![[Column] Garry Ackerman: Flexibility is the key to remote working](Images/Key Persons/Garry_Ackerman_Argantic.png)
[Column] Garry Ackerman: Flexibility is the key to remote working
Today’s workforce is increasingly seeking more flexibility to work from anywhere and from any device without sacrificing productivity or security. It’s imperative that companies prioritise this digital transformation and the accompanying modernisation of IT to optimise business outcomes and improve employee satisfaction.
They must focus on providing users with the right tools to work collaboratively and in real time on innovative ideas. This includes supporting an increasingly mobile workforce that uses multiple different devices to be productive.
According to a Forrester study, Microsoft 365 users save up to 3 hours per week, on average, due to collaboration and communication efficiency. Knowledge workers can use the most up-to-date collaboration and communication features on any device, including co-authoring documents, leveraging AI-powered tools, using Microsoft Teams to collaborate remotely, and sharing files easily with OneDrive.
Highly mobile users can securely access their applications on their mobile devices, creating up to 2.5 hours per week of additional productivity outside of the office.
Cloud allows businesses to quickly build, deploy and manage applications and services. It also offers them flexibility and scalability when it comes to computing needs. More importantly, businesses only pay for what they consume.
Moving to the cloud is a huge decision, many factors need to be considered but ultimately, it's a smart move. Those who have already embraced cloud are thriving and the rest are dying. It not only empowers businesses, but does away with high costs associated with owning and maintaining on-premise hardware.
Complex and out-of-date on-premise environments require significant capex and time to maintain. Another major concern is legacy products reaching end-of-life with no upgrade path. Modern businesses require a modern IT platform that simplifies deployment, provisioning, and management across all devices, shifted spending from capex to opex, reduced IT costs by consolidating on one platform, and reduced IT costs by migrating to the cloud.
Cloud is an investment - not a cost. Security, compliance, cross-compatibility for legacy applications, enhanced mobility and flexibility, and business continuity solutions make it possible for organisations to migrate to the cloud and begin to benefit from a more streamlined IT infrastructure.
Anytime, anywhere, any-device access
Employee expectations for their work devices and applications had shifted, increasingly demanding anytime, anywhere, any-device access to their productivity and collaboration tools. Companies wanted to improve user experience related to device management and downtime, improve user ability to collaborate and communicate with the newest features, and improve user access to information and applications from any device.
Reduce total cost of risk
Ransomware and extortion has a debilitating impact on businesses. Cloud providers like Microsoft have invested heavily on the security of their cloud platforms and provide customers the security controls they need to protect their Azure cloud workloads. This ensures customers running on Azure are protected against ransomware attacks.
Microsoft 365’s holistic security features reduce the risk of a breach by 40%. Microsoft’s native security solutions integrate easily and simplify deployment and management, ensuring that data and users are protected from wherever they choose to work.
Information protection, security management features, identity and access management, and the simplicity and frequency of updates reduce the number and severity of end user security events and the time it takes to remediate them.
Consolidate vendor licenses
Reduce costs by working with a single vendor who can handle multiple capabilities. By consolidating, one will manage fewer vendors, lower integration costs, reduce blind spots, and experience less end-user friction.
Save on IT administration and deployment
Reduce administration effort by transitioning hardware and software maintenance to Microsoft so the IT team can work on higher-value activities.
Save on automation and process improvements
Transform and streamline business processes to improve overall outcomes with workflows, dashboards, AI capabilities, and more in Microsoft 365.
Endless benefits
Cloud offers improved access to and use of the most current collaboration and communication features, resulting in incremental productivity. Microsoft 365 provides end users with productivity tools, like co-authoring with Office 365 ProPlus, online meetings with Microsoft Teams, and file storage and sharing with OneDrive, that are always up to date with the newest features.
End users have the flexibility to securely access their applications and work on mobile devices. IT can provide self-service access for password resets, application provisioning, and recovery from ransomware and malware to improve the user experience and reduce lost productivity from help desk interactions.
Microsoft’s cloud-based phone system add-on for Microsoft Office 365 is no doubt the future of telephony. With no investment in infrastructure, Teams Voice is an obvious choice for any business, big or small.
This cloud-based phone system offers all the flexibility, scalability and functionality of any modern phone system; and is accessible from a mobile device, computer or a desk phone anywhere.
Cloud offers a modernised IT environment and IT processes, reducing IT effort and costs. Companies can shift from capex to opex by migrating their Microsoft environments to the cloud. They save on license costs, infrastructure purchases, and deployment complexity by standardising on the Microsoft platform and replacing third-party tools.
Garry Ackerman is the CEO of South Africa's software and infrastructure service provider Argantic.
