After working hard in 2016 to develop the programs and content for Citrix Summit 2017, it has been really gratifying to read your comments in the post-event surveys. We listen to all your feedback, both positive and negative, and it guides our planning for the next conference. We’re always iterating for the next release, right?
Thanks to all of our partners for taking the time to fill out the survey. You had some important opinions to share about the sessions and the conference as a whole, and we value all of it.
This year, as you may remember — and in response to your feedback from Summit 2016 — we implemented a new nomenclature for sessions that reflected the content and level of complexity for each session. Many of you agreed that the new system helped you identify the right sessions to attend this year and that overall, the breakout sessions provided good insight into Citrix roadmap and strategy.
Though we’re still working through the surveys, I wanted to share a few of the most-attended technical, sales and Citrix Service Provider sessions from Summit 2017 because session videos are now available on Citrix Sales IQ, along with keynote videos and speaker presentations. It’s a great resource that I recommend you take advantage of, whether you weren’t able to join us at Summit or just want to revisit key points.
Top technical sessions
TECH101: XenApp and XenDesktop: what’s new and roadmap presented by Sridhar Mullapudi, director, product management, Citrix, and Carisa Stringer, senior product marketing manager, Citrix
This session was repeated and had record attendance both times, so it’s clear Sridhar and Carisa did an excellent job covering the latest features introduced in XenApp & XenDesktop versions 7.11 and 7.12, as well as what’s coming in versions planned for launch later in the year. They also discussed the next Long Term Service Release and how we’re further aligning our agile development efforts for faster, easier deployments on-premises and in the cloud.
TECH102: XenApp and XenDesktop tech update: January 2017 edition presented by Daniel Feller, lead architect, product marketing, Citrix
Are you incorporating the latest technologies and recommendations into your implementations? With quarterly releases, it’s important to understand what new options are available, what optimizations are recommended and how to properly design around the latest technologies. Dan covered it all in this Tech Update session, including the latest results from testing and optimizations and updated design best practices.
TECH305: How PVS integrated with XenServer enhances XenDesktop deployments, making VDI cheaper and simpler presented by Andy Melmed, senior solutions architect, Citrix, and Robert Breker, staff software engineer, Citrix
Citrix Provisioning Services is evolving, and the latest integration with XenServer will make your XenDesktop deployments faster, cheaper and simpler without affecting any existing image workflow. This session covered how the new integration reduces network traffic by as much as 98% and why adoption can have profound benefits on network utilization and VM performance.
Top competitive selling sessions
SELL102: Partner value and ROI of Citrix Cloud: positioning and selling subscriptions, pricing and packaging presented by Alex Balcanquall, director product management, Cloud Services, Citrix, Ash Vijayakanthan, vice president partner strategy, Citrix, and Daniel L’Hommedieu, principal product line manager, Citrix
This session focused on the new business models that recurring-revenue services make possible, illustrating how to identify cloud sales opportunities, buyer attributes, and key compelling events. It also covered the basics about the different services on Citrix Cloud, what customers can expect, and what partners should be preparing for over the next few years.
SELL105: How to go to market with Microsoft presented by Vibhu Ranjan, director, Microsoft Business Development, Citrix
What new opportunities has our alliance with Microsoft created for you? Vibhu covered the new joint solutions and made recommendations on driving successful joint engagements in your accounts with Microsoft.
SELL213: NetScaler SD-WAN selling and positioning: how to compete in the SD-WAN space presented by Donna Johnson, director of product marketing, NetScaler SD-WAN, Citrix, Alex Ratcliffe, technical marketing, SD-WAN, Citrix, and Anthony Gallo, director, product development, Citrix
With the latest enhancements, NetScaler now delivers routing and security features that can greatly simplify the branch network while further reducing costs. This session covered selling and positioning the value of the full solution as well as how to identify prospects with near-term projects.
Top sessions for Citrix Service Providers
CCSP204: Cloud and the future for CSPs, hosters, MSPs and resellers presented by Daniel L’Hommedieu, principal product line manager, Citrix, and Nizar Tyrewalla, product manager, Cloud Services, Citrix
2017 is the year of the cloud for Citrix partners, and CSPs are well-positioned to take advantage of this industry shift. This session offered guidance to partners for building their businesses on the cloud and recommended the Citrix Cloud technologies to use, covering topics including leveraging cloud services for license usage and insights; cloud services for scripting and blueprinting infrastructure management; CloudPortal Services Manager and related Cloud Service Broker technologies.
CCSP301: The small business journey to outsourced IT and the cloud presented by Adrian Phillips, senior marketing manager, Citrix, and Sara Queen, senior marketing manager, Emerging Solutions & Services, Citrix
In Q4 2016, Citrix commissioned a study of small business decision makers. We shared the results to help CSPs understand what is driving small business to outsource their IT and, ultimately, to adopt the cloud—new insights that can’t be found anywhere else. This session uniquely empowered CSPs to develop customer acquisition strategies that attract more of the right customers and increase revenue.
In addition, I also want to call out some sales and technical compete sessions that may have a lot of value for you, depending on your role: SELL301: Competing aggressively against VMware in the secure workspace service market, SELL306: Effectively competing with F5 Networks by focusing on compelling events, and TECH203: How to stop VMware from eating your lunch: the technical compete session.
All of these rich resources and more are available for you on Citrix SalesIQ now!
One of my favorite things about reviewing surveys is getting to hear your responses to Summit as a whole. I’ll share this partner feedback with you—maybe it will inspire you to save the date for Citrix Summit 2018, January 8–10 back at the Anaheim Convention Center in California. Hope to see you next year!
“Citrix has blown me away by their commitment to their products, their clients, their employees and their partners. Summit was a perfect blend of vision, ideas, people and opportunities and I highly recommend attending.” — Jordan Samuel Fleming, Gamechangers
“A thoroughly beneficial experience that’s both fun and informative to help drive your technical knowledge and sales strategy forward into the coming year!” — Ray Smith, BrightCloud Technologies Ltd (UK)
“Citrix Summit is a fantastic opportunity to learn about the Citrix vision and strategy, network with the team, and develop my go to market plan. Well worth the investment!” — Carl Gersh, Director of Sales & Marketing, Forthright Technology Partners
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