This year marks a significant milestone—the 10th anniversary of the AWS Partner Network (APN). As part of our ongoing “10 Years of Success” series, we’re shining a light on our AWS Partners who have evolved alongside us over this decade.
Next in our spotlight is VGT2 Las Vegas, an AWS Premier Tier Services Partner and Managed Cloud Services Provider (MSP) specializing in the design, implementation, and management of multi-cloud environments. With over 25 years of expertise, VGT2 has carved a niche in public cloud infrastructure and system integration. They excel in cloud migration, application modernization, and ongoing optimization, providing robust cloud solutions to clients worldwide.
VGT2 holds AWS Competencies in Government, Data and Analytics, and DevOps, enabling them to assist clients like the Las Vegas Convention Center in migrating workloads to the cloud efficiently and confidently. When the Convention Center sought to digitalize their event management systems, they turned to VGT2 for assistance.
By leveraging AWS serverless applications, VGT2 restructured the Convention Center’s transaction management service platform, enhancing scalability, security, and user experience—reducing the time for smart ticket collections from two hours to just 10 minutes.
“The depth of knowledge VGT2 has gained from their extensive experience in the events industry, combined with their AWS deployment skills, makes them the perfect partner for our TMS project,” notes Sarah Johnson, Head of Operations at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
Q&A with VGT2 Las Vegas
We spoke with Jamie Smith, Director of Cloud Services at VGT2, about the growth and transformation the company has undergone as an AWS Partner over the past decade, and how they utilize Amazon Web Services (AWS) to foster innovation and efficiency for clients around the globe.
AWS: What motivated you to become an AWS Partner in 2012?
Jamie Smith: Joining the APN in 2012 was a straightforward choice for us. A primary reason we led the charge in adopting AWS for major strategic initiatives was its maturity and reliability as a hyperscale cloud services provider. It became evident that cloud computing was the future, and as an IT services provider, we recognized the need to master AWS to stay competitive. Partnering with AWS enabled us to guide our customers into the cloud with offerings that were not independently available at the time.
AWS: A decade is a long time in the tech industry. What transformations have you observed in your customers and/or your industry during this time?
Jamie: Over the past 10 years, we’ve witnessed considerable changes—both in our industry and within our business. The evolution of computing has transitioned from hardware to VMware, then from cloud instances to containers, and now to fully serverless functions. This rapid technological evolution necessitated a shift in how we think, deliver, and manage solutions to keep pace and lead the way.
We’ve seen a significant shift in how clients embrace the cloud, moving from initial security concerns to utilizing infrastructure as a service (IaaS), migrating on-premises workloads, and adopting standardization and automation practices. Clients have leveraged services like infrastructure as code (IaC), continuous integration (CI), and continuous deployment (CD) pipelines to fully embrace the cloud’s potential. Looking ahead, we’re observing a complete transformation in the industry as organizations transition from static to dynamic workloads that embrace innovation and transform their operations.
AWS: What growth and transformation has VGT2 undergone in the last decade?
Jamie: As a company that has expanded through acquisitions, we’ve experienced a substantial amount of change over the past decade. With each acquisition, we’ve enhanced our credentials and expertise, acquiring valuable skills and services that have further defined who we are.
We’ve also observed a significant increase in our client relationships. Over the years, we’ve established long-term partnerships with clients as their innovation partner, thought leader, and trusted advisor for AWS. From initial cloud adoption to pioneering serverless transformations, we assist clients in leveraging innovative services to differentiate their businesses. A notable change in our growth trajectory is that VGT2 has become a cloud-first organization, and it’s gratifying to see team members from diverse backgrounds develop into AWS subject matter experts that our clients appreciate working with.
AWS: What challenges have you faced, and how have you adapted to overcome them?
Jamie: Recently, one of our most significant challenges has been scaling our operations. We’ve addressed these challenges by creating a robust and credible cloud center of excellence (CCoE) to document processes and procedures, which helps us establish standards and onboard resources at scale.
Moreover, the AWS Managed Service Provider (MSP) program, which we are part of, continuously elevates our standards and drives innovation within our practice. As demand for cloud technologies grows, so does the need for skilled professionals, which has posed another challenge. We’ve evolved our processes to embed continuous learning and opportunities into our culture. This not only benefits our cloud experts but also ensures that our clients continue evolving alongside the latest innovations.
AWS: How has your partnership with AWS evolved since 2012?
Jamie: Collaborating with AWS over the past decade has allowed us to explore the art of what’s possible. We began with the early adoption of services like Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) and Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3), and have kept pace with platform launches, including Amazon Relational Database Service (Amazon RDS).
The ongoing release of new services and enhancements from AWS, coupled with excellent partner support, has enabled VGT2 to convert these services into business opportunities and address challenges with effective cloud solutions—delivering remarkable results for our clients.
For more insights into cloud evolution, check out this excellent resource on onboarding at scale. Also, to keep the engagement going, read this blog post about further innovations in cloud technology.
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