VMware reinvents the business cloud

With a 70% share of the global virtualisation market, VMware is leveraging its strengths as a mega-cloud through the VMware Cloud Verified Partner Program (VCPP). Already, thousands of cloud providers are delivering workloads to organisations worldwide, making the VCPP the largest network of validated cloud services based on VMware technology.

VCPP partners deliver the complete VMware software-defined data centre as a service, and its Cloud Verified badge is a mark of distinction because of the quality technology behind it. VCPP partners consume VMware products on a pay-as-you-go, pay-as-you-grow, monthly subscription model. They deliver hybrid cloud services that rapidly extend the customer’s data centre into the cloud using the same VMware products and tools they already use on-premises.

The program is designed to allow partners to sell VMware cloud services while still hosting everything in a local data centre. Essentially, these partners have trusted service providers that deliver real estate in a cloud underpinned by VMware solutions. In Sub-Sahara Africa alone, there are already more than 50 VCPP partners.

This gives local customers access to a more flexible environment that meets their needs. Furthermore, billing is done in Rands and is user-friendly, unlike the hyperscalers that charge in small quantities throughout a month. A VCPP provides customers with a one-stop-shop to meet all their hybrid (and private) cloud requirements. A local cloud means a local experience with the ability to engage with partners on a more personal level.

“Local partners can power the future of any organisational requirement and deliver global best practices with the knowledge and experience of what it means to do business in your country,” says Lee Syse, cloud technology lead for cloud providers at VMware Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).

Sumeeth Singh, head of cloud provider business for SSA at VMware, says: “The European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) take a dim view of organisations breaking data sovereignty restrictions. This means that digital data is subject to the laws of the country in which it is located. This puts the onus on companies to take responsibility for managing their data in different geographic locations.”

It also fosters stronger local relationships where customers can quickly set up face-to-face meetings if they encounter a business problem or want to customise solutions in the cloud. Contracts are designed with local market conditions and regulations in mind providing for more flexible terms instead of the standardised global contracts set out by hyperscalers.

“Dimension Data values the strategic partnership and relationship with VMware that has spanned decades”, says Jeff Jack, principal practice head of cloud at Dimension Data. “The VMware Cloud Provider Program (VCPP) has allowed us to build compelling Cloud Services in a flexible manner and our recent achievement of Cloud Verified for our Virtual Datacentre (VDC) offering further cements our relationship. We are confident that our investment in VMware will yield additional benefits for our clients as VMware continues to innovate in the multi-cloud world.”

CIOs today face a myriad of challenges only exacerbated by the uncertainty created by the global COVID-19 pandemic. They must improve their time to market and be agile to accommodate evolving client requirements. Not only must they keep the lights on, but they must also continue to innovate to increase competitiveness, all the while keeping costs under control.

The need to rapidly embark on digital transformation projects and make data and solutions accessible in cloud environments for employees to continue to work regardless of geographic location have contributed to the need to turn to trusted cloud provider partners that make this as easy a transition as possible.

Unfortunately, many cloud providers simply shift a box selling mindset into a virtual environment, not accounting for the unique requirements of each business. This is where VCPP partners are different. They do not sell the cloud but rather solutions that address their customers’ business challenges as cost-effectively and efficiently as possible. This includes everything from managing business risk and taking care of regulatory compliance to delivering cybersecurity and providing a platform open to developing more innovative products and services.