“The Attic” Video Podcast Episode 9: Scott Manchester on Windows 365 and EUC’s Future

At the DISRUPT conference in Newport Beach, California, we sat down with Scott Manchester, Director of Program Management, Windows 365, Microsoft, for an amazing journey into Scott’s career starting out as a home automation entrepreneur, then leading Microsoft innovation from Windows 7 through Windows 365. Ever creative, he is already developing new Windows 365 products and other ways Microsoft can support virtualization and the future of end user computing.

The right timing is a theme in Scott’s life. He grew up in the Seattle area, graduated from the University of Washington, and earned his MBA from Washington State University. Out of college, his first job was working for Microsoft co-founder, the late Paul Allen. Scott did technical projects for Allen’s various estates, properties, and yachts, largely in the home automation space. He took that expertise and built his home automation company, of which 90% of the clients were Microsoft people. After a while, he decided it was time to do something different, and wanted to work for Bill Gates. It was the only job he applied for. In 2001 he joined Microsoft.

Over the last 21 years, Scott has been front and center at a dazzling number of milestone innovations at Microsoft, acting as a serial entrepreneur within the company. He holds 15 patents, including his work in Wi-Fi protected setup, formerly called Windows Connect Now. He then moved into media, media streaming and media management, and led the development of the media technologies in Windows 7 and Windows 8, and from there got into the second screen remoting, gaming, and virtualization space.

Scott and IGEL sealed their virtualization alliance over breakfast at a Seattle IHOP. IGEL learned that Scott was working on something that would revolutionize end user computing. He did, and the result is AVD. Being entrepreneurial, Scott knew there was more to do to broaden the utility of AVD. He spent several years with his team developing Windows 365 as a layer over AVD, to provide a full SaaS-based solution that allows customers to manage that environment the same way they manage physical devices.

IGEL and Windows 365 were a natural EUC fit, joining IGEL’s Linux OS with Microsoft’s OS. IGEL early on developed some of the first dedicated AVD endpoint devices, using its in-depth expertise and impressing Microsoft with its progress and customer value. A high point was IGEL CEO Jed Ayres joining Scott on stage at Ignite 2019 to discuss IGEL, Linux OS and its partnership to support AVD.

Tune in and hear Scott talk about Microsoft’s continuing partnership with IGEL and new Microsoft developments underway in which physical and virtual computing will blend even more. And find out how your smartphone owes some innovative technology to Scott!

On Windows 365 Development during COVID. “…we built the product all working remote… so no better way to build a product …you know, it’s like building the car while you’re driving it, right? You know immediately what you need.”

On How his Martial Arts Experience defines a Good Partnership. “We call it flow rolling, where you’re just moving, and letting them get moves, and you get moves, …though that instinct to fight and win comes out sometimes. So, you really have to put yourself in the right headspace to make sure that it’s a great experience for both parties, and I think that’s a basis for any good partnership.”

On Changing the Consumer Device Mindset. “…You see so many of these new services coming out now that offer ways of accessing entertainment, streamed to you. Those are setting people’s mindset that I don’t have to own something or physically touch something to be able to consume or be immersed in that experience…and virtualization is basically taking your PC experience and giving you a Netflix like experience…”  Scott Manchester

See Episode 9 here:

You can watch all episodes of “The Attic” on the IGEL YouTube Channel or connect to The Attic on PodBean for direct links to all of the ways to listen in on your preferred podcast platform.

Thanks for stopping by The Attic. Stay tuned for more! Some of our upcoming guests include Mike Strohl, CEO of Entisys360 and Skip Gumble, the head of global VMware Horizon Virtual Application & Desktop Multi-cloud Hybrid services.