The world is constantly changing, moving rapidly and burgeoning fast under the sphere of Digital Technologies that allow for Virtualization and Cloud Computing. Many stakeholders continue to constructively innovate and deliver solutions, working hand in hand to create tools and services that make the world more fluid and sustainable. This is what VMware has achieved – standing out from the crowd with her showcase at the annual VMworld Europe Conference that held on Monday, 4th November till Thursday, 7th November.
The conference, welcoming over 14,000 attendees, including the general public, customers, technology enthusiasts, leading domain experts, partners, vendors, VMware Executives, and employees held at the FIRA Gran Via Centre in Barcelona, Spain, succeeded in offering every conceivable concept in the field of cloud infrastructure & digital workspace technology. From native VMware products to the skilful optimization of open source systems to successful coopetition with other global leaders, the venue boasts hundreds of stands, sessions, breakout rooms, product displays and demonstrations, and hands-on labs to satisfy everyone present.
Day One saw the registration and settling-in of attendees, and Day Two saw the company CEO of VMworld, Pat Gelsinger, take to the stage to deliver his keynote speech.
Gelsinger, in his speech, observed how technology has impacted every aspect of our lives, and how much strength is to be found in diversity; the Power of Coopetition – why various strands of different companies can come together to create powerful solutions that can drive business goals, and how it can be achieved to create better experiences.
As corporations continue to strive in their rights for market share, the revelation that VMware has been working in diversified capacities with AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, IBM Cloud and Oracle was out of many, one of the most inspiring topics Gelsinger shared.
His speech was indeed stirring and inspirational as he also touched on diversity, inclusion and their continual works in Africa, ending his session with news of new frontiers with Kubernetes: the open-source container-orchestration system for automating application deployment, scaling, and management; and the rapid advancement of VMware Tanzu, a new portfolio of products and services designed to transform the way enterprises build, run and manage software on Kubernetes. He later yielded the stage to Sanjay Poonen, the COO of the company who went on to describe even more heights that the company plans to climb and overcome in the coming months.
Gelsinger, a true believer in the potential the African continent holds, and one who wholesomely involves himself in charity work, has put his full support behind the ongoing and commendable work done by the VMware IT Academy Team under the Virtualize Africa program, a program specifically designed to empower Africans to lead in the digital future.
The Virtualize Africa program has helped fuel the rapid growth, reach and effectiveness of the IT Academy Program in the last year, a growth that has been championed by the Global Program Manager of the VMware IT Academy Team, Jackie Barker-Weeks, supported by Global Director of Worldwide Readiness, skill assessment test, Certification & Enablement (WWRACE), Tom MacKay and Vincent Herreman, Senior Manager, VMware IT Academy.
The program has greatly begun making significant inroads into ensuring training, education and certification is accessible to Africans. An MOU signing with the African Union Commission took place on the third day of the conference; part of this drive for prominence in the coming digital years.
Cloud Computing and Virtualization came out strong at this conference and VMware is promising us brighter days.
Rachel Onamusi
CEO, VN Sync