In today's rapidly evolving digital landscape, hybrid work has been the latest and most dominant industry buzzword. Whether describing a current or desired environment, hybrid work is the catch-all term for a flexible work model that supports a blend of in-office and remote workers, along with those who split time between the office and the field. This solution offers employees the ultimate blend of functionality, productivity, and choice when built correctly.
When the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the rise of remote work and increased the adoption of cloud technologies, businesses were striving to deliver a flexible environment that provides users with a powerful user experience and allows them to seamlessly and securely connect their workforce to maximize productivity.
The Growing Market of Connected Endpoints
The rapid increase in remote work has led to a surge in the demand for connected endpoints. According to a recent study by Gartner, that shift will not be changing anytime soon. An overwhelming 82% of company leaders responded that they intended to let employees work remotely some of the time.
As of 2023, 27% of U.S. employees now work remotely, which is four times the number who worked remotely before. By 2025, there could be as many as 36.2 million Americans working this way. Additionally, 16% of companies are fully remote. These numbers will likely increase, as 59% of workers report being more likely to choose an employer that allows remote work rather than one that doesn’t. Remote work is more common than ever, even after the COVID-19 pandemic has faded away.
Experts predict that the global cloud services market will cross $165 billion by 2024. As more organizations embrace the flexibility and benefits of hybrid work, the need for dynamic and efficient endpoint management solutions becomes paramount.
The Role of Hybrid Cloud in Enabling Remote Work
To support the dynamic and evolving needs of their workforce, companies have taken the Hybrid approach on the back end as well. To deliver the best execution of the hybrid work model, the hybrid cloud has emerged as a game-changer - with 87% of enterprises adopting a hybrid cloud strategy.
By marrying the safety and control of private clouds with the scalability and cost-effectiveness of public clouds, the hybrid cloud has become the perfect suitor for businesses. But, experts have found that wielding this powerful tool demands a nuanced and flexible approach. It's no longer about fitting square pegs into round holes; it's about crafting strategies that are as diverse and adaptable as the cloud environments they'll be deployed within.
In examining trends in hybrid cloud solutions, security, and complexity seem to be the leading concerns, while the shift is also leading to greater adoption of emerging technologies to deliver in this new environment.
This is not surprising as the rapid increase in remote work has led to a surge in cyber threats and vulnerabilities. Remote endpoints, such as laptops and desktops, are often more susceptible to security breaches due to the lack of robust security measures in place. This poses a significant risk to businesses, as sensitive data and confidential information can be compromised, leading to financial losses and reputational damage.
Based on the latest from The Ponemon Institute:
Nearly half of all data breaches happen in the cloud - While 45% of breaches occurred in the cloud, Organizations with a hybrid cloud model had lower average data breach costs — compared to organizations with a public or private cloud model.
Strategic Solutions in the New Hybrid World
As technologies continue to evolve to better serve the shifting environment, companies like Lenovo have been quick to recognize the growing needs of the industry and have created strategic partnerships to deliver unified solutions designed specifically to perform in the hybrid world.
One crucial aspect of Lenovo's strategy has been its partnership with IGEL, a leading provider of endpoint management solutions. IGEL's industry-leading operating system allows organizations to streamline endpoint management, enhance security, and improve the overall end-user experience. When running on Lenovo’s best-in-class hardware, this partnership provides organizations with a comprehensive, end-to-end solution that optimizes the performance and productivity of connected endpoints.
Key Advantages of Lenovo and IGEL.
The partnership between Lenovo and IGEL brings several benefits to businesses and end-users alike.
- Optimize IT resources to manage hybrid work - IGEL's solutions enable organizations to optimize their IT resources, ensuring efficient management of hybrid work environments. By centralizing control and streamlining operations, IT teams can effectively manage a diverse range of endpoint devices, including laptops, desktops, and thin clients. This optimization leads to improved productivity and reduced IT costs.
- Increase business agility with smart and seamless control - With IGEL's endpoint management solutions, Lenovo can enhance business agility by providing smart and seamless control over endpoint devices. This enables quick and easy deployment of applications, updates, and security patches, ensuring that employees have access to the latest tools and technologies through secure tunnels, eliminating the need for a VPN. By reducing downtime and increasing responsiveness, Lenovo can stay ahead in the competitive market.
- Unify, control, and collaborate to boost productivity - IGEL's solutions offer a unified platform for managing and controlling endpoint devices, allowing organizations to foster collaboration and boost productivity. With the optimization of unified communications tools, employees can seamlessly collaborate and share information, regardless of their location. This unified approach enhances teamwork and accelerates decision-making processes.
- Aligning goals for hybrid work environments - Lenovo's goals for hybrid work environments align perfectly with IGEL's endpoint management solutions. By providing support for on-premise and public cloud access to applications and data, IGEL ensures that employees can seamlessly access resources from anywhere. Additionally, IGEL's offerings, such as simplified software and system updates, Onboarding Services, and the App Portal, all save time and money for customers. This alignment of goals allows Lenovo to effectively address the challenges of hybrid work environments and deliver value to its customers.
Conclusion
The seamless integration of hardware and software solutions offered by Lenovo and IGEL is a prime example of how organizations can embrace the flexibility of hybrid work while ensuring the security and manageability of their endpoints and delivering a dynamic user experience for their workforce.