keep records that are linked to building security entrance systems, as well as HR time-and-attendance systems.
For example, if someone from a particular workgroup has been exposed, these professionals help ensure relevant people are notified and work from home for a requisite number of days. Likewise, using automated alerts and emerging tech (like machine learning algorithms) help determine whether it’s safe to come into the office or if remote work is the safest bet.
<h2>Looking Forward, Not Back</h2>
As companies try to find the right balance of in-person and remote working policies, employees throughout every industry need to acquire new skills. <a href="https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/issues/upskilling/hopes-and-fears.html">According to PwC</a>, 70% of workers are ready to do this. The pandemic will eventually be put behind us. But the agility and creativity that comes with new opportunities and careers can help enterprises more quickly adapt to crises and keep moving forward.
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The proportion of workers who transition to new occupations will be as high as 25% by 2030. What will some of those occupations be?

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In 2020, the pandemic forced organizations to adopt distributed work and the technologies that enable it. But what employees are experiencing now isn&#8217;t really remote work, said Laurel Farrer, CEO of <a href="https://www.distributeconsulting.com/">Distribute Consulting</a> and founder of the Remote Work Association.
“We are experiencing an international contingency plan for a global catastrophe,” Farrer said. “Never in my 15 years of working remotely have I ever seen people have to be educators and entertainers for children at the same time as they&#8217;re trying to manage a business. And on top of it, they’re shopping from home and worshipping from home. It&#8217;s not normal.”
Which isn’t to say that with remedies, workers’ lives will go back to the way they were. By some estimates, <a href="https://globalworkplaceanalytics.com/telecommuting-statistics">30% of the U.S. workforce will continue to work remote</a>—at least part time—forever, Farrer said.
Many organizations embraced policies to support remote work even after they begin to safely welcome employees back to physical offices. That means companies are redefining work as something people do, not someplace they go. And they’re fundamentally re-imagining how teams function, organize and collaborate to get work done. To that end, Farrer shared a few pointers.
<h2>1. “Remote-First” Mindset</h2>
It doesn’t matter if part of the team works in the office and part works from home. And it doesn’t make a difference if some are overseas and others are at a client site. All are on the same team and need to be part of an “equal employee experience,” Farrer said.
“We want to make sure that we are engaging with our work in the exact same way no matter where we are,” she explained. “If we’re meeting as a team, we&#8217;re all on a Zoom call.”
This extends to colleagues who may be sitting six feet apart, in a coworking space or a client’s conference room. When virtual teams approach collaboration the same way, it helps eliminate proximity bias—a tendency to overlook the role of remote workers or, on the flip side, the feeling by remote workers of being left out.

<h2>2. Overcommunication as the Rule, Not the Exception</h2>
“In remote work, overcommunication is just communication,” Farrer said.
Virtual teams need to compensate for a litany of nonverbal communication available to office-based workers—physical expressions, observation and contextual cues. To support this shift, teams should use all the communication channels available to them to over explain, ask extra questions, offer continual updates and otherwise engage with coworkers.
“At first it feels ridiculous, like you’re talking all the time, but it’s not like that,” Farrer said. “You’re just giving people visibility into your workday that they used to get by visiting the hallways, offices or cubicles onsite.”
<h2>3. Copious and Ongoing Note Taking</h2>
Remote work led teams to hold many more meetings (likely a result of No. 2)—often back-to-back-to-back meetings. Early feedback from workers indicates it can be tricky to keep track of decisions, timelines and next steps. Yes, such confusion occurred even before teams dispersed to work remotely. However, the nature and density of virtual meetings makes the challenge more acute.
“When we hear the word ‘agenda,’ everyone goes ‘ugh.’ But in remote work, it’s important to create meeting agendas and notes because it allows us to come into that synchronous time together and optimize every minute,” Farrer said.
The meeting agenda, maintained in something as simple as a shared document or as rich as a purpose-developed project management app, lays out what the team needs to accomplish. Then, the organizer or designated notetaker adds to it as the meeting progresses, ending by enumerating tasks and assignments.
“And typically, we can just keep a running agenda,” Farrer explained, “pushing down the document with new agendas added to the top so we can always see what happened last week with all the action items.”

<h2>4. Not Everything Requires a Video Call</h2>
Video collaboration platforms are a crucial enabler of remote work. But almost as soon as workers got comfortable with software such as Zoom and Microsoft Teams, camera fatigue set in. By its nature, the video call is a decidedly synchronous form or collaboration. But the strength of a remote-first mindset is in the fact that asynchronous work can have a more profound impact on productivity.
“The superpower of distributed companies is asynchronous communication,” Farrer said. “The more we learn how to stay unified as a team without dependency on shared time, the more we can multitask and get work done.”
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Farrer encourages virtual teams to take meeting agendas and ask which parts of them—if any—really require a video call and which can be accomplished using email or messaging. Eventually, teams should develop a communication charter, which identifies the various channels available (including video calls and Slack) and offers guidance about when to use each.
<h2>5. A Healthy Work-Life Balance</h2>
Many workers are preconditioned to know when to start and stop working based on where they do it—namely in the office. Now that so many will work remotely, they need to develop new triggers and boundaries to indicate when it’s time to be productive. For some, it’s as easy as a dedicated space they only use for work. For others, it’s a routine, like a music playlist used only when it’s time to work.
“The more you can create those conditioned responses, the more you will feel that work-life separation,” Farrer said.
What some newly remote workers don’t understand, however, is that they may need to re-dedicate themselves to “play” to be better at work.
“You&#8217;ve got to be just as deep in your personal life as you are in your professional life—engaging with family, participating in a hobby, going outside.” Farrer explained. “Getting as deep into your personal life as your professional life creates balance, not just boundaries.”
Of course, even as workers adjust to a remote future, organizations must build the <a href="https://www.vmware.com/solutions/remote-work-technology.html">remote work technology</a> foundation to support it. Ultimately, a remote-first mindset is rooted in what technology enables:
<ul>
<li>A <a href="https://www.vmware.com/solutions/empower-digital-workspace.html">digital workspace</a> that gives entire teams resources they need to get the job done.</li>
<li>A flexible network that gives remote workers the same responsive communication experiences no matter where they are or what device they use.</li>
<li>An application infrastructure that speeds service delivery to every part of the world.</li>
</ul>
“At the end of the day, technology allows remote teams to implement their own workflows,” Farrer said. “Remote work is now part of our lives forever. We&#8217;ve got to figure out how to do it the right way.”
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Here are 5 strategies to remote work the right way as organizations re-imagine how teams function, organize and collaborate to get work done.

Improve Your Remote Work Experience with These 5 Strategies

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Is online learning the future of education? And, if so, can it get better?

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Global uncertainties linger about education in the wake of a global pandemic. Could the virtual classroom be the future of education by 2030? If so, will it ever get easier and more effective?

As classrooms closed across the world, <a href="https://data.unicef.org/resources/remote-learning-reachability-factsheet/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">nearly every country implemented some form of remote learning</a>. Suddenly, school was in session—at home.

For years, colleges and universities offered remote learning options, particularly for non-traditional students, like working adults. Students learn off-campus using online tools (or even broadcasts on a TV or radio station). Courses can be live and/or self-paced.

As countries loosened restrictions, many schools reopened with an expanded approach: hybrid learning. This typically means each student can choose to participate either in person or remotely—or a combination of both.

By August 2020, 69% of U.S. K-12 leaders told <a href="https://www.edweek.org/leadership/in-person-learning-expands-student-absences-up-teachers-work-longer-survey-shows/2020/10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">EdWeek Research Center</a> they adopted a hybrid learning approach. And 87% of U.S. colleges and universities planned to offer a hybrid fall semester, according to the <a href="https://www.iie.org/COVID19_FullReport3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Institute of International Education’s COVID‐19 survey</a>. In fact, <a href="https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/11/higher-education-online-change-cost-covid-19/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">half</a> of the adults surveyed across 29 countries believe hybrid learning will be the standard for higher education by 2025.

Many students will continue logging into virtual classes for the foreseeable future. That’s a relief to many students, who enjoy the benefits of remote learning, like the flexibility to learn at their own pace. However, new distractions, technological barriers, and poor digital experiences make remote learning difficult for others.

As education experts quickly pointed out, remote and hybrid learning aren’t the same as true online learning. The former tends to be business continuity plans—a “quick, ad hoc, low-fidelity mitigation strategy,” said <a href="https://www.edsurge.com/news/2020-04-02-what-students-are-doing-is-remote-learning-not-online-learning-there-s-a-difference" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Susan Grajek of Educause</a>. The latter is a more deliberate, planned, digital-first approach to student-centric education.

What education institutions accomplished, in response to the pandemic, swiftly evolved the industry by leaps and bounds. Now, there’s more work to do.

Education Falls Behind in Digital Experience

Roughly 1-in-5 adults said educational institutions deliver a better digital experience now than before the pandemic, according to a 2020 global survey led by VMware. Less than one-third of respondents said they would happily continue interacting digitally with educational institutions. Yet, education generally ranked behind all other industries’ digital experiences.

The global shift to remote learning abruptly moved students to a digital campus. Educators across the world scrambled to teach students in their homes. Students and teachers accessed video conferencing, online learning platforms and other online tools and content.

That was step one, though. Next, educators need to make these digital experiences:

It starts with the institution’s digital infrastructure. Virtual data centers that run on software are less rigid (and less expensive) than hardware. IT organizations with these modern data centers have much more flexibility and agility to accommodate online learning.

IT can quickly gain computing capacity in the cloud, so they can distribute and manage new devices, apps, and virtual desktops from anywhere. IT teams also have more constant visibility into a software-based infrastructure. They can use software automation to fix problems and adjust as needed. This way, digital infrastructure is always available and running at peak performance. And this is especially important for running more advanced applications and interactive, virtual lab environments.

“With optimized data algorithms, VMware vSAN [storage virtualization software] increases the performance of the university’s disk array resources by an order of magnitude, which is important in the case of such solutions as virtual desktop infrastructure. Based on them, we conduct specialized labs which often use advanced applications like CAD 3D,” says Paweł Kołodko, IT director at WSB University in Wrocław.

“In the case of classes for students, problems with configuring and maintaining traditional computers in labs took about 20% of our time. Now, with VMware technologies, everything runs like clockwork. At the start of classes, each student receives a new virtual PC with exactly the same configuration as the rest of the class.”

<a href="https://www.vmware.com/content/dam/digitalmarketing/vmware/en/pdf/customers/vmware-20q2-wsb-university-in-wroclaw-en.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Read the full story</a>.

Keeping Students Safe in a Digital Learning Environment

In the global Digital Frontiers survey, people revealed how assured they felt about their data security by different industries.

Compared to before the coronavirus pandemic began, which if any of the following organizations, would you say have given you the assurance you need that your date and information is secure?

They felt least assured by educational institutions.

Educators are also responsible not only for students’ safety. In hybrid learning environments, these responsibilities expand:

Outdated security models and ineffective tools impede the progress of digital-first learning. It also puts students and institutions at risk. So, education IT leaders are implementing more modern technologies with built-in security and modern security frameworks, like <a href="https://www.vmware.com/topics/glossary/content/unified-endpoint-management">unified endpoint management</a> and <a href="https://www.vmware.com/topics/glossary/content/zero-trust-security">zero-trust security</a>.

For example, Brisbane Catholic Education (BCE) manages tens of thousands of different mobile devices and applications across hundreds of schools all from a single, cloud-based platform. From this control center, IT proactively spots malicious activities and can remotely act on security incidents.

“We’ve had a cloud-first strategy for quite some time, so we’re consuming a lot of software-as-a-service (SaaS), which gives us great visibility into our traffic, so we can notice any anomalies,” said Paul Saltmarsh, senior IT officer at BCE. “We have a highly distributed environment—147 sites over a fairly large geographical area—so the ability to remotely wipe or disable the device at any moment in time has been a cornerstone of us being comfortable with distributed learning.”

With confidence in its security posture, BCE gives students the freedom to take their devices home, so they can develop their digital skills and “always-on” learning mindsets.

“By providing greater visibility over all devices and applications, VMware Workspace ONE has also given BCE a more confident security stance in its operations. “If any device is stolen or compromised, we can remotely wipe the device on Workspace ONE, ensuring compliance with data protection laws,” said Saltmarsh.

“This level of visibility and security also allows us to engage in meaningful conversations about usage and security of data with our students. We can get them to think about how they use their devices and how they can safeguard themselves—teaching them valuable best practices that they can employ as they progress into the workforce.”

core/embed

<a href="https://www.vmware.com/content/dam/digitalmarketing/vmware/en/pdf/customers/vmw-brisbane-catholic-education-en-casestudy.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Read the full story</a>.

Another enduring challenge to online learning is equity. As education digitized over the years, students don’t have equal access to devices, apps, and internet connectivity. Widespread remote learning revealed even greater disparities in the online learning gap.

“We’ve learned about some of the opportunities that online learning can offer, but we’ve also learned how online learning can magnify inequities among our students,” said <a href="https://news.vmware.com/technologies/persis-drell-pioneer">Persis S. Drell</a>, provost at Stanford University. “I worry a lot about the roughly 20% of our students who have more resource-constrained backgrounds.”

Perhaps paradoxically, technology can close the digital learning gap, leaders believe. “I have personally witnessed in Africa what a force for good technology can be,” said <a href="https://www.news.vmware.com/rosa-whitaker-luminaries/">Rosa </a><a href="https://news.vmware.com/esg/rosa-whitaker-luminaries">Whitaker</a>, an African trade and investment expert. “While much remains to be done across Africa, technology is helping to close the education, economic and healthcare gaps.”

Case Study: Three Critical Strategies for a Digital Learning Environment

To achieve the benefits of remote learning, schools and colleges must ensure equitable access to devices, applications, and internet connectivity. Many students need devices, headsets, and access to low-cost or free broadband support, LTE hotspots, or devices with integrated LTE connectivity.

To support these deployments, in addition to UEM and access management platforms, institutional IT departments might consider tools like SD-WAN and telecom expense management.

<a href="https://www.vmware.com/company/customers/index/fullpage.html?path=/content/web-apps-redesign/customer-stories/2020/vmw-retail-giant-simplifies-networks-to-keep-stores-always-connected">Read the full story</a>.

Other components of a digital learning environment strategy can include providing access to high-powered applications and workstations via VDI and remote support.

Even in a hybrid learning model, every student deserves a high-quality digital education. It’s not just about convenience or access. It’s also critical to developing in-demand digital skills among students for the future of work and leadership. This extends to non-traditional students and the general public, as well. In fact, almost one-third of adults believe educational institutions are responsible for developing digital literacy, which is the ability to access and consume a variety of online services.

Case Study: Pimpri Chinchwad College of Engineering

Considered one of India’s leading engineering and management colleges, it was imperative for Pimpri Chinchwad College of Engineering to have the resources needed to prepare students for the future of work. The college saw a need to modernize its IT environment and leverage the benefits of virtualization.

<a href="https://www.vmware.com/content/dam/digitalmarketing/vmware/en/pdf/customers/vmware-pimpri-chinchwad-college-of-engineering-success-story.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Read the full story.</a>

During social distancing and shelter-in-place mandates, many teachers and staff members struggle to keep up with the change of format and pace.

Many teachers weren’t trained and felt uncomfortable with the new tools and processes. And this uncertainty caused significant emotional strain. According to <a href="https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/educator-morale-school-job-applicants-declining-survey-shows/2020/11" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">EdWeek Research Center’s October 2020 survey</a>, “84% of [U.S. K-12] teachers and administrators say teacher morale is lower now than it was prior to the pandemic.”

Technology isn’t a challenge for only K-12 teachers. Right after accessibility, “faculty readiness for online learning” is the top technology concern for colleges and universities, too, according to a <a href="https://cloud.vmware.com/community/2020/09/09/colleges-breaking-barriers-distance-education/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">recent report</a>.

“Getting the faculty to feel comfortable teaching when the student is not in front of them has been a huge challenge,” said <a href="https://blogs.vmware.com/industry-solutions/2020/12/09/five-ways-to-accelerate-digital-first-learning-in-education/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=five-ways-to-accelerate-digital-first-learning-in-education" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Mike Atkins</a>, infrastructure architect at the University of Notre Dame.

Education IT organizations can tremendously lower the technology burden on teachers and staff. To support ‘uninterrupted learning, National Taipei University in Taiwan built an online learning platform and successfully deployed 100 new virtual desktops. Now, the educator can teach as they did in physical classrooms, including roll call, group discussions, and more.

Virtual desktops also enable teachers to manage course progress and students’ learning status. With the help of software tools, teaching is now enriched and efficient, helping maintain consistent quality and positive experiences.

Innovating Faster to the Future of Education

It is an exciting time to be in the education IT industry—or to be a student, teacher, faculty member or parent. Education has never been closer to truly personalizing learning, breaking ground on entirely new learning models. Ultimate, digital experiences help prepare students for the careers of the future.

The modern technologies mentioned above provide the digital foundation for education IT leaders to:

“There is little doubt that the traditional, in-person-only educational model worldwide is changing,” said <a href="https://blogs.vmware.com/industry-solutions/2020/12/09/five-ways-to-accelerate-digital-first-learning-in-education/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=five-ways-to-accelerate-digital-first-learning-in-education" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Herb Thompson</a>, a VMware expert on the digital education industry. “And institutions must become future-ready to accommodate change today and what’s coming tomorrow.”

Jecoby Carter

Is online learning technology the future of education? If so, can it get better?

Global uncertainties linger about education in the wake of a global pandemic. Could the virtual classroom be the future of education by 2030? If so, will it ever get easier and more effective?

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Special Report: The Future of Education | Online Learning Technology

2020 was a year of profound change that required adaptation in nearly every aspect of our lives. As we begin to emerge from the haze that was 2020, we do so with a renewed sense of what is possible.
To borrow from philosopher Søren Kierkegaard: “Life can only be understood backward, but it must be lived forwards.” To me, this encapsulates where most of us are today—reflecting on what used to be, taking in the lessons the pandemic taught us, and forging steadily ahead toward the new normal.
Last year we were in the trenches, working side-by-side with the IT heroes who made remote work possible. We heard their challenges and together defined the opportunities for the future. In the spirit of reflection, VMware recently commissioned Forrester Consulting to evaluate the impact the pandemic had on today’s workforce. Specifically, we wanted to understand how the shift to a more remote workforce impacted security, employee and customer experiences, and operations. To explore this topic, Forrester conducted an online survey with 526 global future-of-work decision-makers responsible for strategy and security.

We found that:
<ol>
<li>Employees gave their remote work experience mixed reviews.</li>
<li>Shared adversity improved relationships between IT and security teams.</li>
<li>Security is top of mind.</li>
</ol>
Let’s dive into the data.
<h2>Employee Experience Gets Mixed Reviews</h2>
By and large, fears about the transition to remote work were not realized. In fact, individuals saw benefits that they&#8217;d be hard-pressed to give up now that they have successfully adapted their work cultures. Of the employees we surveyed, 28% said their experience improved since the start of the pandemic.
However, nearly 40% of respondents saw a decline in employee experience (EX) since the start of the pandemic. Some of the primary EX pitfalls include:
<ul>
<li>Teams within an organization became increasingly siloed, impacting both overall productivity and collaboration.</li>
<li>Technology challenges, specifically with VPN infrastructure and employee devices, are often a source of frustration for employees.</li>
<li>IT help desk tickets continue to soar, overwhelming IT teams and impacting employee productivity.</li>
<li>Onboarding was reimagined as new team members were interviewed, extended offers, and oriented to organizations without ever stepping foot in their new employer’s office. Great strides were made in this area, but it continues to be a difficult process.</li>
</ul>
<img loading="lazy" class="aligncenter wp-image-23981 size-full" src="https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Employee-Experience_Forrester-1.png" alt="" width="1796" height="681" srcset="https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Employee-Experience_Forrester-1.png 1796w, https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Employee-Experience_Forrester-1.png?resize=300,114 300w, https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Employee-Experience_Forrester-1.png?resize=768,291 768w, https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Employee-Experience_Forrester-1.png?resize=1024,388 1024w, https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Employee-Experience_Forrester-1.png?resize=1536,582 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1796px) 100vw, 1796px" />
Despite the mixed reviews, it is unlikely that businesses will ever return to a fully fixed-location model. Even as the safe return to the physical workplace becomes a reality, remote work earned a permanent place in the employment mix. As such, organizations must keep EX top of mind as they make decisions related to supporting employees—no matter where they choose to work.
<h2>Adversity Forges Tighter Bonds Between Security and IT</h2>
Facing the Herculean task of supporting a fully remote workforce—nearly overnight—teams banded together like never before. It appears the bonds forged under fire endure, as respondents report improved relationships with their colleagues today. For example:
<ul>
<li>The reported relationship between IT leadership and IT practitioners went from 33% positive pre-pandemic to 53% positive today.</li>
<li>The reported relationship between security and IT practitioners went from 33% positive pre-pandemic to 52% positive today.</li>
</ul>
HR and workplace resources teams experienced similar improvements, with teams being 36% positive pre-pandemic to 47% positive today. Office and facilities teams went from 38% positive pre-pandemic to 50% positive today.
<img loading="lazy" class="aligncenter wp-image-23982 size-full" src="https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Relationships-Forrester-2.png" alt="" width="1696" height="617" srcset="https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Relationships-Forrester-2.png 1696w, https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Relationships-Forrester-2.png?resize=300,109 300w, https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Relationships-Forrester-2.png?resize=768,279 768w, https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Relationships-Forrester-2.png?resize=1024,373 1024w, https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Relationships-Forrester-2.png?resize=1536,559 1536w" sizes="(max-width: 1696px) 100vw, 1696px" />
Constant collaboration, communication, and alignment between formerly siloed teams will be critical to successfully returning employees to the office, while simultaneously supporting those who choose to continue to work remotely. Perhaps one silver lining is that relationships between the teams responsible for making this happen are stronger than they have ever been.
<h2>Security Takes Center Stage in 2021</h2>
Network security vulnerabilities were a more ominous realization. Thirty-seven percent of enterprises reported an increase in security events since workforces went remote due to the pandemic.
With attacks on the rise, top priorities for the coming year include:
<ul>
<li>Data.</li>
<li>Endpoint and network protection.</li>
<li>Identity/access management.</li>
</ul>
<div id="attachment_23983" style="width: 1000px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-23983" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-23983 size-full" src="https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Security-Forrester-3.png" alt="" width="990" height="497" srcset="https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Security-Forrester-3.png 990w, https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Security-Forrester-3.png?resize=300,151 300w, https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Security-Forrester-3.png?resize=768,386 768w" sizes="(max-width: 990px) 100vw, 990px" />Base: 526 global future-of-work decision-makers with responsibility for strategy and security Source: A commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of VMware, January 2021 As threats evolve and become more sophisticated, security and IT leaders must work together to better secure the remote workforce from external threats.</div>
<h2>A Path Forward</h2>
This year, businesses will move from simply supporting remote work to truly becoming distributed work-from-anywhere organizations. Returning to the office will not mean returning to the old way of doing things. Investing in technology and a long-term strategy will play a huge role in bringing back a stronger, more focused, and more resilient organization.
An integrated workforce solution enables enterprises to embrace a distributed work strategy. This must be done through a secure, scalable, and unified digital infrastructure. To overcome challenges that are impacting employee experiences, solutions must:
<ul>
<li>Improve security across users, devices, networks, clouds, and apps.</li>
<li>Simplify device and network management.</li>
<li>Prioritize delivering exceptional employee experiences.</li>
</ul>

On March 25 at 11:00 a.m. PST, I will join a panel of experts, including guest speakers Andrew Hewitt and David Holmes from Forrester. We will discuss the strategies and critical technologies enterprises must consider as they support a more permanent distributed workforce. We hope you’ll be able to participate in the discussion—either live or on-demand.
<a href="https://www.vmware.com/learn/764043_reg.html?src=wb_EventsListing">FUTURE PROOFING THE REMOTE WORKFORCE: ENTERPRISE</a>
All data cited in this post are sourced from a commissioned study conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of VMware, <a href="https://www.vmware.com/learn/762587_REG.html?cid=7012H000001KVMV&amp;src+em_601ad1da72844">Hindsight Is 2020—The Pandemic Provides A Wake-Up Call: Integrated Solutions Future-Proof Organizations</a>, January 2021.

Renu Upadhyay

37% of enterprises reported an increase in security events since workforces went remote due to the pandemic. Learn why:

What the Pandemic Taught Us About Supporting an Anywhere Workforce

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What the Pandemic Taught Us About an Anywhere Workforce - VMware News and Stories

Even as the safe return to the physical workplace becomes a reality, remote work earned a permanent place in the employment mix. Learn why:

This time last year, our customers were staring down a Herculean task. Almost overnight, IT teams were asked to retool systems and processes to support a fully distributed workforce. They rose to the challenge in heroic fashion. Today, they continue to innovate to support their organizations in an ever-evolving environment.
Many of these organizations have put their trust in VMware and Microsoft. By bringing the best of both companies together, we’re helping customers deliver exceptional digital experiences by enabling any app on any cloud. We make these apps more securely accessible from any device. And for putting their trust in us, we humbly thank them.
Just as our customers’ digital transformation forged ahead in the tumult of 2020, our partnership with Microsoft continues to steadily progress. As our customers (virtually) gather for Microsoft Ignite Spring 2021, we’re excited to share updates on how our companies continue to collaborate in areas most critical to our customers.
A Flourishing Partnership
Today, Microsoft and VMware support thousands of mutual customers spanning all segments, geographies and industries.
With a shared passion for dreaming up and executing big ideas, we integrate and cross-sell technology solutions to drive customers’ digital transformation forward. Our partnership enables customers to migrate mission-critical apps to the cloud, quickly scale infrastructure and enable instant access to data on any device. We do this without compromising user experience, productivity, management, cost or security.
Our partnership with Microsoft is all-inclusive and spans all our strategic priorities:
<ul>
<li>App modernization</li>
<li>Multi-cloud</li>
<li>Virtual Cloud Network</li>
<li>Digital workspace</li>
<li>Intrinsic security</li>
</ul>
App Modernization
Over the past year, VMware and Microsoft unveiled several initiatives to help developers build and deploy powerful apps more quickly and with less headaches.
For instance, just a few months ago at SpringOne, <a href="https://tanzu.vmware.com/content/blog/announcing-the-general-availability-of-azure-spring-cloud" target="_blank" rel="noopener">we announced the general availability of Azure Spring Cloud</a>, a fully managed Azure service for Spring Boot apps. Microsoft and VMware partnered closely on Azure Spring Cloud to enable customers to run their most critical Spring apps in production at scale with confidence.
At Ignite, VMware announced certification of VMware Tanzu Kubernetes Grid with Azure Arc. Faced with the demands of enabling remote workforces and delivering new digital experiences to customers, modern applications that can run on any cloud are now a business imperative. VMware believes Kubernetes will become the dial-tone for modern applications. This can only be achieved through a thriving ecosystem that promotes interoperability. By certifying Tanzu Kubernetes Grid with Azure Arc, we’re teaming with Microsoft to help enterprises achieve the full potential of Kubernetes through a consistent experience.
Multi-Cloud
In the wake of COVID-19, organizations are increasingly adopting a multi-cloud strategy to help ensure continuity, resiliency, and cost efficiency for their business. As such, Azure VMware Solution continues to be an area of great excitement and momentum for both companies.
At last year’s Ignite, <a href="https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/services/azure-vmware/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Microsoft introduced the new Azure VMware Solution</a>, which is now live in eight global regions. The platform continues to deliver for our customers as they more aggressively shift workloads to the cloud.
For example, Azure VMware Solution was instrumental in supporting global retailer Lucky Brands’ digital transformation. Leveraging the company’s past investments in Azure and VMware helped the retailer accelerate its cloud migration to minimize IT costs and ultimately improve the in-store and online shopping experience.

Lucky Brand Finds the Perfect Fit for Better Customer Insights with Azure VMware Solutions

Microsoft Azure VMware Solutions were instrumental in supporting Lucky Brand’s digital transformation. Leveraging the company’s past investments helped the retailer minimize costs and accelerate migration.

<a href="https://youtu.be/ISh3yfCj7MQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Watch the Video</a>

core/media-text

Perhaps unsurprisingly after a year like 2020, the disaster recovery capabilities of Azure VMware Solution are gaining notoriety among customers. Amoun Pharmaceutical Company, for example, migrated its disaster recovery platform to Azure VMware Solution as part of long-term strategy to move much of its operations to the cloud.

Amoun Boosts Security and Reduces Costs by Migrating Disaster Recovery Center

For pharmaceutical companies, the pressure to deliver new treatments and expand into new markets, while complying with government regulations, requires a nonstop effort. Integral to success is adopting the right technologies to streamline product research, manufacturing and the overall administration of everyday activities. Amoun Pharmaceutical, headquartered in Egypt, is no exception.

<a href="/content/dam/digitalmarketing/vmware/en/pdf/docs/657151aq-css-amoun-uslet-web.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read the Case Study</a>

Virtual Cloud Network
While the progress we’ve made on the cloud infrastructure side is substantial, perhaps the most exciting work we’ve taken on this year is in networking.
As employees transition to a distributed model, optimizing app performance and better securing services at the edge is paramount. We’re collaborating with Microsoft in several ways to help our mutual customers deliver a reliable, consistent experience at the edge.
First, we were an initial launch partner for Azure Virtual WAN. Next, we achieved our status as a Microsoft 365 networking partner. This validates that VMware SD-WAN aligns with <a href="https://aka.ms/pnc/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Microsoft 365 network connectivity principles</a>. Finally, last year, VMware began working with Microsoft on solutions for <a href="https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/blog/microsoft-partners-with-the-industry-to-unlock-new-5g-scenarios-with-azure-edge-zones" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Azure Edge Zones and Azure Private Edge Zones</a>. VMware is the only Azure Edge Zones “public preview” SD-WAN partner with complete automation and Azure portal integration and available to customers for trials.
Today, we announced the integration of VMware SD-WAN in Azure Virtual WAN Hub. The result is an offering that natively integrates the customizable routing intelligence of Azure Virtual WAN with the optimized last-mile connectivity of VMware SD-WAN. This integration provides the following benefits to enterprises of all sizes. This integration will automate and simplify deployment, improve application performance and improve security.
<a href="https://blogs.vmware.com/velocloud/2021/03/03/native-connectivity-of-vmware-sd-wan-in-azure-virtual-wan-delivers-simplicity-performance-and-automation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read this blog</a> and learn about all the ways that VMware has customers’ Azure Networking needs covered.
Digital Workspace
The abrupt and massive shift to remote work drove demand for desktop virtualization. As the workplace continues to evolve, it will continue to play an important role in supporting a distributed workforce both today and in the future.
Many organizations are taking advantage of cloud-based desktop virtualization platforms like VMware Horizon Cloud on Microsoft Azure and Microsoft Windows Virtual Desktop to ease management of these workloads and deliver a consistent user experience.
For example, Ficohsa Group experienced a 15% drop in productivity when COVID hit as they were forced to send employees home without proper tools to work. Ficohsa’s IT team turned to Horizon Cloud on Azure to rapidly address its contact center&#8217;s need to maintain operations and reduce the potential impact to the business. Currently, more than 800 employees at Ficohsa across Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Panama branches use Horizon Cloud on Azure to work effectively from home.

VMware Virtual Desktop and Application Services Accelerate Financial Group’s Productivity and Effectiveness in its New Work From Home Culture

“We needed to implement a solution that, as soon as possible, would generate income that would help us to be able to keep our employees,” said Carlos Molinero, Ficohsa’s IT manager. “We had a large volume of requests from customers, and we had to give them a favorable response time.”

<a href="https://www.vmware.com/content/dam/digitalmarketing/vmware/en/pdf/customers/vmware-ficohsa-group-success-story.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read the Case Study</a>

Last year, <a href="https://blogs.vmware.com/euc/2020/03/windows-virtual-desktop-support.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">we announced</a> the general availability of Horizon Cloud on Microsoft Azure Support for Windows Virtual Desktop. Developed as a service on Azure, <a href="https://www.vmware.com/products/horizon-cloud-virtual-desktops.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Horizon Cloud on Microsoft Azure</a> has been helping customers deploy virtual desktop environments for nearly three years. When Windows Virtual Desktop was announced, VMware and Microsoft worked together to extend the functionality of Windows Virtual Desktop to Horizon Cloud on Microsoft Azure.
<img loading="lazy" class="attachment-large size-large" src="https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/microsoft-vmware-partnership-horizon-cloud-azure.png?w=975" sizes="(max-width: 975px) 100vw, 975px" srcset="https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/microsoft-vmware-partnership-horizon-cloud-azure.png 975w, https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/microsoft-vmware-partnership-horizon-cloud-azure.png?resize=300,168 300w, https://news-editor.vmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/microsoft-vmware-partnership-horizon-cloud-azure.png?resize=768,431 768w" alt="" width="975" height="547">
This collaboration makes <a href="https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/virtual-desktop/partners" target="_blank" rel="noopener">VMware an approved Windows Virtual Desktop provider</a>, enabling customers to have access to a modern, cloud-native platform that delivers enterprise-class features. Because Horizon Cloud on Microsoft Azure is part of the VMware Horizon Service, administrators can now manage all their Horizon environments from the same pane of glass as their Horizon service.
More recently, <a href="https://blogs.vmware.com/euc/2020/09/vmware-horizon-now-runs-on-microsoft-azure-vmware-solution.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">we announced</a> that Horizon now runs on Azure VMware Solution. Customers can now extend the power of Horizon and vSphere to Azure. As a result, they can easily move on-premises Horizon deployments to Azure as part of a cloud migration or transform their Horizon environment into an elastic hybrid and multi-cloud desktop virtualization platform that can help them conquer the challenges of today’s fluctuating workplace.
Intrinsic Security
We also drove integration between VMware Carbon Black and Azure Sentinel. Specifically, the VMware Carbon Black Cloud Endpoint Standard connector was developed to enable customers to easily connect all Carbon Black Endpoint Standard security solution logs with Azure Sentinel, view dashboards, create custom alerts and improve investigation.
Join Us at Microsoft Ignite Spring 2021
The future is bright for VMware and Microsoft and we look forward to connecting with customers at Ignite. While we won’t be together in person, you can join any of these exciting sessions our team is facilitating.
Breakout Session: Learn How to Connect VDI Users to VMware Horizon with Azure VMware Solution and VMware SD-WAN (On-Demand)
Speakers:
<ul>
<li>Gabe Knuth (<a href="https://twitter.com/gabeknuth?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@gabeknuth</a>), senior product line manager, VMware Horizon</li>
<li>Jay Thontakudi, senior product marketing manager, VMware SD-WAN</li>
<li>Trevor Davis (<a href="https://twitter.com/vtrevordavis?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@vTrevorDavis</a>), Global Black Belt, Azure VMware Solution at Microsoft</li>
</ul>
<a href="https://myignite.microsoft.com/sessions/94bb72aa-279d-448a-86ae-7cbc9566234a?source=sessions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click here to watch on-demand.</a>
Ask the Experts: Connecting VDI Users to VMware Horizon with Azure VMware Solution and VMware SD-WAN (Wednesday, March 3, 2021, 2:00 – 2:30 p.m. EST)
Speakers:
<ul>
<li>Jeremiah Megie (<a href="https://twitter.com/vmegie?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@vMegie</a>), senior technical marketing architect, Azure VMware Solution</li>
<li>Hilko Lantinga (<a href="https://twitter.com/hilkolantinga?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@HilkoLantinga</a>), staff end-user computing architect, VMware Horizon</li>
<li>Tejbir Batth, senior staff solution architect, VMware SD-WAN</li>
<li>Paul Ford (<a href="https://twitter.com/birdsofbmore?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@birdsofbmore</a>), director, business development, cloud and infrastructure partners</li>
</ul>
<a href="https://myignite.microsoft.com/sessions/01e12eac-89a0-42ed-83cb-081dcd3eefb2?source=sessions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click here to watch live or on-demand.</a>
Tech Chat: Running VMware Natively on Azure with Azure VMware Solution (Wednesday, March 3, 2021, 5:00 – 5:30 p.m. EST)
Speakers:
<ul>
<li>Jeremiah Megie (<a href="https://twitter.com/vmegie?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@vMegie</a>), senior technical marketing architect</li>
<li>Jeffrey Moore, senior staff cloud solutions architect, Azure VMware Solution</li>
<li>Anthony Wilson, senior director, Azure VMware Solution</li>
</ul>
<a href="https://myignite.microsoft.com/sessions/a22b87b8-dd28-4c6e-9ed6-daf86fad7111?source=sessions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click here to watch live or on-demand.</a>
Editorial Note: This article may contain hyperlinks to non-VMware websites that are created and maintained by third parties who are solely responsible for the content on such websites.

Gregory Lehrer

Gregory Lehrer shares an update on partner initiatives and how to connect

Anywhere Workspace

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VMware Expands SaaS Innovations on Industry‑Leading Horizon Platform

5 Considerations for a Return‑To‑Office Strategy