What the Acquisition of VMware by Broadcom Means for Businesses (And What It Doesn’t)

By Pat Thiel, Principal Architect, Consulting
3/11/2024

Navigating change is hard and complex, with many moving pieces — and while there is still a lot we don’t know, one thing’s for sure: Companies can still pivot strategically in light of change. Most often, it starts with the right mindset. Here are four key considerations to keep in mind as you think about this acquisition and how you can position for success.

1. Set realistic expectations while keeping a pulse on how the news will evolve.

First and foremost, it's crucial to recognize that we are in the early stages of the acquisition process, and more changes are expected to unfold in the coming months. We anticipate a clearer picture will emerge around the May–June time frame, providing a better understanding of how this acquisition will impact your technology strategy.

Having worked at VMware for more than nine years before joining Insight, I bring a unique perspective to the table. I firmly believe that Broadcom's involvement is introducing operational efficiencies that will only reinforce VMware as a strategic solution provider. Just one example of this: In the initial 60 days of collaboration, Broadcom streamlined over 650 offerings into four focused packages, aiming to enhance client success in their deployments. Over the next 120 days and beyond, I expect further alignment with clients to determine the optimal process and product mix moving forward.

Multicloud without the complexity  In this video, hear Insight’s CTO unpack virtualization, workload mobility and disaster recovery in multicloud environments with VMware.   Watch it here

2. During change, remember what stays the same.

When big changes happen, it’s just as important to consider what’s not changing as much as what is.

Both Insight and VMware stand as veteran industry leaders in our shared domain expertise and capabilities — offering one of the most stable platforms for enterprises. It is my belief that this stability, coupled with Broadcom's operational enhancements, positions us to navigate this transition with confidence.

3. Approach big virtualization changes carefully and strategically.

For those contemplating a complete shift in virtualization software, it’s not necessarily the wrong move based on your unique business needs and environment — but know that it’s a substantial undertaking. Changing the foundation of your data center requires a total redesign, impacting monitoring tools, management systems, scripts, automation, disaster recovery/backup processes, networking, security protocols, developer environments, storage configurations, hardware specifications, operating systems and more. The transition also demands retraining your team on new tools, incurring both training costs and downtime.

That said, should the strategic decision be made to make a bigger change, Insight is well prepared and staffed to help redesign your data center architecture to meet evolving business objectives.

4. Know your options.

Together with our clients, Insight is already navigating the complexities of change and continuing to drive success for organizations across industries. There are a multitude of cloud-smart strategies that can help guide businesses.

Here are some of the ways your organization can position for success during the change, and how Insight can help:

  • Take the time to understand the new simplified licensing model to ensure you’re getting the most value out of your investment.
  • Talk through ways to navigate the new subscription-only offerings to maintain business continuity across your environment.
  • Evaluate your current consumption, deployment, and usage needs and concerns with an experienced client success team.
  • Lean on subscription model expertise to ensure you’re receiving the full value of your current and future investments.
  • Continue discussing, strategizing, building and deploying solutions for transformational business outcomes (regardless of technology platform).

How will you take the next step?

Companies are now navigating changes in their environment with VMware strategy sessions from Insight. You can reach out to us to address your burning questions, potential solutions and best practices for ensuring stability despite changes in the market.


Lean on a strategic partner. With thousands of deep partnerships with leading providers, Insight serves as our clients’ go-to expert for solutions integration.