For professionals of many sectors, fall is the season for a marathon of conferences, panels, webinars and events. For the climate sector, this is no exception and Climate Week NYC kicked it off with… Read more on Cisco Blogs

​

For professionals of many sectors, fall is the season for a marathon of conferences, panels, webinars and events. For the climate sector, this is no exception and Climate Week NYC kicked it off with a bigger-than-ever crowd, next it was VERGE in San Jose, culminating to COP28.

The development of many conversations and discussions in this space, more than usual, left me feeling hopeful. Hopeful because it felt that an overwhelming number of climate conversations explored specific topics deeply, were centered on action today, and strove to rise above, or even slice through, the depths of jargon that often make it difficult to get to the “so what really are we going to do about it?” part of important conversations. These critical sentiments, conversations and questions explored included the following.

There is no “Net Zero” without nature.

For a while now, climate action is often used simultaneously with carbon reduction. To reduce carbon, we look to engineering new, more sustainable, efficient technologies. However, in a comprehensive carbon strategy, there are solutions to reduce carbon emissions, remove carbon from the atmosphere, and protect or preserve natural carbon sinks. In recent years and conferences, airtime and large-scale efforts by large stakeholders were often paying most attention to the reduction of emissions as well as engineered carbon removal. It was prevalent in this year’s events that a multitude of actors and capital providers showed up energized, informed, and ready to ensure nature-based solutions alongside the preservation and restoration of nature not only were present in strategic discussions, but center stage in them.

How do underserved communities themselves define a “Just Energy Transition”?

Thankfully, the intersectionality of inclusion and clean energy is a shared interest across the climate space. However, as commonly occurs, this intersection was given a jargony title that we began seeing painted across projects, strategies, and conversations at length. As the title became common and shared, I could not help but question if we – both the diverse climate community as well as the public – really do have a shared, comprehensive definition of what this phrase means and if this meaning is still capturing the voices of underserved communities themselves. Reflecting on such, I took the opportunity to ask a local Indigenous leader from Arizona and an inner-city community leader from New York City what this phrase meant to them and was both enlightened and refreshed by their different takes on the same topic. Additionally, Nantu Canelos, Director of Territorial Autonomy of Cisco Foundation grantee, Kara Solar, also shared their thoughts on the topic, “In the remote communities of the Amazon rainforest such as Achuar territory, where I live, we are transitioning our energy use from gasoline to solar, and from not having energy to having energy. We use solar energy for transportation, for communication, for light, and other purposes. We see energy as a way to improve the lives of our people, and to alleviate pressures on the ecosystems we live in and depend on, which further improves the lives of us humans, creating a beneficial cycle. When we work with technologies, we focus on building local understanding. Local technicians are trained, and solar energy is embedded in the school curriculum so that children learn about it from a young age. In that way we can make sure that the benefits are sustainable, and that this energy transition is truly just.” In a typical pass by interaction, another climate enthusiast shared gratitude for posing this question publicly and expressed that she too found herself reflecting on the intentionality and reality behind and beyond our most used climate jargon. It was clear people were questioning, redefining or even looking past the jargon all around, especially those capturing themes of justice and inclusion.

How do we materialize the repetitive call for “blended” and “innovative’ finance?

Conversations around climate finance only continue to mature and acknowledge the unique capital stack necessary to reverse the impacts of climate change. Discussions of this week did not harp on “what” we need and “why”, but rather dissected and challenged capital providers of all sorts to think about “how”. For example, for corporate climate financiers, Salesforce at Climate Week NYC published The Corporate Climate Finance Playbook. Additionally, the  Global Innovation Lab for Climate Finance (the Lab) endorsed six innovative financial instruments to accelerate climate action in emerging markets, including Cisco Foundation investee, The Catalyst Fund. Maelis Carraro, Managing Partner of Catalyst Fund, shares more about their approach to materializing this call to action, “Catalyst Fund was intentionally designed as a blended finance structure so that a concessionary capital layer could provide downside risk protection for senior investors and catalyze more private investment to climate adaptation and resilience in Africa.  This type of structure can be incredibly powerful in leveraging multiple types of capital (concessionary and commercial) to invest in nascent sectors, underserved and frontier markets, and unlocking benefits to underserved communities. Climate resilience and climate tech more broadly in Africa remain a nascent asset class and we were proud to be endorsed by the CPI Lab as one of this year’s most innovative instruments for climate adaptation!”

We cannot have “breakthroughs” in Climate Tech without acknowledging the challenging landscape of Climate Hardware.

The 2020 International Energy Agency’s Clean Energy Innovation perspectives report expresses: “Almost 35% of the [reductions needed to avoid a 2 degree C temperature rise must] come from technologies that are currently at the prototype or demonstration phase which will not become available at scale without further R&D. About 40% of the cumulative emissions reductions rely on technologies that have not yet been commercially deployed in mass market applications.” This will require new hardware innovation. A sector which has significant capital requirements, long time frames, and a high level of technological risk. To develop these hardware breakthroughs will require capital providers coming together to provide a diverse capital stack as well as potentially a new investment model. Azolla Ventures is an innovative investment fund trying to tackle just that. Matthew Nordan, General Partner at Azolla Ventures shares, “To avoid the most catastrophic impacts of climate change, we have to pair both emissions reduction and carbon removal at mass scale. We’re not going to forestall climate catastrophe solely with the technologies that exist and are ready now such as solar, wind, short-duration energy storage, and electric vehicles. We need new innovations that are neither developed nor deployed today. There is some irony that the innovations that are most potentially impactful are often the ones least likely to be financed at the earliest stages because the risk is so high and the time frame is so long; our approach is purpose-built to fill this gap.” During this conference season, we not only heard these points from Azolla Ventures, but in climate tech roundtables as well as presentations from other investors like Third Sphere.

As we continue to provide financing for solutions via the Cisco Foundation Climate Commitment, these discussions and progress in how we think about the solutions we need and how to finance them are vital to the success we will have in playing our part in driving climate action. We are eager, energized, and enthused to continue to co-learn, support, and collectively act alongside an array of innovators, capital providers, ecosystem builders, and visionaries to build a more sustainable and regenerative future.

  Jocelyn Matyas, who manages the Cisco Foundation's Climate Impact and Regeneration Investing Portfolio, shares lessons from the climate conference season.  Read More Cisco Blogs 

Co-authored by Rodney Clark, SVP of Partnerships and Small & Medium Business

Thank you to all of our Partners who joined us digitally or traveled to Miami Beach for Cisco Partner Summit 2023. This… Read more on Cisco Blogs

​Co-authored by Rodney Clark, SVP of Partnerships and Small & Medium Business

Thank you to all of our Partners who joined us digitally or traveled to Miami Beach for Cisco Partner Summit 2023. This event is one we look forward to all year–and what an amazing week it was. From the global keynotes, leader insight sessions, carefully curated breakout sessions, and extensive 1:1 meetings and networking opportunities, we organized around one goal–to be Greater Together.

We are committed to making this program engaging, inspiring, and relevant with immediately applicable content to help you grow and evolve your business. Your feedback so far indicates we hit the mark, but please continue to share feedback with your local teams. We want to hear from you!

We also want to reiterate what you heard from us and the other Cisco speakers–THANK YOU. Thank you for helping us serve our mutual customers, for bringing our technology to life and increasing its value. Thank you for pushing and challenging us and keeping us accountable. As we look outside and look to the future, it’s clear–the best way forward is together.

We are in a new era

The world is changing rapidly. The time-tested strategies we have leaned on to succeed are evolving and, in some cases, must be completely redrawn. Be assured–Cisco is ready–not just for today’s challenges, but for the opportunities of tomorrow. We are accelerating our pace of innovation, our platform strategy is working, and our portfolio is the strongest it’s been in decades. The Cisco Partner Ecosystem is stronger, more resilient, and more relevant to our customer needs than ever. When these elements combine, magic happens. Put simply, we are Greater Together.

We are helping you grow and evolve

It’s not just about what we can deliver together. It’s about how we deliver together. Over the past year, we’ve worked to transform our engagement model, to remove the friction in our GTM strategy, and level up how we serve customers together. We have created joint offers, added new sales motions, and aligned how we go to market to sell and win. And all of this is underpinned with automation, AI, and insights to deliver together throughout the lifecycle. A few highlights…

Now you can utilize the whole Cisco portfolio in a managed service motion with 18 pre-bundled offers that require minimal customization, so you can add your services, differentiate your offer, and get to market faster.
More Cisco offers, more solutions, new incentives, and better field alignment are enabling us to win together in Cloud Marketplaces.
We’re recruiting the right specialty partners–ISVs, consultants, industry experts, and other non-transacting partners–so you can create solutions for new buyers and deliver the unique outcomes our customers are looking for.
And with the latest enhancements to the Partner Experience Platform (PXP), you have even more actionable, guided, and personalized insights to help you grow and evolve your Cisco practice.

And there’s much more to come: a simplified incentive structure, more predictive and prescriptive insights, and continued alignment of our GTM to simplify and enhance your experience working with Cisco and our sellers. Additionally, while enterprise customers are and remain critical to Cisco and our go-to-market strategy, you’ll see a more intense focus on our partner-led SMB sales motion, as these customers increasingly adopt technology as part of their digital transformation journey.

We are Greater Together

To be clear: Cisco is and will always be a partner-led company. We committed to this model 27 years ago, and it continues to be our single biggest differentiator in the market. We’re excited about the opportunity in front of us–let’s go get it together!

Be sure to visit the Partner Launch Experience

for session recordings and more!

We’d love to hear what you think. Ask a Question, Comment Below, and Stay Connected with #CiscoPartners on social!

Cisco Partners Facebook  |  @CiscoPartners Twitter  |  Cisco Partners LinkedIn

  Thank you to all of our Partners who joined us digitally or traveled to Miami Beach for Cisco Partner Summit 2023. This event is one we look forward to all year – and what an amazing week it was!  Read More Cisco Blogs 

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.”
– Winston Churchill

When it comes to zero trust, teams are finding the courage to continue, based on the… Read more on Cisco Blogs

​

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.”
– Winston Churchill

When it comes to zero trust, teams are finding the courage to continue, based on the latest Security Outcomes Report on Zero Trust: Adoption, Access, And Automation Trends.

Let’s start with some good news. Zero trust security adoption is on the rise.

A large majority of organizations – 86.5% – report starting on some aspect of zero trust – whether implementing multi-factor authentication (MFA), securing remote user access, deploying network segmentation, or enforcing micro-segmentation in cloud workloads.

That’s the good news. The not so good news? Only a tiny sliver of respondents – 2% – claim to have achieved maturity across the zero trust pillars.

That said, more than a third of organizations have reached maturity in at least one zero trust pillar.*

*The zero trust pillars used in the report are a simplified version of (and loosely align to) Cisco’s zero trust security reference architecture as well as CISA’s model. They are: Identity; Device; Network and Workload; and Automation and Orchestration.

The seeds of courage: zero trust aligns with operational excellence

These findings give CISOs and our teams the rationale as well as the courage to continue adopting zero trust security. But how do we engage the rest of the organization to join the initiative?

The answer lies in aligning the outcomes from zero trust programs to the objectives of the organization. Thankfully, we found zero trust improves several outcomes. From adapting to external events to maturing their security capability, organizations with zero trust in place report a double digit increase in excellence at achieving these outcomes than those without zero trust.

Top Three Takeaways

1. The more pillars pursued; the more achievements unlocked. Progress is measured in pillars; the more pillars of zero trust are implemented, the better the outcomes, which supports the idea that zero trust requires a holistic approach to reap measurable benefits.

Key findings:

Organizations not yet started on the zero trust journey are twice as likely to report incidents than those completing all zero trust pillars – from 67% to 33%.
As organizations add zero trust technologies to their security stack, the percentage of reported incidents drops from 74% to 38%.
Moving from completing three pillars to four pillars involves a huge perception jump in terms of whether zero trust is viewed in place: from 53% to over 82%.

2. Order matters: Identity first, then segmentation, then automation and orchestration. The most common question we receive in our Zero Trust Workshops is consistently ‘where do I start?’ The findings from the report suggest that most organizations start by securing user access via multi-factor authentication (MFA), continuous user validation, role-based access control (RBAC), and other identity and access management technologies. The next use cases to follow involve segmenting networks and cloud workloads and setting up automated and orchestrated SOC workflows (e.g., XDR).

Benefits to taking this approach include:

Improved incident response. User controls like MFA have the biggest impact on reducing incidents highlighting the value these preventative controls can have on the productivity of SecOps teams. Fewer incidents is good news for all.
Reduced risk of ransomware. Organizations completing the Identity pillar were nearly 11% less likely to have a ransomware attack than orgs with no progress on that pillar.

Pro-tip: Check out our on-demand webinar where we cover the five key steps to take when moving from MFA to full zero trust security when securing user access to apps.

3. Automation accelerates zero trust adoption. Automation and Orchestration have taken the lead for how security teams evaluate their zero trust architecture. But while many agree with the need for automation, few have fully realized the benefits. This is the area where maturing programs are focusing on. After all, without the speed to remediation that orchestrated workflows can bring, achieving zero trust security will remain an elusive goal.

Key findings:

Organizations who deployed SOAR were 7% more likely to claim zero trust to be in place.
Organizations completing the Automation and Orchestration pillar are 14% more likely to be successful at adapting to external change events.

Download the full report to discover more insights about how to continue gaining momentum for your zero trust rollout.

Watch our on-demand webinar to map out your zero trust roadmap for securing user access to devices.

We’d love to hear what you think. Ask a Question, Comment Below, and Stay Connected with Cisco Security on social!

Cisco Security Social Channels

InstagramFacebookTwitterLinkedIn

  The Security Outcomes Report: Adoption, Access, And Automation Trends shows that 86.5% of orgs have begun zero trust, only 2% reaching maturity.  Read More Cisco Blogs 

Cisco Partner Summit 2023 was last week, and I’m still feeling the excitement! We had a record number of attendees and gorgeous Miami beaches to take in (what a great new location!). The whole e… Read more on Cisco Blogs

​

Cisco Partner Summit 2023 was last week, and I’m still feeling the excitement! We had a record number of attendees and gorgeous Miami beaches to take in (what a great new location!). The whole experience was powered by information, inspiration and connection.

“We didn’t just perform this year—we transformed!” I love the way Jeff Sharritts, EVP and Chief Customer and Partner Officer, captured the essence of what Cisco and our partners accomplished this past year. Partnership has been in our DNA since we started 27 years ago, and we’re creating the future together!

At the heart of that future is partner managed services—you could hear its steady beat throughout the event. It was there in the keynotes and across our leadership’s presentations: Chuck Robbins, Jeff Sharritts, Oliver Tuszik, Jonathan Davidson, Liz Centoni, Jeetu Patel, the Geo Leaders and more all highlighted managed services as THE way to deliver outcomes to our customers. I was delighted to see managed services gaining even more momentum and honored to share my perspectives with a range of audiences at the event. With a projected $161B TAM by 2027, managed services will make up 46% of what Cisco sells by that same year.

But make no mistake: managed services isn’t just about the future—it’s here today! In a recent survey, 82% of Partner Summit attendees reported that they’re already growing their managed services practice and named it as their top priority in meeting customer needs. We have 18 partner managed-ready offers ready today. And our sellers get 2x payout for selling partner managed services!

I had the chance to speak with Hege Stoere and Goran Gustavsson of MSP Advania at Cisco Partner Summit 2023

And let’s not forget the point of the “Greater Together” theme this year! This isn’t about Cisco just moving things forward for the sake of innovation. Customer needs drive our partners’ needs—and ours too.

“We’re trying to grow our managed services contracts and so adding more to that portfolio, especially with all the business that we do with Cisco… It can’t hurt … and we can add pieces and parts to get to that final solution.”—Steve Wylie, Senior Vice President and General Manager, East Majors, for Trace3

Exactly! Customers are after outcomes, which require managed services. At Cisco, our focus is making things simpler and safer for partners to stitch together solutions and create those outcomes. We all want the same thing in the end; we’re all working towards the same goals.

So that transformation Jeff talked about? We’re already there, hand in hand with our partners.

Speaking of transformation. Oliver, our cheerful-yet-fearless channel chief since 2018, took the stage in his new role as President of EMEA. He’s been an incredible leader and mentor, and I feel lucky to have worked so closely with him. At the same time, we were thrilled to welcome Rodney Clark at Cisco Partner Summit—he’ll join us in January as Senior Vice President of Partnerships and SMB. Much of Rodney’s career has been in the channel, and he’s come to Cisco specifically because we’re a partner-led company. I’m very excited to continue the partner journey with him!

What’s new? Key managed services announcements

We’ve been busy this year, so we were able to share exciting new developments at Cisco Partner Summit!

To start with, we’ve strengthened our support for partners! Our Partner Advanced Support for MSPs is a groundbreaking CX service designed for partners who need higher levels of support, faster resolutions and accelerated outcomes. Guided API support, faster access to award-winning TAC services, and automated RCA & RMA tools reduce resolution time up to 50%! This is a real game-changer for MSPs. Here’s how Denzil Samuels, our VP of global CX partner success, puts it:

“It’s hard to imagine that [as of 2021], the only way we helped partners solve problems for their customers was through email and telephone calls and here we are talking about digital transformation… Now, when the customer calls [a partner] and they open a problem ticket, Cisco instantly sees it. And it’s not just a general TAC group—it’s a specialized group of architects that can see it. So, we can now help them diagnose some of these issues in real-time and come up with a solution in real-time. We’re really moving the dial from reactive to proactive to predictive to even prescriptive.”—Denzil Samuels, VP of Global CX Partner Success
Read more our in blog.

Security prioritized in three of our new partner managed-ready offers

Our new Managed XDR (Extended Detection and Response) offer, designed for MSPs with security operations centers needing advanced threat detection and response. This unified, extensible offer is bolstered by key incubation partners including ATSG, Port53, ATEA, Telenor and Sentinel.

Our new Managed Firewall offer expands perimeter security; its innovative features allow for scalability, multi-tenancy, and advanced automation—all to reduce TCO and boost MSP revenue opportunities.

And our Secure Networking MSP Campaign helps partners go to market faster and scale more effectively with an SMB and commercial customer security and networking solution that combines Meraki, Secure Firewall, and Cisco+ Secure Connect. We’ve also included guided service creation, great programmatic pricing, and incentives so Cisco provider partners can capture new opportunities in the expanding managed security market.

So we’ve got support, we’ve got security—we’re also building for speed! The MSP Expressway for SMB play puts partners into the fast lane as they pursue the growing SMB market opportunity. Scalable partner-ready offers combine the Cisco cloud platforms for networking, security and collaboration with resources, tools and best practices to accelerate time to market.

I also had the chance to speak with Paul Hager, VP of Services at Ingram Micro, at Cisco Partner Summit 2023

That’s a lot to digest, I know! To top off this feast of innovation, Let’s finish with something especially sweet.

Because kudos are in order!

Among the winners of the Cisco Partner Summit 2023 awards, help me congratulate:

KDDI Corporation (APJC): Managed Services Partner of the Year, Global
Logicalis: Managed Services Partner of the Year, Americas
TM Technology Services Sdn Bhd: Managed Services Partner of the Year, APJC
NTT DATA, Inc. Belgium: Managed Services Partner of the Year, EMEA

See a full list of all Partner Summit 2023 award winners.

So yes, Cisco Partner Summit was a lot to take in! Jeff left us with three main takeaways, which I’ll share with you:

1) We have a massive opportunity in front of us.

2) The pace of innovation and acceleration, and the state of the portfolio, are the strongest we’ve seen in decades, with everything we need to win.

3) Most importantly: Cisco is, and will always be, a partner-led company.

Head over to the #CiscoPartnerLaunch Experience
for session recordings and more!

We’d love to hear what you think. Ask a Question, Comment Below, and Stay Connected with #CiscoPartners on social!

Cisco Partners Facebook  |  @CiscoPartners Twitter  |  Cisco Partners LinkedIn

  Cisco Partner Summit 2023 was last week, and I’m still feeling the excitement! We had a record number of attendees and gorgeous Miami beaches to take in. The whole experience was powered by information, inspiration and connection.  Read More Cisco Blogs 

The global pandemic caused what may have been the biggest IT challenge in history. Practically overnight, companies called on IT administrators to find a way for almost every office worker to be able… Read more on Cisco Blogs

​

The global pandemic caused what may have been the biggest IT challenge in history. Practically overnight, companies called on IT administrators to find a way for almost every office worker to be able to connect from home, safely and securely.

One fast solution for many companies was to host virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) on a public cloud. Using the cloud was a good idea for many reasons:

Immediate availability
Consistent VDI “broker” software your business had as a standard (Citrix or VMware)
Device-agnostic access for nearly any device the employee had access to, including laptops, phones, and other mobile devices
Acceptable data security protocols
Consistent user interface
Easily forecast costs

However, what began as a short-term need turned into a long-term or even permanent situation. The global rush to the cloud to support millions of employees has caused a permanent shift in how we work, with many companies offering flexible hybrid office and remote working options and many employees opting for 100% remote work.

According to a recent CNBC article, more than 68% of full-time employees support working from home, at least part-time, in the future, and many companies are supporting this hybrid work scenario. Even on days when they commute to the office, many employees log in beforehand and then come to the office later in the day, compared to before the pandemic.

Post-pandemic, people are also commuting to work later in the day, with a recent article in The Washington Post showing that the percentage of people heading to the office after 9 a.m. has risen steadily since 2019.

Does the return to office lower the VDI need?

Because IT departments are now supporting employees working from home and in the office, the need for VDI remains constant and the monthly cost of hosting all these desktops in the cloud is becoming a permanent cost. Often these costs are significantly higher than was initially projected back in 2020 when many worked remotely. A part of this is general price increases, but more typically it is the ease with which additional cloud resources are effortlessly accessed by the customer without a full appreciation of the additional costs this access incurs.

Options beyond the cloud

Intersect360 Research recently published an analysis comparing a VDI 2,500 desktop deployment on a public cloud with a Cisco compute-based on-premises deployment. The hypothetical customer in the study saved $2 million over three years using the Cisco deployment.

Figure 1. A Cisco on-premises VDI solution saved $2 million over three years compared to a public cloud deployment supporting 2,500 desktops, according to Intersect360 Research.

The savings are significant

If you were to break down the cost on a per-user basis, the advantage is roughly $800 per user, or about the cost of a laptop (see the table below). Additional cost savings can be realized when you consider the on-premises model:

Adds an additional 10% cost to cover any items not factored into the study
Includes three-year on-site support cost
Includes the cost of two head counts to administer the system infrastructure
The system design can accommodate an additional 1,000 desktops (VMware Horizon licenses are an extra cost)

How the study worked

Although many determinants impact the cost of any VDI infrastructure—on-premises or in a public cloud—the number of virtual desktops and the associated user profiles are the most significant factors. For the Intersect360 Research study, they assumed a fictional customer whose user profile is closely representative of a manufacturing customer. The breakdown included:

25% clerical: Call center work, data gathering and correction, data analysis, and reporting.
25% administrative: Marketing, accounting, business analysis, HR, and customer service.
35% knowledge workers: Typically manage people but could be program managers. Have a lot of contact with customers, suppliers, and partners. Need support for multitasking and high-quality video conferencing.
15% specialists: New product development, testing, creating multimedia content, and analyzing huge amounts of data; need significant technical capabilities requiring graphics support and larger amounts of memory. Use of a GPU may be required. Commonly called a power user.
2.5% ultra specialists: A subset of specialists who focus on AI, machine learning, CAD/CAM, video creation/rendering, data mining, and hosting scientific applications. Requires a GPU.

These user profiles largely determine the amount of system resources required to meet user expectations, whether their desktop resides on a public cloud (paid for on a monthly basis) or within the confines of a company data center.

VDI doesn’t have to be difficult

Cisco Compute has been a leader in VDI infrastructure dating back to our entry into the server market in 2009. We partner with leading storage vendors such as NetApp to form solutions for specific enterprise applications designed, tested, and documented in Cisco Validated Designs (CVD). These solutions are tested in Cisco labs by Cisco engineers, defining the best practices for all system elements to demonstrate a balanced performance. Your time to implement is shorter, thus saving costs, with the knowledge that these best practices will help provide optimal installation. In fact, Cisco support will provide remote, even on-site assistance to ensure documented performance levels are reached.

Today’s designs incorporate the Cisco UCS X-Series Modular System, which can accommodate up to eight UCS X210c M7 Compute Nodes with the 4th Generation Intel® Xeon® Scalable Processor and the fastest system memory available. The Cisco UCS X-Series Modular System has won a number of awards for its sustainability design and power optimization features, most recently from SEAL and CRN. The NetApp A-Series All Flash array provides the data storage and NetApp ONTAP AI software enables data management such as snapshots and data backups. The complete system is managed by Cisco Intersight, which provides superior lifecycle management. Intersight Infrastructure Service helps prevent problems by delivering proactive support, increasing efficiency, reducing costs, and accelerating resolution times. Telemetry data is automatically synthesized, and recommendations are presented in an easy-to-understand, actionable format. The system can identify and side-step IT issues before they impact your data center.

Cisco CX services can assist your team with initial VDI assessment and cost comparisons. Help architect a system design to meet your current and future requirements, implement the design, and provide full support and lifecycle management.

Intersect360 Research added the cost of VMware Horizon 8 as the VDI “broker,” as well as Nvidia GPUs and related software to meet the power user requirements. The result was a complete design to host the VDI deployment for this manufacturing company.

Consider on-premises VDI solutions today

Is the majority of your VDI still hosted on a public cloud? Get the Intersect360 Research report and pass it around your organization. Then, perform your own cost analysis comparing the three-year cloud-hosting costs with an on-premises design. Cisco can assist with cost-effective designs and help ensure that relevant costs are identified. While your numbers will be a bit different from the Intersect360 Research analysis, you might uncover cost savings even if additional head count is needed to manage the system.

Download the Intersect360 Research report

Learn more

Cisco UCS X-Series for GPU-Accelerated VDI At-a-Glance
FlexPod Datacenter using Cisco UCS X-Series with VMware Horizon and VMware vSphere 7 for up to 2600 Seats
FlexPod Datacenter with Citrix VDI and VMware vSphere 7 for up to 2500 Seats

  Intersect360 Research published a detailed analysis comparing a VDI 2,500 desktop deployment on a public cloud to a Cisco compute-based on-premises deployment. The result was the Cisco deployment saved the customer $2 million over three years.  Read More Cisco Blogs 

Career transformations take multiple forms and can occur at any stage of life. Technology is a great path for people who want to try something new, and Cisco Learning and Certifications offers an… Read more on Cisco Blogs

​

Career transformations take multiple forms and can occur at any stage of life. Technology is a great path for people who want to try something new, and Cisco Learning and Certifications offers an array of tools to help curious individuals grow their careers. 

Nate Haleen’s story is a perfect example of career transformation into tech. Five years ago, Nate was in the prefectures of Japan teaching English to local students. Today Nate is the software practice lead at Procellis, a Cisco Partner in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 

After a decade-long career teaching English in Minnesota and Japan, as well as raising a family, Nate was looking for a change that would improve his career growth and earnings potential. He returned home to Minnesota and engaged with local career counselors to discover available options and career-training programs.  

Because he had exposure to math and science in college, the idea of a career path as a network architect resonated with him. Nate enrolled in the network engineering program at Inver Hills Community College, where he connected with the Cisco Networking Academy program. 

Through his collegiate courses and the Cisco Networking Academy program, he began learning about network engineering. During the height of the pandemic, he passed his CCNA exam (earning his first Cisco career certification) and later completed his degree program. 

Looking for a way to apply his growing network skills, Nate connected with the Minnesota-based SciTech Internship program. SciTech was founded to help connect STEM students with small businesses via hands-on internship opportunities. One of those small businesses engaging with SciTech was Procellis Technology, Inc. 

Procellis, a Cisco Partner focusing on Cybersecurity and IoT professional services, is a member of the African American Cisco Partner Community (AACPC), a program created to increase the diversity of Cisco Partners. When CEO Damian Young founded Procellis, he had a vision of leading with Cisco DevNet software automation to help drive innovation into the solutions his company would deliver.  

Damian viewed SciTech as a great way to develop the human talent necessary to achieve his vision. Procellis sponsored an internship program, so the team could upskill to meet requirements for the Cisco DevNet and IoT Partner specialization programs. This meant Nate and his colleagues would need to ramp up Cisco technical training and earn additional Cisco certifications.  

In the summer of 2021, Nate was accepted into the Procellis internship, which focused on automation at first, preparing the team to earn their DevNet Professional certifications. Working with their distribution partner TD SYNNEX, the Procellis internship team upskilled in Cisco DevNet and IoT Automation curriculum through instructor-led training delivered by Cisco Platinum Learning Partner, NtrOne. With a combination of classroom training, collaborative group study, and DevNet Learning Labs, Nate earned his DevNet Associate and DevNet IoT Specialist certification by summer’s end.  

This process helped Nate develop into a natural leader within the internship cohort. When he completed the internship, he accepted a full-time position at Procellis to implement automation capabilities into the company’s internal tools and service delivery. He also used online training from Cisco to prepare for the DevNet Core exam, and then he earned his DevNet Professional certification in early 2022. 

Nate was promoted to automation practice leader in 2022, and he used his newfound skills to establish the processes and culture for an automation practice, helping Procellis earn the DevNet Specialization for Partners. The team creates customer solutions in enterprise networking and security. Nate and the Procellis team are currently preparing to host an apprenticeship program to kick off this fall as they help develop future talent and expand their practice capabilities in automation and cybersecurity.  

Nate’s story speaks volumes about his dedication to transforming careers by learning and applying new skills. In fact, Nate was a finalist in two different categories as a Cisco Insider at the Cisco Global Advocate Awards 2023. We look forward to seeing new success stories from Nate and the Procellis team!  

Sign up for Cisco U. | Join the Cisco Learning Network.

Follow Cisco Learning & Certifications

Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram | YouTube

Use #CiscoU and #CiscoCert to join the conversation.

  Discover how Nate harnessed the power of learning and DevNet certifications to transform his decade-long career as an English teacher to become the software practice lead at Procellis, a Cisco Partner.  Read More Cisco Blogs