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What is Desktop Virtualization/Virtualisation?

What is "desktop virtualization" ?

Let’s examine what desktop virtualization is and how it can be accomplished using several different types of software. Today’s topic will be the role of access virtualization in desktop virtualization. We’ll look at the role of application virtualization and processing virtualization in future posts.


Defining desktop virtualization

Desktop virtualization is encapsulating and delivering either access to an entire information system environment or the environment itself to a remote device. This device may be based upon an entirely different hardware architecture than that used by the projected desktop environment. It may also be based upon an entirely different operating system as well.


Why should I care about this?

Organizations have learned that acquiring desktop or mobile personal computers, installing software, training and supporting the users of these systems, updating the software on these systems and even maintaining these systems is a costly and time-consuming business. Many in the IT organization remember a time when the organization provided people with either a block-mode device, such as a member of the IBM 3270 family, or a character cell devices, such as the Digital Equipment Corporation VT family, and that device provided a secure access mechanism to the organization’s applications and data for as much as a decade. Once the device was installed, it didn’t need updates or changes throughout its long life. The device didn’t need to be updated each time there was a change in operating system, application development tool, application framework, databased manager or system hardware.

While these devices were limited to displaying text or limited forms of graphics, they were durable, easy to learn and didn’t demand long, irritating vacations while software was being updated. Furthermore, they didn’t offer an invitation to malicious code, such as worms or viruses. No special tools were needed to back up data or applications that where housed close to the user because these devices were just “windows” into what was happening on the server. Server backup software was all that was necessary.

Desktop virtualization can be seen as a way to reach back to the past and provide a reliable, durable environment while still offering modern graphical applications.


How does virtualization software help?

There are several different ways to provide a virtualized desktop environment. They may be used separately or in conjunction with one another. The goals are offering the users of IT-based solutions access to modern, graphical applications while also reducing or totally removing the liabilities of having one’s own general purpose computer and having to learn to be a computer administrator, offering the world an unmanaged (from an IT point of view) access point to the organization’s network and to lower the overall costs of installation, updating, operations, backup and the like. Virtual access software, virtual application environment software, processing virtualization software and management software for virtual environments all can play a role in offering an organization’s staff a virtualized environment.


The role of access virtualization

Access virtualization is one of the earliest forms of desktop virtualization. It is just an evolutionary step away from using one of the early “dumb” terminals. Software running on the server “grabs” the user interface portion of the operating system and applications, encapsulates it and then delivers it to a remote device using an efficient special-purpose protocol, such as Citrix’s ICA, Microsoft’s RDB, HP’s RGS or even the venerable X display protocol that is part of X11.

The remote device runs the client software that implements the chosen protocol(s) and allows the user to access an entire desktop environment that is being projected from a remote server or group of servers. Although the remote device may be a personal computer running an agent, the remote device, some times called a “Thin Client,” does not need to have a large amount of memory or storage. In fact, it may offer no local storage at all. The remote device does not need to be based upon the same hardware architecture or operating system as used by the remote servers. It is quite possible for a small, hand held device based upon an X-scale processor running some embedded operating system to display Linux, Windows, UNIX or even Z/OS applications.

A “connection broker” might be used to increase the levels of reliability and availability of application access. If one server becomes unavailable, the connection broker would simply reconnect the user to another server. Unless some other form of technology, such as storage virtualization is in use, the user might have to restart a transaction.

The challenge this approach offers is that high graphical performance requires reliable, relatively high speed network communications to work. When a person is “off the grid” they’re also out of luck unless some special provisions have been made for them to still access the necessary applications using either application virtualization or processing virtualization.

Citrix XenApp, Microsoft Terminal Services, and X-windows that is provided as a standard part of Linux and UNIX operating systems are all approaches to access virtualization

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KPO: Knowledge Process Outsourcing

It is being claimed that KPO is one step extension of Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO) because BPO Industry is shaping into Knowledge Process Outsourcing because of its favorable advantageous and future scope. But, let us not treat it only a 'B' replaced by a 'K'. In fact, Knowledge process can be defined as high added value processes chain where the achievement of objectives is highly dependent on the skills, domain knowledge and experience of the people carrying out the activity. And when this activity gets outsourced a new business activity emerges, which is generally known as Knowledge Process Outsourcing.

Knowledge Processing Outsourcing (popularly known as a KPO), calls for the application of specialized domain pertinent knowledge of a high level. The KPO typically involves a component of Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO), Research Process Outsourcing (RPO) and Analysis Proves Outsourcing (APO). KPO business entities provide typical domain-based processes, advanced analytical skills and business expertise, rather than just process expertise. KPO Industry is handling more amount of high skilled work other than the BPO Industry. While KPO derives its strength from the depth of knowledge, experience and judgment factor; BPO in contrast is more about size, volume and efficiency.

In fact, it is the evolution and maturity of the Indian BPO sector that has given rise to yet another wave in the global outsourcing scenario: KPO or Knowledge Process Outsourcing. The success achieved by many overseas companies in outsourcing business process operations to India has encouraged many of the said companies to start outsourcing their high-end knowledge work as well. Cost savings, operational efficiencies, availability of and access to a highly skilled and talented workforce and improved quality are all underlying expectations in outsourcing high-end processes to India

The future of KPO has a high potential as it is not restricted to only Information Technology (IT) or Information Technology Enabled Services (ITES) sectors and includes other sectors like Legal Processes, Intellectual Property and Patent related services, Engineering Services, Web Development application, CAD/CAM Applications, Business Research and Analytics, Legal Research, Clinical Research, Publishing, Market Research (Market research KPO ) etc.

In today's competitive environment, focus is to concentrate on core specialization and core-competency areas and outsource the rest of the activities. Many companies and organizations have come to realize that by outsourcing non core activities, not only cost are minimized and efficiencies improved but the total business improves because the focus shifts to the key growth areas of the business activity.

Scope and Future of KPO

According to a report of National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM), the Indian chamber of commerce that serves as an interface to the Indian Software industry, Knowledge Process Outsourcing industry (KPO) is expected to reach USD 17 billion by 2010, of which USD 12 billion would be outsourced to India. Another report predicts that India will capture more than 70 percent of the KPO sector by 2010. Apart from India, countries such as Russia, China, the Czech Republic, Ireland, and Israel are also expected to join the KPO industry.

According to a recent study by “Evalueserve, a Gurgaon based outsourcing company having service chart for global world”, the global KPO market is expected to grow at a cumulative annual growth rate (CAGR) of 46 per cent, from $1.2 billion in 2003 to $17 billion in 2010. Compare this with the prediction for the low-end outsourcing services market. This is expected to have a CAGR of 26 per cent, from $ 7.7 billion to $39.8 billion in the same period.

Evalueserve says India provided $3.5 billion of BPO and KPO (but non-IT) services in 2003 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 36 per cent during 2004 to 2010. Hence, it is likely to earn $30 billion in 2010 by providing these services.

Says country general manager, Kelly Services, Achal Khanna “India still maintains the competitive advantage for providing, the combination of the most cost-effective and high quality manpower- this is India's strength in the off-shoring business”.

In the future, it is envisaged that KPO has a high potential as it is not restricted only to Information Technology (IT) or Information Technology Enabled Services (ITES) sectors, and includes other sectors like Intellectual Property related services, Business Research and Analytics, Legal Research, Clinical Research, Publishing, Market Research (Market research KPO), etc.

"Over the past year or two, the outsourcing industry has been throwing up jobs for Doctors, Engineers, CAs, Architects," says Jacob William of the Bangalore-based Outsource2India, which employs 500 people and offers services in the big-buzz, big-bucks area of knowledge process outsourcing. "Unlike the first wave which was more about entering data and answering phone calls, these jobs involve skill and expertise."

Also, of course, the talent is much more affordable. "Law firms in the US charge an average of $400-450 per hour, and we do the same work for $75 to $100 an hour" says Kamlani" who is an outsourcing provider in the same area.

In the Indian context, KPO salaries could be 25-50 per cent higher than those offered to the same domain experts such as Engineer, Doctor, CA, Lawyer, Architect, Biotechnologist, Economist, Statistician and MBAs, it said.

In its annual publication Strategic Review 2005, Nasscom has said the high-end activity of the BPO industry—the KPO or knowledge process outsourcing could be worth $15.5 billion by 2010.

According to earlier estimates, the BPO industry itself was expected to be about $20bn by 2008, hence a very significant portion of the sector—in excess of 50% is now projected to be knowledge based. This represents significant metamorphosis of call centre sector business to completely different model. Interestingly, Sunil Mehta, Nasscom vice-president research, distances himself from the estimates.

The projections are based on a white paper released by Evalueserve. The paper cites reasons for a possible KPO boom. It says higher savings by outsourcing knowledge based activities combined with the scarcity of specialized talent in developed countries could lead to growth in the KPO sector.

Billing rates for KPO are higher at $30-45 per hour compared to just $10-14 in the BPO business. However, the paper also warns of several challenges like higher quality standards, greater investments and inadequate talent.

The study estimates that while the compounded growth rate of BPO till 2010 would be just 26% KPO is expected to be grow at almost 46%.

Bottlenecks in Future Growth

A study on Knowledge Process Outsourcing (KPO) sector shows a huge supply gap that threatens to cripple its growth. Rocsearch, a UK-based research services company, has gathered evidence suggesting that the KPO market may just about reach a size of $5 billion by 2010, manned by 100,000 people instead of projections of a $12 billion market supported by 250,000 employees.

This accentuates Nasscom's projections of a shortfall of 500,000 workers in ITES and BPO sectors by 2010.

Assuming an average revenue per person of $55,000 over the next four years, 100,000 knowledge workers point to a $5 billion market. This size, though based on a CAGR of 32%, is still 60% less than the $12 billion potential projected by big KPOs, like Evalueserve, last year.

Rocsearch COO, Ashish Sinha says the sector is restricted by low employability despite high graduate turnout, and competing demand from other sectors as jobs grow faster than the workforce.

For example, all the 2,000-odd IIM and top 10 B-School graduates are employable, while less than half the 84,000 graduates from Tier-II B-Schools would make the grade.

The study sees only 500,000 of the over 3 million workers added to the labour pool in 2005 as employable in global firms and of these, just 2 in every 100 are likely to opt for work in knowledge space.

MBA

Electrical Engineering in Gulbarga, Karnataka; Site Engineer at USW, Jewargi; and now MBA in the capital of Karnataka state, Bangalore/Bengaluru. This is the journey I have taken so far. Hello friends, I am Shanmukhayya Gorti; new to blogging and I'm here to put forward my thoughts regarding various issues which I feel are necessary to enhance our knowledge; hence the blog name "Knowledge Enhancement Program-KEP". During my course here at M P Birla Institute of Management, I learnt quite a few tricks of the trade to enhance our knowledge; some of them even being inspired by our faculty.