VMware Partnership Perspectives

Jonathan Harrison is the Managing Director of North America Infrastructure Engineering Lead, within Accenture’s Cloud-First where he is responsible for helping organizations navigate the Cloud Continuum—from public to private to the edge. In September of 2020 Accenture made a historic investment in cloud-first initiatives and since then have brought together 70,000 IT professionals to help businesses move to the cloud faster. In this episode, Kathleen and Jonathan discuss how VMware and Accenture’s expanded partnership—the VMware Accenture Business Group—is helping organizations accelerate cloud migration and ultimately realize greater value. Saving cost is often the catalyst to change, but businesses are leveraging the alliance between VMware and Accenture to achieve far more. Enjoy this encouraging and articulate conversation with a fantastic guest.

About the Guest:

Jonathan Harrison is Managing Director of North America Infrastructure Engineering Lead within Accenture Cloud First. You can find Jonathan on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathan-harrison-550ab72/.

About the Host:

According to Chris Wolf, Chief Research and Innovation Officer at VMware, it’s all about incubating and building important new technologies that become products. That’s why VMware is aligning with partners, customers, and R&D business units to innovate not just for the sake of innovation, but to help companies prepare for an uncertain future. In this episode, Kathleen and Chris discuss the importance of co-innovation with partners at the early stages of research and development, and how collaborating with Business Units on a per-project basis is an “intentionally inefficient” way of innovating—and also the right way. Chris has a special ability to communicate complex technology trends in ways that make them more accessible and promote deeper understanding. Hear his expert insights in this fascinating conversation.

About the Guest: Chris Wolf is Chief Research and Innovation Officer at VMware. You can find Chris on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cswolf/.

About the Host: Kathleen Tandy is Vice President of Global Partner and Alliances Marketing at VMware. You can find Kathleen on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ktandy85/, or on Twitter at @kaktandy.

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As CEO and co-founder of Xtravirt, Gavin Jolliffe leads a talented team focused on empowering enterprises to step into the unknown and thrive in an ever-changing digital world. Xtravirt’s dedication to developing technical expertise and supporting customers across their entire lifecycle has helped it become one of VMware’s most accredited managed services partners globally. In this episode, Kathleen and Gavin discuss how creating value-driven relationships helps customers achieve change amid uncertainty. They also share insights from a recent study conducted by Forrester which found 97% of IT decision-makers have struggled with adopting cloud models, while 74% plan on moving to the cloud soon and discuss how managed service providers like Xtravirt can help in this transition. As companies’ desire to modernize continues to grow, leading firms like Xtravirt will continue solving the complexities of transformation with experience, integrity, and agility. Enjoy this conversation with one of our Principal Partners.

About the Guest: Gavin Jolliffe is CEO and Co-founder of Xtravirt. You can find Gavin on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gavinjolliffe/ or on Twitter at @gavinjolliffe

About the Host: Kathleen Tandy is Vice President of Global Partner and Alliances Marketing at VMware. You can find Kathleen on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ktandy85/, or on Twitter at @kaktandy.

According to Sachin Bhatia, CMO of Lenovo Infrastructure Solutions Group in Asia Pacific, the last several months of pandemic-sparked disruption delivered an unexpected upside. Prompted by rapid changes to get creative and move away from traditional tactics, they’ve essentially earned an “MBA 2.0”. In this energetic conversation, Sachin and Kathleen discuss how marketing can be the headlights of a business, the importance of a customer-focused agenda, and how Lenovo is uniquely positioned to manage global supply chain processes. When you hear Sachin talk about Lenovo’s “Everything as a Service” approach and how they are bringing a software mindset to silicon, it will be clear why Lenovo won the VMware Partner Innovation Award for Global Alliances in 2021.

About the Guest: Sachin Bhatia is the Chief Marketing Officer for Lenovo Infrastructure Solutions Group, Asia Pacific. You can find him on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sachinbhatia2018/ or on Twitter at @sachinCMO

About the Host: Kathleen Tandy is Vice President of Global Partner and Alliances Marketing at VMware. You can find Kathleen on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ktandy85/, or on Twitter at @kaktandy.

Kishore Modak, General Manager of Marketing for APJ at Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), believes in a simple principle when it comes to building successful partnerships: Evaluate what you are getting against what you are giving up. In this episode, Kathleen and Kishore discuss the benefits of a partner-led integrated marketing strategy, how HPE GreenLake’s consumption-based pricing model differentiates it from competing for edge-to-cloud platforms, and more. According to Kishore, harnessing the power of the tremendous amount of data we now have available is a vital part of creating new and innovative ways to connect with customers. Don’t miss this delightfully candid conversation with a brilliant marketing leader.

About the Guest: Kishore Modak is General Manager of Marketing-APJ at HPE. You can find him on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kishore-modak-a183012/.

About the Host: Kathleen Tandy is Vice President of Global Partner and Alliances Marketing at VMware. You can find Kathleen on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ktandy85/, or on Twitter at @kaktandy.

As SVP of Global Partner Marketing at Dell Technologies, Cheryl Cook has been responsible for driving the company’s long-term partner marketing strategy for more than a decade.  A champion of a more inclusive IT ecosystem, Cheryl wants companies to realize the full potential of a truly empowered work environment. In this episode, Kathleen and Cheryl discuss Dell and VMware’s longstanding partnership, joint innovations, and future growth opportunities. They talk about shifting trends in the IT industry, the evolution of partner collaboration, and the importance of prioritizing diversity, equity, and inclusion to maximize businesses’ impact. Dell and VMware have been laying the foundation for the future of IT for years, and we are beyond excited to see what comes next. Enjoy this inspiring and informative chat.

About the Guest: Cheryl Cook is SVP of Global Partner Marketing at Dell. You can find Cheryl on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cherylscook/, or on Twitter at @CookCherylS. To support and learn more about the Brit Rose Foundation, please visit: https://shopbritrose.com/  

About the Host: Kathleen Tandy is Vice President of Global Partner and Alliances Marketing at VMware. You can find Kathleen on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ktandy85/, or on Twitter at @kaktandy.