I can’t believe that this is now 100 episodes! When I started this I certainly didn’t think it would be so popular and as useful as everyone tells me it is. Also, I can’t take all the credit, Feature Fridays is only possible with the aid of the technical experts who come on the show to talk about their products and features, I would like to extend a big thank you to all of you, there are too many names to mention…. but you know who you are.
The statistics from the show to date are amazing, below you can see the lifetime stats from the YouTube playlist and I hope that the show continues to be helpful to all our Cloud Provider partners. Please feel free to email me directly for requests or put comments in the blog, we do monitor them!
Now down to the business of the 100th episode – Sovereign Cloud.
Sovereign Cloud is a key initiative that VMware, with the Cloud industry is leading the way in defining Sovereign key pillars and capabilities for Cloud Partners to self attest to their specific Sovereign capabilities. We have seen a huge update in customers requiring Sovereign capabilities from cloud and also increased pressure on ESG strategies and partner supply chain alignment. With this in mind, I invited Laurent Allard, our head of the Sovereign Cloud initiative in VMware to talk about how the initiative is evolving and the new positioning we have to communicate.
Whilst not all providers deliver to the government or regulated industries, where Sovereign requirements and standards are most in-demand, some of the principles of Sovereign Cloud apply to all cloud providers. The characteristics of a VMware Sovereign Cloud are defined as data sovereignty and jurisdictional control, data access and integrity, data security and compliance, data independence and mobility, and data innovation and analytics. Data Security is an example of where all clouds should pay particular attention, using the VMware security portfolio with solutions such as NSX Advanced Threat Protection (see the Feature Friday), and many more security-focused VMware and ecosystem solutions, you can help protect your customers and establish a zero-trust baseline security stance.
The opportunity for Cloud Providers in EMEA and APAC, where we see the highest demand currently is very big, there is more and more focus on data, and driving a secure data economy for your national interest and growth, is resulting in the need to for Sovereign characteristics. Find out how VMware is looking at this market and the latest VMware position on Sovereign Cloud with our head of Sovereign Cloud Laurent Allard on this 100th Feature Friday.
