What was once VMware is now Broadcom. With the acquisition closed, the American multinational brought its .
On the stage, Joe Baguley, Broadcom’s chief technology officer for EMEA, directed the focus towards the launch of new advanced VCF services, ecosystem partnerships and the definition of modernization programs whose purpose is to accelerate the development of generative artificial intelligence (AI) applications, cybersecurity initiatives and adoption of the sovereign cloud.
Computerworld Spain had a chance to sit down with Baguley and talk about VMware’s evolution and its current technology strategy.
VMware’s origins
To understand Baguley’s career at the company, you have to look back 13 years and six months. Since then, he said, the transformation of the industry has been both incontestable and interesting. “When I joined VMware, we only had a hypervisor – referring to a single software [instance] that can be used to run multiple virtual machines on a physical one – we didn’t have storage or networking.”
Baguley recalled attending an internal R&D event with other senior managers of the organization. “That’s where we came up with this vision: people would build private clouds with fully software-defined networks, storage and computing. That’s what we would eventually call hyperconverged infrastructure.”
With that picture in mind, the company has grown from “a small company” to the giant it is today, “an organization within a much larger one,” Baguley said. For him, the journey to the present has been “very exciting.” But, Baguley insisted, the most exciting thing, and what still keeps him in his office chair, is “feeling that we are still capable of carrying out that vision that we once conceived in a bar in Monterey.”
Corporate evolution
Since those first steps, the organization has passed through several hands – including former parent company Dell EMC and equity stakeholder Silver Lake – until ending up with Broadcom, which without forgetting the intrinsic security in all our products.” They have done so, moreover, without overlooking simplicity: “We choose to empower people in a scenario where talent and technical skills are emerging as a challenge.”
In the 25 years of the company’s existence, the transformation has been undeniable. “We have evolved, we have refined those appendages that were not perfect.”
Since the acquisition of VMware by Broadcom, the organization has integrated the business units that previously advanced in isolation. “Computing, networks, storage and security management used to operate in silos,” Baguley said. Now, however, the great change they have experienced is that those silos have disappeared, the roadmap of all those individual components is driven under the heading of VCF. “We are seeing how our approach is already happening through customers.”
Championing private cloud
Asked about his position in the global market compared to competitors, Baguley is proud of the latest VMware innovations highlighted at the event, particularly related to the VCF platform.
“When it comes to .
“We have been through a lot. However, I think it has been really exciting, empowering as well. We have been able to better understand the needs of the market by adjusting the approach,” Baguley said.
“Many people respect the innovation we do, they respect the work we do. From my point of view, it is key to understand where we are headed: We have to understand that, although it was not fashionable five years ago, the private cloud is the future. We have reached a level of technological maturity where people try to place the right application in the right location, and that place is the private cloud.”
The executive’s next steps will continue to guide him towards supporting clients. “I really work on the ground, directing my efforts to find out how to help clients evolve, get rid of their servers, improve processes, people and technology used. Ultimately, this is what it’s all about. What prevents technology from being successful are processes and people. I work to align these three fundamental pillars for my clients, figuring out how to deliver value to them.”
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