Yes, that is right. After decades working on my own companies or as a consultant in the EUC, for many the unthinkable happened. CROD became an employee somewhere. You already know I will be joining Goldman Sachs but let me explain the reasoning behind that decision (easier than I thought) and why I ended up at no EUC vendor.

Why No EUC Vendor

Well if you follow me on Twitter, the answer to that should be quite simple. Vendors, no matter what they tell you, do NOT want honest, constructive feedback. That is one of the biggest BS in the EUC, a place full of Primma Donnas with big egos.

I saw that first hand, being part of all the community programs out there for years. You tell them, in a nice way, that something is shitty, they think you are cute for voicing your views and your customer needs. You do that a couple times and you start to become that weirdo that according to them has nothing good to say. Finally, if 99% of the time you point flaws on their products, thinking, vision and so on, now you are a persona non grata, a black sheep and they must get rid of you.

That is in a way where I am today. For many I am that grumpy negative guy that can only see what is wrong. Well reality is with many vendors there is more wrong than right so yes, tough to point at what is right. Now, if we step back for a moment, if you are a vendor creating products (that you want to sell right?) don’t you want to know everything that is wrong so you can make it right (and better) to sell more? It is simple, kindergarten math here. But nope, thanks to EucGOs (yes I coined that term, the EUC Ego) they do not see it like that. They are always right. This sense of creating amazing things and/or making the right decisions is what brought you Azure RemoteApp, RD Gateway, Citrix Podio/Wrike acquisitions and so on. The whole world can see the pile of manure these products and decisions are, except these vendors.

That is why I did not end up in a place like Microsoft (that internally, and I have heard that from current employees, say that I am a ‘terrible co-worker’ and for that reason they would never have me on any team – let me clarify that I never worked for anyone so not sure how they think I am a terrible co-worker. I am starting to question if my wife is involved on this) or Citrix (that went through the effort to get a VP asking for banning me from Citrix Consulting Services because I questioned the value of their USD 7,000 charge for their All-Access training pass for partners – not to mention their lack of vision, cost cutting measures in effect and so on – you get the idea). So yes, vendors like that would never hire me and I would not want to work at places like that, where everyone has super soft skin thank to years of Lancome moisturizers, SPF 100 sunscreen and massages .

Other EUC vendors, I did contact like ControlUp, IGEL and so on. They showed no interest at all for whatever reason (could be the same as Microsoft – no clue to be honest). The other issue, in some cases, was simply money. Consulting may not pay a fortune but does pay well and if you are well-known enough, there is always work, what makes it tough money wise. Most vendors, even large ones like Microsoft, may not pay what you can get as a consultant (sure, you have vacation and no need to find customers).

Ok we get it, but why no AWS then?

That one is easy too. They are all about the customer and their interview process (“The Loop”) is always measuring how you stack up to that motto. The problem is, their recruiters are totally the opposite. They do not understand who the customer is in this case and what their exact role is.

A great recruiter is a great story teller. He is there to tell a story about this mystical and amazing place where everyone wants to work and where only the greatest work. They are telling that story to attract customers (the people they want to hire). Very simple to see this. The customer is the person being interviewed and their job is to do their best to convince you AWS is da shit.

Let me tell you they failed miserably at that. My experience was I was given some sort of privilege to be able to even talk to them. If they have such a twisted view on who the customer is and what their role is, I had to assume I would see even more twisted things at AWS so I decided it was not for me. Not saying it is not for everyone. If you want the money for your four-year stint and could not care less about twisted scenarios, this is the place for you.

Sure things may change and my particular AWS experience may not be the same others had but just reporting exactly what I have seen, as it was.

Stop the BS. Why Goldman Sachs then?

I have been in this for a very long time and of course, for that reason, I know a ton of people in the industry (ok forget the fact many would prefer not to have ever met me) and once the word got out there that I was considering a Full Time Gig, I started chatting with some people that reached out.

One being another no-BS, straight-to-the-point guy, that has known me for over a decade (even though we have never worked together). Harry Labana.

Yep, I accepted a position at Goldman Sachs and the main reason is simple: to work with Harry and his team on what is next for Goldman, in terms of what is there for the users, touching on multiple things that create the user environment, many that go way beyond EUC. It is a much broader job and that is the main reason why I took it. Not only I get to work with people that have very low tolerance for vendor BS but I get to work with people that have vision and thick skin. That have a great grasp of what the future may look like in all the facets related to work. Cannot get better than that, honestly.

On top of that, I am sure I will have fun. A lot of fun.

Cannot wait to meet the Citrix and Microsoft guys as a customer. And why?

Well, as they say, the customer is always right.

Entertaining times ahead.

CR