Azure. Done brilliantly.

Clarity on Cloud is our CEO Helen Gerling’s perspective on the real commercial and architectural forces shaping modern cloud decisions.

In this latest offering, Helen discusses how organisations aren’t moving from Citrix to Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD) because it’s fashionable - they’re responding to shifting economics, control, and security realities. This article explores what’s really driving the change, where AVD genuinely simplifies the model, and the hidden architectural and cost pitfalls that can derail a poorly planned migration.

Migrating to Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD) can feel like a major milestone: legacy platforms retired, users successfully cut over, project complete. But in reality, migration is not the finish line – it is the starting point for a new phase of ongoing operational responsibility. AVD is a powerful, flexible service sitting at the heart of your Azure and Microsoft 365 ecosystem, and it demands active, informed management to consistently deliver performance, security and cost efficiency. In this blog, we explore what effective ongoing AVD management really involves, where organisations commonly encounter operational strain, and why the right blend of tooling, experience and clear ownership makes all the difference long after migration day.

For many organisations, the move away from Citrix isn’t driven by enthusiasm for change, but by growing pressure. Rising licensing costs, increasing complexity and a wider shift towards Microsoft 365 and Azure are prompting a reassessment of existing virtual desktop platforms. Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD) is an increasingly attractive option, but migrating successfully is not a simple like-for-like swap. Understanding what a good AVD migration really involves is critical to avoiding unnecessary risk and complexity.

In this video, Helen Gerling joins the Cloud Decisions Microsoft Mentors podcast to share her career journey, leadership perspective and thinking on how cloud, AI and data can deliver meaningful outcomes when technology is grounded in people and purpose.

The conversation explores pragmatic cloud delivery, inclusive technology cultures and the opportunities emerging at the intersection of hyperscale cloud, artificial intelligence and data science.