Redefining the workplace

After less than satisfactory first quarter earnings and a restructuring, Citrix is looking to cash in on demand for mobility solutions

After a less than satisfactory first quarter earnings and a restructuring, Citrix is looking to cash in on demand for mobility solutions

Citrix, the US-based software business, is banking on demand for mobility solutions and flexible workforce trends to revitalise its share price and emerge on top of the competition

Security and cloud are Citrix’s buzzwords as it embarks on its new ‘&’ strategy

The Middle East is a growing market for the company but a lack of technology talent poses a challenge in the sale of solutions, according to executives

As the lights dimmed, gigantic screens lit up and music blared out in the auditorium to a crowd of nearly 60,000 people. This was how Synergy, an annual event held by United Statesheadquartered company Citrix to showcase its latest products, opened in Orlando this year. Emerging onto the stage amidst the sliding screens, chief executive officer and president Mark Templeton congratulated the team for putting together the “largest Synergy ever”.

But the opulence of the event belied the tough steps that the company had undergone a few months prior in order to maintain its position.

Valued at nearly $3bn, Citrix is no small player in a software industry looking to tap into the shifting nature of the workplace. It has made a name for itself in desktop virtualisation (a service that allows employees to access their office desktop from other devices), cloud services and mobility apps such as GoToMeeting that simplify virtual meetings.

But having such a varied mix has also exerted pressure on the company as it looks to compete with the likes of VMware and Cisco in a number of areas.

The software firm posted mixed first quarter results, closing around 39 deals worth $1m and above during the period but growing revenue by just 1.3 per cent to reach $761m.

Citrix’s sales have been growing but its share price has left investors dissatisfied with some calling for an overhaul of its business and the sale of certain product lines. Recently one of its shareholders Elliot Management sent a note to the company saying that it could improve its performance by selling underperforming products and spinning high value businesses.

“The problem that Citrix has is that they are underperforming. Their underperformance triggered the recent letter from Elliott Management Corporation to Citrix,” says Gartner analyst Paul DeBeasi.

Although no sale was imminent, the California-headquartered company went through a major restructuring earlier this year, cutting 900 staff. It has also dealt with the departure of a number of senior executives over the last year.

Synergy was therefore seen as an opportunity to turn over a new leaf with a new line of products to boost sales and breathe life into Citrix’s sagging share price.

Focus on cloud and security

As smart devices proliferate in today’s world, offices too are beginning to change – a trend that Citrix is focusing on.

“The reality is that the ever-changing consumer marketplace has come to define the technologies that people want to use at work – and rightfully so, since they offer significant enhancements to productivity and efficiency,” says Citrix CEO Templeton. “We wanted to find a way to help businesses feed the wave of innovation versus having to react to it. By enabling on-demand IT for a workspace world, our customers can now deploy new resources in minutes and manage them with ease, no matter where it resides or what device people are using – all while enhancing security, user productivity and business agility.”

Security and cloud are clearly the buzzwords Citrix wants to emphasise in this new push. As Templeton phrases it, Citrix is focusing on ‘&’– a strategy that highlights security and tries to unify it with