NextGenHCI

Thanks everybody!

thanks Ralph, you've been a great host!

Thanks! It was fun!

Thanks everyone!

Odd that simplification is leading the response. Simplification in itself doesn't seem to be of business value. Granted, simplification supports innovation which leads to value.

@CTOAdvisor good point, that was a tough poll haha

@CTOAdvisor I interpret that as not just IT ops, but all ops.

Simplification is also super hard to measure quantatively.

There are only 2 business benefits of IT to most businesses: less cost, higher speed, or higher quality. HCI can deliver lower cost and higher speed WITHOUT giving up control (public cloud).

I think they are aware of the promise when they write the initial check and then once again aware when they see what the next years OPEX budget request is to see if the promise was fulfilled.

business wants the outcomes of #HCI

they just want IT to *not* be an impediment - to the degree that HCI facilitates this they're all in - it's a simple decision for them

My experience is no. Infrastructure VP's try to convey the value but have a difficult time describing the value between HCI and basic infrastructure. It's all plumbing.

Not yet! Once their IT Department says we can deliver OutcomeX in 6 weeks, instead of 12 weeks, then they will get it!

This is why we see many HCI vendors connecting to concept of cloud to their solution even when cloud features aren't present.

Are you saying that cloud is more of a marketing buzzword in this context?

I think the leaders that are cognizant are currently disrupting their industry, the ones that aren't are still on pager duty. The beauty of HCI is that they don't have to focus on anything, the infrastructure just works like a utility.

If IT isn’t cloud it won’t scale

@CTOAdvisor it's key to close the communication gap of IT and Business. #HCI is no exception.

The other big business win is NOT having to ask for BIG dollars to deliver relatively small business outcomes (No $10M forklift SAN upgrade v. PayAsYouGo HCI).

@demartek If you want sponsorship outside IT. What HCI vendor is selling to the CXO?

@CTOAdvisor Exactly. It gets technical quickly. It's a lot easier to have the private cloud conversation and explain that with HCI it's probably not realistic. "You want Amazon/Azure on-prem, then we have to start with the right building blocks. HCI."

@RobSteele when IT talks the Business language, magic happens! Business wants outcomes, not specs!

@ccweis the vast majority of conversations on Executive Briefings today are exactly like this

@vGazza for sure! Aligning business and technology is what sets companies apart from the rest

@RobSteele it starts with speaking the same language. Outcomes x Specs.

this was a great interview!