Summary
The ultimate user experience is the one that's invisible—it's unexplained magic—like a gift without a special occasion. When the magic lasts, retained in the heart, beyond the memory of who created them, that's a true legacy. As we know, lasting experiences are few and far between. This keynote will share the UX journey of Citrix—through the successes, failures and stories of the company's former CEO. This session will wrap up our conference with the goal of expanding your insights and sparking inspiration as you take away the professional value and fun of Enterprise UX 2017.
Key Insights
-
•
Legacy should be seen as gifts of insight and leadership that last beyond personal memory, not just a personal story or endowment.
-
•
Citrix’s purpose centered on authentic human outcomes—helping people work flexibly and live better, not just on technology.
-
•
Design thinking is more about reframing problems and ideas than just aesthetics or craft.
-
•
Embedding design thinking deeply into an organization requires training diverse ‘catalysts’ across departments, not just designers.
-
•
Consumer technology shifts like the iPhone and iPad accelerated user expectations, forcing enterprise UX to become table stakes.
-
•
The ‘virtual workplace’ vision from 2001 anticipated many trends in device independence, collaboration, and user metaphors decades ahead.
-
•
A culture that puts employees and customers first, grounded in values of humility, respect, integrity, and conviction, creates pride and drives business success.
-
•
Leadership balance involves trusting your team, clarifying your own decision boundaries, and empowering others.
-
•
Legacy moments can be as simple and immediate as making genuine personal connections, not just grand achievements.
-
•
Competitive differentiation in enterprise software is now about holistic customer experience (CX), beyond just UX design.
Notable Quotes
"Legacy is a gift: gifts of insight, leadership, experience that last long beyond anyone remembering who gave them."
"If you want to receive value, you have to create value first; expecting it before contributing is a mistake."
"We believe in being a rock band, not rock stars—success comes from the team, not the individual."
"User experiences and customer experiences are feelings—we design those feelings more than features."
"The post-PC era has had more impact on enterprise UX and computing than any other factor in all history."
"The hardest thing for any tech company to do is move from technology-out thinking to customer and business outcome thinking."
"Every person in a company has a customer, whether internal or external, and should focus on the experience they deliver."
"Culture plus empathy equals pride—and pride powers the most successful organizations."
"You can leave a legacy in three minutes by giving a connection or sharing an insight—it doesn’t have to be grand."
"Don’t dress for the job you have, dress for the job you want—this applies to people and companies alike."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"Why do designers decide how to design this? How do we wean design's addiction from whiteness?"
George AyeThat Quiet Little Voice: When Design and Ethics Collide
November 16, 2022
"Engaging communities requires thinking beyond western-centric tools, considering language and cultural relevance for accessibility."
Xenia Adjoubei Sean BruceEmpowering Communities Through the Researcher in Residence Program
March 29, 2023
"We built AI that suggests projects to participants that pre-match what you’re asking for instead of mass blasting everyone."
Benjamin Wiedmaier Annie MayfieldRedefining Toolkits: Unbundling to Create a Perfect Match
March 11, 2025
"Not every head of design is the right leader for every phase of organizational maturity."
John DevanneyThe Design Management Office
November 6, 2017
"Experimentation pitching must use the language and values of who you're trying to convince in the organization."
Steve Sanderson Alissa Briggs Jeff Gothelf Bill ScottDiscussion
May 14, 2015
"We need to create an army of design thinkers across the organization who can make better decisions on what to build and how to build it."
Jemma AhmedTheme 2 Intro
January 8, 2024
"You aren’t going to turn into an arrogant jerk by believing in yourself more."
Megan KiersteadYou Are a Badass at UX: Overcoming Imposter Syndrome
March 10, 2021
"We moved from versioning the entire system quarterly to individually versioning components, so changes are easier to track and prioritize."
PJ Buddhari Nate BaldwinMeet Spectrum, Adobe’s Design System
June 9, 2021
"The ethics in community design are critical — emotional damage can be severe if mishandled."
James LangIf you can design an app, you can design a community
May 22, 2025