Citrix Systems, Inc., the global leader in application delivery infrastructure, today announced three finalists for the annual 2007 Citrix Innovation Award: Australian Sports Commission, Cox Communications and HSBC Bank. The finalists were selected by a panel of independent industry analysts, press and IT experts as companies that are raising the bar on strategic business innovation enabled by application delivery infrastructure. All three finalists will be recognized at Citrix iForum 07 the App Delivery Expo, taking place Oct. 22 to Oct. 25 at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. The winner will be determined by popular vote and will be announced at the conference
’s closing keynote on Oct. 24. Voting is open today by visiting
http://www.citrix.com/innovationaward and viewing a video on each customer story.
The Citrix Innovation Award is presented to honor thought-leading customers who strategically leverage application delivery to gain a competitive business advantage. The panel of judges looked for companies using application delivery technologies in innovative ways to respond to business initiatives such as off-shoring, mergers and acquisitions, regulatory compliance and business disruption. From enabling “green” call centers to improving workforce continuity and IT flexibility, the finalists were chosen as great examples of customers using application delivery technologies in innovative ways to enhance IT agility and increase user satisfaction.
This year’s panel of judges includes:
- Rorie Devine – CTO, Betfair (Winner, 2006 Citrix Innovation Award)
- John Dix – editor in chief, Network World
- Natalie Lambert – senior analyst, Forrester Research
- Michael Rose – associate research analyst, IDC
- Mike Vizard – senior vice president and editorial director, Ziff-Davis Enterprise
- Anthony Ricco – senior director of customer marketing, Citrix Systems, Inc.
- Wes Wasson – SVP and chief marketing officer, Citrix Systems, Inc.
2007 Citrix Innovation Award Finalist: The Australian Sports Commission
The Australian Sports Commission is an Australian government body that manages, develops and invests in sport at all levels in Australia. The agency works with those participating in sport at the community level as well as athletes at the elite level, including those at the Australian Institute of Sport, a national center for elite and Olympic athletes. The Australian Sports Commission also operates the Active After-School Communities program, a national program offering physical fitness activities to children after school and an important weapon in the global fight against obesity. Headquartered in Canberra, the Australian Sports Commission uses a network of Citrix WANScaler™ appliances to ensure that staff members located in remote branch offices are provided faster application response times, even when accessing large data files and digital videos of athlete performances. The Australian Sports Commission also uses Citrix Presentation Server™ to deliver Windows-based applications virtually to hundreds of mobile staff and coaches traveling within Australia and internationally.
2007 Citrix Innovation Award Finalist: Cox Communications
Cox Communications, the fourth-largest cable communications provider in the U.S., leverages Citrix Application Delivery Infrastructure to help increase employee retention, reduce office and equipment costs, improve customer service and significantly reduce telecommuter traffic. With more than 22,000 employees, 6 million customers and $7 billion in revenue, Cox is known for its high-capacity, reliable broadband delivery network and superior customer service. Cox’s goal was to lower costs and increase productivity, all while being environmentally conscious. The company allows customer support agents to work from home via virtual “green” call centers. The overall savings in space, equipment, overhead and operational costs is approximately $3,300 per agent, per year. To achieve this goal, Cox uses an end-to-end delivery infrastructure including Citrix Presentation Server, Citrix® NetScaler®, and Citrix Access Gateway™ to deliver applications to agents in virtual call centers. Citrix® GoToAssist® and Citrix® GoToMeeting® are utilized for remote support and training of the agents.
2007 Citrix Innovation Award Finalist: HSBC Bank
HSBC Bank, the fourth-largest banking and financial services firm worldwide, uses Citrix Application Delivery Infrastructure to protect its business against disruptions such as natural disasters. As a global financial services firm with 312,000 employees and more than $70.1 billion in total operating income, HSBC built a single application delivery infrastructure that is fully leveraged during either normal or emergency conditions. This centralized infrastructure also enables secure workforce mobility and facilitates regulatory compliance. HSBC currently uses solutions such as Citrix Presentation Server and Citrix EdgeSight™ to keep business operational throughout 1,500 U.K. offices.
How to Vote
Voting is now open to the public at http://www.citrix.com/innovationaward, where finalist video case studies may be viewed. The finalists will be featured during the opening keynotes at the Citrix App Delivery Expo while votes continue to be cast. The winner will be named during the closing keynote on Oct. 24. Registration for the industry expo is now open at www.citrixiforum.com.