Virtualization: State of the Market
Details
Goals & Objectives
By the end of this briefing, attendees will:
- Understand the current virtualization landscape — Gain a clear picture of the business model shifts, market trends and platform evolution shaping enterprise virtualization strategy over the next 24 months.
- See the full scope of the challenge — Recognize that virtualization decisions extend beyond the hypervisor itself, touching applications, infrastructure, tooling, people, processes and integrations across the entire datacenter.
- Learn what other organizations are doing — Hear anonymized, real-world insights from WWT's extensive customer base, including common strategies, dual-platform approaches and cloud-smart placement decisions.
- Understand key platform options — Receive an objective overview of leading virtualization and container platforms, including their strategies, strengths and considerations, without vendor bias.
- Identify common pitfalls and success patterns — Learn from the failures and successes of organizations that have already undertaken virtualization transitions, including the four most common causes of project failure.
- Walk away with an actionable framework — Leave with a clear understanding of the three-phase action plan (Application Assessment, Technical Assessment, Business Case) and the recommended next steps to advance your virtualization strategy.
Topics Covered
Voice of the Customer
Real-world insights from IT leaders navigating virtualization decisions today. We share patterns, priorities and concerns we hear across industries — keeping all customer details anonymized.
Problem Scope and Market Trends
A look at the forces reshaping enterprise virtualization, including the evolution from perpetual licensing to subscription services, the shift from à la carte features to integrated software platforms, and the six key trends we see defining strategy for the next two years: renewal decisions, cloud-smart placement, large-scale transitions, open-source interest, dual-platform approaches and Kubernetes acceleration.
The Full Scope of the Effort
Virtualization is your datacenter foundation, not just a hypervisor. We walk through the full ecosystem of considerations — applications, infrastructure, features, integrations, security, management, people and processes — to illustrate why thoughtful planning is essential.
Developing a Strategy
A framework for building a future-proof virtualization approach. We discuss how to align hypervisor decisions with your cloud vision and container roadmap, and why proof-of-concept validation against real requirements is critical before committing.
Virtualization Platform Options
An objective overview of the leading enterprise platforms — VMware by Broadcom, Nutanix, Red Hat OpenShift and Microsoft — along with a broader look at the full technology landscape including emerging and niche alternatives. Each platform is presented with its strategy, strengths and considerations.
Lessons from Customers
Common pitfalls and success patterns from real migrations. We cover the four most frequent causes of project failure: inadequate application mapping, lack of organizational commitment, insufficient budget allocation and improper testing. Practical guidance on how to avoid each.
Tips for a Successful Migration
Five field-tested recommendations: treat migration as an engineering project, follow a four-phase methodology (Planning, Execution, Validation, Transition to Production), conduct early and thorough discovery, validate rigorously before go-live, and tailor your tooling to specific workload types.
Action Plan
A structured approach to moving forward across three dimensions — Application Assessment (catalog workloads, map dependencies, identify migration patterns), Technical Assessment (evaluate platform capabilities, operational impacts, infrastructure requirements) and Business Case (quantify costs, assess strategic fit, secure stakeholder alignment).
WWT Engagement Model
How World Wide Technology helps organizations navigate virtualization modernization, from education and business case development through selection, validation, discovery, design, deployment, migration and ongoing operational support.
Who Should Attend?
- CXOs and Line of Business Managers — Leaders responsible for technology strategy and budget decisions
- CIOs and IT Directors — Decision-makers guiding infrastructure modernization and platform strategy
- Virtual Infrastructure Architects and Engineers — Technical staff responsible for designing, operating and migrating virtualization environments
- Operations and Platform Engineering Managers — Teams managing day-to-day virtualization operations and evaluating new platforms
- Anyone involved in virtualization strategy decisions — Whether you're actively planning a migration, evaluating renewal options or building a long-term modernization roadmap
Post-Briefing Actions
Following this session, WWT can help you continue your journey with:
- Hypervisor Market Scan — A weighted scorecard across 48 criteria to evaluate which platform best aligns with your technical requirements
- Cost Comparison Workshop — Detailed financial modeling comparing licensing, hardware, implementation, migration and upskilling costs across platforms with 5-year TCO analysis
- SME-Led Hypervisor Briefings — Deep-dive technical sessions on specific platforms, covering operational details, architectural differences and adoption requirements
- Hands-on Labs and Learning Paths — Access to WWT's Advanced Technology Center (ATC) for guided, hands-on experience with leading platforms
- Proof of Concept — Validate your chosen platform against your real-world requirements in a supported lab environment
About WWT's Virtualization Modernization Practice
World Wide Technology offers a comprehensive virtualization modernization engagement model spanning four phases:
- Education and Business Case Development — Strategy briefings, cost comparison workshops, technology briefings, hands-on labs, learning paths, business case development and transformation roadmap creation.
- Selection, Validation and Discovery — Proof of concept, integration validation, current state infrastructure assessment, application dependency mapping, application disposition and financial impact analysis.
- Design, Deploy and Modernize — Hypervisor and supporting infrastructure design, final BOM development and delivery, deployment and integration, operational readiness validation and application modernization.
- Migrate and Operationalize — Communication plan development and execution, migration planning, execution and validation, Day 2 operational support, documentation and standard operating procedures, and automation development.
All phases are supported by program governance, risk and issues management, program financial management, leadership reviews and steering committee oversight.