8 Signs You Need to Migrate Users to the Cloud with Citrix on Azure, Part 1

‘Every business and every industry is being transformed [by digital technology],’ says Satya Nadella, Microsoft’s CEO. ‘Together [with Citrix] we aim to help organisations transform their businesses and seize the opportunities ahead.’  Microsoft and Citrix are committed to a public cloud approach and, with the VDI market growing by around 4.2% a year in the UK and Ireland, according to IDC, it is clear that businesses are keen too.

For companies and their staff, moving Citrix VDI workloads to Microsoft Azure is a powerful new tool for delivering breakthrough improvements in cost, productivity and flexibility. So much so, that:

• A Citrix VDI estate on Azure can eradicate capital infrastructure expenditure and add $2,015 (£1,450) in additional value per user, per year (IDC)
• Over 50 percent of IT teams realise the efficiencies of Citrix VDI on Azure
• 94 percent of Citrix on Azure users realise security benefits they didn’t have on their on-premise VDI estates

But how do you know if it’s right for you?

1. You see rising costs for your on-premise VDI estate  – A traditional VDI estate can be a costly investment, with 50 percent of overall costs going towards IT labour alone.   – In contrast, by moving your Citrix VDI to Azure, your business can cut IT labour costs all together and provide cost savings of up to £1,500 per user per year. What’s more, a VDI solution situated in Azure can add ‘significant value both on a per user and organisational level’, according to IDC.

1. Replacing or upgrading your existing end-user estate is too costly  – It can be very expensive to buy all your employees new laptops, desktops, phones and tablets. It’s not just the upfront hardware cost, but also the ongoing configuration, management, security and support that’s essential for keeping devices running smoothly. Citrix on Azure lets you deploy applications, including Microsoft’s Office 365 suite, and virtual desktops to any device, including existing legacy PCs, new tablets or even mobile phones. This allows you to sweat existing assets and support a bring-your-own-device (BYOD) strategy with confidence.
2. You have many offices or locations – Citrix on Azure, however makes it much easier to support users at remote locations and deploy Windows 10 easily and efficiently. The speed of deployment for Citrix on Azure users can ultimately save $382 (£271) per user, per year, according to an IDC report.  What’s more, an Azure VDI solution takes away the need for local servers and onsite support. This is especially valuable if your business is expanding (or resizing) and you need more flexibility.
3. Overseas offices experience poor performance over VPN connections – Connecting overseas offices with HQ-based VDI servers can be a recipe for poor performance and frustrated users. This was the case at Mazars, an accountancy firm with 2,300 staff across 17 offices worldwide.   By moving their Citrix VDI estate to Azure, they were able to give each office access to regionally-hosted virtual machines for better performance.  For your business, moving your on-premise VDI estate to the Azure cloud can ultimately boost your performance and add value in higher productivity. In Azure organisations can avoid the performance degradation to their VDI workloads that frequently occur with on-premises deployments. This can equate to $194 (£137) in added value per user, per year.

For the next 4 unmistakable signs you need to migrate your users to the cloud with Citrix on Azure, stay tuned for part 2 of this blog series.