by CUGC HQ
Ryan Revord, CTP
Omaha, NE USA
What Citrix technologies are most important to your work?
XenDesktop and Netscaler–I belong to a team responsible for delivering apps and desktops worldwide to over 25k concurrent users daily. This combination of products allows us to do that.
What’s the biggest tech challenge you deal with, and what Citrix solutions are you using?
Security and analytics in general. We need a lot of data, ranging from what applications were run within a user session down to how a session is performing. We are looking at MAS to provide a facet of this, and Splunk for a lot of log collections. WEM is helping us deliver a better user experience but, more specifically, to help secure the desktop with management of AppLocker rules along with pushing user policies.
How long have you been a CTP and how many Citrix Synergy events have you been to?
This is my second year as a CTP, so 16 months total. I’ve been at every U.S.-hosted Synergy since 2006. Networking and learning opportunities are what keep me coming back. The instructor-led and self-paced labs are my personal favorites. I wish we had those all year long. I also enjoy watching the CTP presentations, and any of the deep dives. I like to go learn or see ideas that I can take back and apply, or that I haven’t thought of yet.
What was your biggest takeaway from Synergy 2018?
For me, the new analytics for Netscaler and SD-WAN, as I am currently looking at using them to replace a large implementation of Cradlepoints for retail locations accessing Citrix for point of sale.
You’ve been a CUGC member since the beginning, and you co-lead the Omaha CUGC. What do you enjoy most about your involvement?
I like helping others grow and learn. There is so much we all know and can share, and I really just enjoy helping be a part of that. One area where our local group has made an effort is that after all our meetings, we leave our group with something that they hopefully didn’t know and can take back and show value to their organization for having attended.
Outside of work and CUGC, what do you do for fun?
The reality is that I do whatever it is my five kids are into. Fun is family time. Personally, my favorite hobbies (when I do get the time) are wakeboarding and snowboarding.
