We recently commissioned the Enterprise Strategy Group by TechTarget to conduct a comprehensive survey to better understand Windows app management and its impact on managing virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI), desktop as a service (DaaS), and published applications. Our goal was to understand, directly from IT decision makers, if app delivery and management is a real challenge for enterprises. The survey results provide valuable insights about how organizations deploy, manage, and retire their applications. Before delving into the survey outcomes, let’s understand who was surveyed.
The survey targeted 200 IT decision makers in North America actively involved in desktop and app deployment and management. These respondents were from organizations with 500+ employees, spanning industries such as retail/wholesale, manufacturing, technology, and finance. The survey covered various aspects related to app management, and the following key findings emerged.
Windows app management is very complex
For those of you coming from a background of VDI, DaaS, and published apps, the intricacies of Windows app management are no secret. What’s interesting is that, on average, organizations are dealing with 277 Windows apps in their environment; a much larger number than I expected. It is worth noting that the average numbers vary by organization size:
- 143 Windows apps for those with 500 to 999 employees,
- 233 Windows apps for those with 1000 to 4,999 employees,
- 487 Windows apps for those with 5,000 or more employees.
In a world dominated by constant app sprawl, IT departments find themselves deploying hundreds of applications for end users. This means updates to these apps require IT admins to redo everything from packaging to testing, to providing entitlement for the right users, and then delivering and sometimes retiring those hundreds of Windows apps. Any deviation from the plan necessitates a rollback, adding to the complexity. Moreover, the survey revealed that organizations, on average, allocated more than 22 full-time employee equivalents to handle these tasks. Additionally, IT is grappling with the management of 41 different base images, exacerbating the Windows app management challenge. Many times, if an app needs to be updated, base images do, too. This takes time and resources that could be well spent elsewhere.
Business challenges arise from Windows app management complexity
As highlighted by the survey respondents, the Windows app complexity not only burdens IT departments but it also leads to business challenges:
- More than two-thirds of respondents faced inefficiencies in app packaging and testing.
- 70% underscored challenges in updating apps, including compatibility issues with existing management tools, other apps, or operating systems.
- Another 70% of the respondents mentioned long app load times and difficulties in establishing security controls.
Modern app management platforms solve these challenges
To resolve these challenges, some of organizations leverage app deployment and management platforms like App Volumes to reap various benefits, including:
- A 29% reduction in effort required for Windows app packaging and sequencing.
- A 28.8% decrease in time and effort needed to deploy applications.
- Enhanced app compatibility and security improvements, emphasized by 80% of respondents.
- Reduced capital expenditure, storage, and licensing costs, as highlighted by more than 70% of IT decision makers.
- Simplification of app management for virtual desktops, published apps, and non-persistent desktops, acknowledged by 70% or more of the respondents.
Conclusion
To summarize, Windows app delivery and management challenges are real, and they will only grow with the increasing number of apps used by organizations. However, instead of dealing with a daily struggle, IT teams can deploy a reliable modern app management platform, such as App Volumes, to provide the required simplicity and efficiencies organizations need.
App Volumes has helped thousands of enterprises globally to streamline and modernize their Windows app delivery and management and to stay efficient with more automation. To learn more about App Volumes and try it for free, visit the App Volumes product page. You can also watch the conceptual lightboard videos from App Volumes product leader Jeff Ulatoski. Find a PDF of the full Enterprise Strategy Group infographic here.
