Virtualization : At The Forefront

Frontier Business Systems added virtualization solutions to its portfolio
two years ago. Today, with seven vendor alliances, its own green data center and
well trained people on virtualization it's close to its dream of becoming the de
facto channel partner in this area

One of the first few companies to go the whole hog when it comes to offering
virtuali­zation solutions to its customers, Bengaluru-based Frontier Business
Systems made the decision to add this technology to its solution stack way back
in 2007. Back then, when the industry was on a growth curve, the core management
team of the company took a close look at the various emerging business
possibili­ties it could explore to ensure that it will stay ahead of its
competition.

It got hold of the Gartner Technology Predictions for 2007 and took a look at
the technologies best adapted for its existing customer base and existing market
skill sets.

Keeping these two criteria in mind, the management team started eliminating
some of the technologies which Gartner predi­cted would become mainstay within a
few years. The first to be eliminated was unified communi­cation (UC).
Arunachalam S, GM-Virtualization and Application Delivery, Frontier Business
Systems said, “Our focus was always on technology and we would have had to do a
lot of homework on UC which is why we decides not to opt for it or application
as a service for which we were not well equipped.”

Getting started

Once the decision was made, a blueprint on how to have a holistic
virtualization offering and also develop the requisite internal skill sets
around it. The first thing on the agenda was signing up with the leading vendors
in this space.

Currently it is a partner for VMware, Citrix, Platespin, Marathon
Technologies, ThinPrint, Datacore and Vizion Core. Some of these alliances are
exclusive in nature where Frontier is the only integrator in India.

Arunachalam S GM-Virtualization and Application Delivery Frontier Business Systems Bengaluru

Once these alliances were in place, Frontier started training its people and
getting certifications. The next item on the agenda was setting up its own
virtualization laboratory within its data center.

Slowly the company moved all its internal physical infrastructure and
applications on to the virtualization platform and built a green data center.
The reason for this was two-fold. Frontier had realized the cost savings
virtualization presented and it also wanted to have a ready business case of a
truly virtualized network which it could showcase to its prospective customers.
And what better place to start than at home itself!

Money well spent

Last year, Frontier shifted to a new facility in Bengaluru, housing its
green data center which was certified by LEED. This entire virtualization effort
took the company 18 months to plan and execute.

The company also spent close to Rs 3 crore in setting up the infras­tructure,
enabling its people, getting lot of industry material including analyst reports,
investment in training and certification as well marketing spend to create
customer awareness.

Since mid-2008 Frontier has been reaching out to customers and talking to
them about virtualization and business has started trickling in.

Learning to be shared

Sharing advice with other companies who might be keen on adding
virtualization to their solutions stack, Arunachalam cautioned them to look
beyond it as a mere additional technology. “Most people who want to add
virtualization sign up with a vendor, get their salespeople trained and then
start going to customers. These partners are not at visualization in a holistic
fashion. Their gestation period might be two to three months before they get
business moving, but in the long run they will lose out to other competitors who
have a well planned strategy around virtualization,” he cautioned.

This aside, he advised that interested solution providers should invest in
their own infrastructure proof of concept center which they can use as a
showcase to their customers.

Adding to existing skill sets is another thing that solution providers should
invest in on a continual basis, which he opined could be a major challenge for
smaller players and therefore needed thorough planning.

And lastly, patience is a virtue well practiced if a solution provider does
all this and expects business to come in instantaneously. The return on
investment usually takes several months and long sales negotiations.
Virtualization can therefore be termed as a business investment ideally suited
for the optimistic and patient; not for the conservative or reckless ilk.

Vinita Bhatia

vinitavs@cybermedia.co.in