By Mike Marx, VMware EUC Consultant
Why do virtual desktop implementations always follow the Status-Quo? Numerous times, I have encountered administrators that are fearful of change for one reason or another. An exciting virtual desktop strategy will quickly change into a routine humdrum desktop replacement project when the only incentive seems to be: “This is the way we always do it and we can’t change.”
I remember taking a bold step into uncharted territory when I was managing an IT department for a University back in the early 2000s. At that time, allowing customers to bring their own computers and access internal network resources was unheard of! This strategy is now commonly called BYOD. [Bring Your Own Device] My strategy was out of the box, had new challenges and requirements, but quickly brought value and a competitive edge to the University. I completely attribute the success of that project to the shared knowledge of the strategy. Everyone from top management down to the support desk was aware of the strategy and contributed to the initiative. There were technical challenges and support challenges, but everyone was engaged, creative, and knew why we were entering this “Bold New World.”
Culture change takes time and everyone wants to do things better. Somewhere along the way, the virtual desktop strategy has simply become the Status-Quo running on virtual hardware. Companies must listen to their employees and develop the virtual desktop strategy to effectively deliver productive tools to their end-users. Some do, but it appears that listening is where the strategy ends in most cases.
A virtual desktop strategy is flexible, it is efficient, it is easy to support and is exciting. It can provide everything that end-users want. In short, it challenges the Status-Quo and promotes productivity and creativity. I encourage companies to develop their virtual desktop strategy and challenge their engineers and support staff to come up with creative ways to change the Status-Quo. Too often, we [IT] end up creating new ways to prevent end-users from utilizing their desktop as a creative tool.
When you are considering implementing per the Status-Quo, keep these points in mind…
Remember when you wanted:
- A Mainframe terminal…
- A Desktop PC…
- A Laptop PC
- A Blackberry…
- A Smart-phone …
- An iPad…
It’s time for Status-Go!
-Mike Marx
| Mike Marx is a Senior Consultant with the End User Computing group at VMware. He has been an active consultant using VMware technologies since 2005. He is certified in VCP, VSP, VTSP, VCA-DT and VCP-DT, as well as an expert in VMware View, Thinapp, vSphere and SRM. |
