Industry executives and experts share their predictions for 2021. Read them in this 13th annual VMblog.com series exclusive.
Welcoming 2021 – Taking Action for the Work Environment Evolution
By Henning Volkmer, President and CEO of ThinPrint Inc
It is safe to say that 2020 was a rough year, which begs the question – is 2021 going to be any better?
The short answer is yes. There is confidence that 2021 is going to be better. Perhaps not right from the start, but we will see a steady rise in overall quality of life as science makes progress around containing COVID-19. Technologically we will be able to build on the foundations that we had to quickly put in place to deal with a workplace that had changed virtually overnight and then fortified as the year moved along.
When we look at specific technology trends, the impact 2020 had on end-user computing (EUC) and what will this landscape will look like in 2021 should be top of mind.
End-user computing has certainly proved more than useful this year. Companies that had virtual or remote desktop environments built on Citrix, VMware or Microsoft RDS in place were often able to very quickly expand these environments to serve larger groups of users. The result was the ability to provide secure, quick and reliable access to the workplace from home offices.
This past year also welcomed Windows Virtual Desktop (WVD) as a new contestant in the EUC space. Having entered the arena in late 2019, Microsoft’s new Azure hosted virtual desktop offering was able to hit the ground running. The exclusive Windows 10 offering combined the efficiency of the venerable terminal server with the application compatibility, familiarity and ease-of-use of a “normal” Windows 10 PC. It was the solution of choice for thousands of customers with tens of thousands of desktops that were looking for a solution to quickly and securely bring applications and data to users on whatever devices they had in their home offices.
Users are able to access WVD from virtually any device that can run a modern web browser. This makes applications and data accessible for customers through WVD much easier, quicker and more cost effective for organizations than having to design, setup, deploy and maintain environments that would have users work at home on dedicated computers provided by the company. These computers would take up space at the user’s home, need expensive VPN connections to the organization, and an elaborate system to manage and secure so many decentralized devices.
While virtual and remote desktops certainly have many advantages, there is something to be said for hardware to support the virtual environment. When shutdowns commenced, devices like laptops, monitors and printers flew of the shelves leaving the most sophisticated supply chain logistics players, such as Amazon, struggling to keep them in stock. Many of these devices went to children in remote learning environments, but just as many went to people who needed, or wanted to, set up a more permanent workspace at their home.
We had to rush to in 2020 to keep our businesses working as well as possible. At the same time, we discovered a resiliency and perseverance some of us didn’t know we had and we definitely learned a lot about what we can accomplish if we really banded together as a team. Technologically we have laid the foundation to make it through the remainder of the pandemic, but on a more positive note we can use much of the work that was done to establish a more modern and flexible way to work and do business.
So, it’ll be 2021, soon…. what’s next?
In 2021 we will see an increase in “Hybrid Work”. The ability for employees to work from the office or from home as needed will become a norm for most organizations. With this new environment comes a number of benefits. This includes saving rent on office space and being able to locate or hire employees in more affordable areas or where the necessary talent is available. Employees also benefit from spending less time on commutes, being able to better balance work and personal life and have better access to good jobs without having to relocate.
To accommodate Hybrid Work we will see two major trends. First, a continued migration to the cloud for applications and desktops alike to ensure they are securely accessible from anywhere. Secondly, a need to deliver certain infrastructure functions – typically shared between users at an office – to each user individually, both at their home office as well as their traditional office desk.
This means that some functions like communications technologies, including phones, and productivity technologies, such as printing, will need to become cloud services as well. When this happens these busines functions can be utilized by users from wherever their location is, without compromising features or security.
A good example of this is ThinPrint’s ezeep. This solution is uniquely positioned to deliver printing from any device – PC, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android or Chrome – as well as backend or cloud applications via an API to any printer at the user’s home office, a coworker’s home office or the traditional office.
Ideally, a cloud print solution replaces the individual printer drivers on physical or virtual desktops or is installed on mobile devices, integrating seamlessly into the user’s regular actions to initiate a print job to capture the user’s print data and let them pick options like colors, single or double sided, stapling, and collating and sends it to the cloud. For the best results, easiest setup and most cost savings, the cloud can then either process the printout using the proper printer driver built into the cloud portion of the solution needed for the target printer. For further simplification and universal roll out to any existing printer a small, inexpensive appliance or hub is best positioned to then quickly and securely receive a print job to send to the printer on the local network at home or in an office.
Those looking to get started with cloud printing, without altering the existing infrastructure, can have their job sent to a connector installed on a workstation or server close to the user to be processed and sent to a printer there. While this is not true cloud printing, it is a good solution for those looking to get started quickly.
Gathering experiences with cloud printing and routing jobs via the cloud is a good first step as it immediately simplifies print administration and allows for much more secure and flexible setups where users and printers don’t have to be on the same network. This opens up possibilities to optimize printing in the new work environment.
This could be a virtual desktop or a backend or legacy application printing back to a user’s home office or a branch office. It could also be a user in an office printing to a printer securely tucked away on a separate network right down the hall. Or, it could be a user having a seamless experience printing for work at their home office and their “regular” office in a Hybrid Work scenario. And for those looking for a replacement for Google Cloud Print’s APIs or direct print functionality, Cloud printing offerings have proven to be more than a capable replacement.
We have accomplished a lot in 2020 to ensure we’re in a good spot to make 2021 a much better year. If we’re all responsible during the 2020 holiday season, wear our masks and practice social distancing as best we can, we’ll not only enjoy the benefits of the technological advances we’ve made in 2020, but also get to spend much more time with those we love again.
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About the Author
Henning Volkmer is the president and CEO of ThinPrint, Inc., driving the execution of the company’s strategy as the leading innovator across print management. A cloud printing innovator and launch partner for Windows Virtual Desktop, ThinPrint is the technology leader for fully processing print jobs in its ezeep Cloud without having to rely on on-premises printer drivers. He has established a broad technological background and has been at the forefront of technology trends for the past seventeen years. In addition to holding various positions within the Cortado group, Henning Volkmer served as part of a project team focused on reducing costs in the network infrastructure division with what is now Nokia. Under Volkmer’s direction, ThinPrint brand has increased its lead as the premier print management software, while Cortado brand has become recognized as a pioneer business solution, shaping the future of the cloud desktop.
