ITEXPO 2017 Keynoter Sumit Dhawan Talks Digital Transformation

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ITEXPO 2017 Keynoter Sumit Dhawan Talks Digital Transformation

By Paula Bernier, Executive Editor, TMC  |  November 02, 2016

VMware’s Sumit Dhawan will present a keynote at the upcoming ITEXPO (News - Alert) about how technologies like business and cloud are allowing businesses to quickly adapt to new business models and what disruption of the workspace means to enterprises and end users. 

As senior vice president and general manager of VMware’s End-User Computing desktop business, he leads product development, product management, and GTM strategy for VMware’s complete Desktop Cloud Services portfolio (Horizon), Application Lifecycle Management solutions (App Volumes), and integrated solutions strategy to deliver the Digital Workspace (Workspace ONE). He also oversees the integration of EUC’s Desktop, Mobile, Identity, and Productivity Application portfolios into the industry’s first consumer-simple, enterprise-secure Digital Workspace solution, Workspace ONE.

INTERNET TELEPHONY recently checked in with Dhawan to learn more about plans for his presentation and the important trend of digital transformation.           

What will you be talking about during your keynote speech at ITEXPO?

Dhawan: Businesses are evolving and so is their use of technology to remain competitive in the industry. New ownership models, mobile work styles, and cloud computing use cases represent the current state of the industry VMware calls the mobile-cloud era. These changes have disrupted the traditional model for end-user computing, or EUC. In my keynote, I will discuss how these new business and workplace dynamics require a break from tradition with a new approach using a digital workspace.

Why did you select this particular topic, and why is it especially relevant to ITEXPO attendees at this point in time?

Dhawan: Businesses are struggling with employees bringing their own technology, shadow IT, application management, identity management, and complex access to company resources by end users. There is an opportunity for service providers, carriers, enterprises, and resellers to use the digital workspace to help businesses overcome those struggles

What does the term digital transformation mean to you?

Dhawan: For me, digital transformation means that businesses are using technology to change the way people work, with smarter processes and workflows that make us more productive, and by using technology in more than a status quo, keep-the-lights-on way. It means using technology to change your industry, reimagine your products, and solve customer problems in exciting new ways. Think Domino’s, Uber, Tesla – all of which are using technology to ignite new growth markets, bring exciting new digital products to market, and ultimately change the way people view their industries.

Why are we hearing so much about digital transformation at this particular point in time?

Dhawan: Workplace culture is changing, employees are no longer working exclusively in the office, and end users want anytime, anywhere access to company resources using any device. An increasingly technology-savvy workforce is demanding a more consumer-like experience from IT and with cloud services and mobile applications easily accessible, employees will work around IT if their needs are not met – creating a problem often referred to as shadow IT. A digital transformation in support of end users can help them be more productive and work smarter in a more flexible way. From a business perspective, digital transformation will enable lines of business to move at a faster pace with efficiency. It will also offer new analytics and insights that will enable the business to be more effective in serving the needs of its internal audience and external customers.

       

What are businesses’ biggest challenges in undergoing digital transformations?

Dhawan: One of the biggest challenges is realizing that you need a digital transformation, understanding that it’s not a nice to have – it’s a must have to stay competitive (new products, services, talent acquisition, etc.) and to protect against rising cyber threats (inside and out). After that, it’s often overcoming the inertia, siloed IT, and cultural resistance to change within an organization.

       

What is VMware doing to help businesses in their digital transformations?

Dhawan: VMware offers a platform for delivering secure digital workspaces for flexible workstyles and bring your own device. Using the principles of consumer simple and enterprise secure, the digital workspace delivered by VMware delivers any application to any device. This workspace addresses the end user and enterprise IT business mobility needs by aggregating all devices, applications, and services while securely managing them through unified common access and identity. A digital workspace can give IT a more efficient, simplified way of managing users, devices, and applications. It also provides line of business a secure and powerful platform on which to build and rebuild business processes that enable a more effective mobile workforce to compete in the market.

       




Edited by Alicia Young

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