Recorded live at the iconic Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami, Florida, VMblog sits down with Jeffrey McGrath, Vice President of Product Marketing at Omnissa, during the IGEL Now & Next 2026 conference — one of the most important events on the end-user computing calendar.
In this candid conversation, Jeff unpacks who Omnissa is, where they came from, and — most importantly — where they’re taking enterprise IT next.
Who Is Omnissa?
If the Omnissa name is still new to you, you almost certainly know their technology. Formerly the End-User Computing (EUC) division of VMware, Omnissa went through a significant transformation when VMware was acquired, was subsequently spun out, and is now a wholly owned subsidiary of KKR — while retaining much of its original VMware leadership team and talent. Today, Omnissa describes itself as the world’s first AI-driven digital work platform.
A Platform Built on Three Market-Leading Pillars
Jeff walks us through the three core solution areas that make up the Omnissa platform:
- Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) — A long-standing market leader, covering everything from mobile devices to Windows and Mac desktop management
- Virtual Desktops & Apps (VDI/DaaS) — Powered by Horizon, which can be deployed fully on-premises, in the cloud, or in a hybrid model
- Digital Employee Experience (DEX) — One of Omnissa’s newer but already industry-recognized solutions, capable of monitoring user experience across mobile, desktop, and virtual environments — and identifying issues before they ever impact the end user
The key differentiator Jeff emphasizes? No other vendor in the industry brings all three of these solutions together into a single, unified platform. For EUC teams that are traditionally siloed — with separate mobile, Windows, and Mac teams — Omnissa offers the ability to consolidate without compromise.
The Long-Standing Omnissa + IGEL Partnership
The relationship between Omnissa and IGEL goes back decades. When Omnissa was still the VMware EUC division, the launch of Horizon — one of the first VDI products to leverage a hypervisor — naturally created a deep technical partnership with IGEL. That relationship has only deepened over time.
At IGEL Now & Next 2026, Omnissa announced two significant new integrations:
- IGEL telemetry flowing into Workspace ONE Intelligence — enabling DEX monitoring and reporting on IGEL-powered devices directly within Omnissa’s platform
- IGEL + Horizon Accelerator integration — Horizon Accelerator is Omnissa’s managed service offering for Horizon virtual desktops and apps, and customers using IGEL-powered devices can now receive analytics for those devices within the same console
Jeff also highlights the broader ecosystem at the show — noting that partners like Citrix/Nutanix are fellow alliance vendors, and that many service delivery and resell partners are building integrated, multi-vendor solutions that combine Omnissa, IGEL, and other technologies together for customers.
AI Strategy: The Four-Stage Journey to the Autonomous Workspace
This is where the conversation gets particularly compelling. Jeff lays out Omnissa’s clear, four-stage AI maturity model for enterprise IT:
Stage 1 — Alerts Basic notifications and signals. Every organization starts here.
Stage 2 — Analytics Actionable intelligence derived from telemetry collected across users, devices, applications, and authentication — regardless of identity provider. Think: identifying underused application licenses, flagging devices with degraded batteries, or spotting performance trends.
Stage 3 — Advice This is where AI becomes genuinely powerful. Omnissa doesn’t just surface the problem — it identifies the root cause and tells you how to fix it. Example: “Since you upgraded this application, we’ve detected slowness. Here’s the root cause. Click this button and we’ll update the device driver automatically.” The IT team stays in control, but the heavy lifting is done.
Stage 4 — Autonomous (The North Star) The fully autonomous workspace — self-configuring, self-healing, and self-securing. At this stage, Omnissa’s platform acts as a set of intelligent services running on behalf of the IT team, taking action automatically based on established trust. No ticket required. No manual intervention needed.
Jeff is candid that most customers are still building that trust in AI — and that’s completely okay. The journey looks different for every organization. But the destination is clear, and Omnissa says they’re leading the way.
Why IGEL Now & Next Matters
For Jeff and the Omnissa team, IGEL Now & Next isn’t just a trade show — it’s a gathering of a close-knit community that has worked together across the same accounts, the same partners, and the same alliances for years. It’s where road maps get shared, integrations get announced, and — as Jeff puts it — “a lot of customer work and behind-the-scenes deal making gets done.”
🔗 Learn More Visit omnissa.com to explore their full platform, learn about the journey to the autonomous workspace, and discover their integrations with IGEL and other alliance partners.
Recorded at IGEL Now & Next 2026 | Fontainebleau Hotel, Miami, Florida
Back to: IGEL Now & Next 2026
