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10 21 12 18 6 CONTENTS VOLUME 3 ISSUE 3 | Q4 ON-PREMISES 6 Office Space 2.0 Designing effective collaboration solutions for the ‘Return to Work’ trend By Celine Fosse 9 Bringing it All Home Customize remote work technology with EnTelegent Solutions’ Small Office / WFH “In-a-Box” By Brady Hicks 5G & IOT 10 Get Smarter Private wireless decisions key to IoT deployment success By Bruce Christian 12 IoT Touches Everything MSPs can play a pivotal role in roll out of IoT platforms By Martin Vilaboy AT THE EDGE 18 Why AWS is ideal for remote workers … even if Office365 can’t be used By Karen Gondoly 20 Gain a Remote Work Edge with Granite’s Portfolio By Brady Hicks CYBER-SECURED 21 What MSPs Should Know About Cyber Insurance By Jennifer Tribe 5 Editor’s Letter 22 Ad index 4 REMOTE WORK SOLUTIONS rwsmagazine.com
We have to admit, we’re not surprised. When the rush to remote working took over the world and most organizations were still scrambling to keep the lights on, while achieving some understanding of this “new future of work,” we predicted that when all the dust settled, about 20 to 30 percent of workforces would remain working fully or mostly remote. Fast forward to these less disruptive times, after lockdowns have been lifted and return-to-office mandates have grown louder, and most experts are now saying that remote working has leveled off to about 20 to 30 percent of workforces. But make no mistake, that 20 to 30 percent represents a huge jump from the 2 to 3 percent of employees who worked from home or remotely before pandemic panic lockdowns. Add to that the chunk of people who work remotely from time to time or in a hybrid work arrangement, and the percentage easily climbs to near 40 percent of workforces. And as start-ups and forming organizations evaluate the cost of real estate versus remote enablement, these percentages are sure to tick further upward. What’s more, it’s very likely that remote work enablement is commanding an oversized share of IT departments' time, attention and dollars. After all, facilitating remote work presents IT departments with a set of unique and complicated challenges, many of which are still being figured out and managed today. The complexities, in large part, are the result of having to service and support workers who run free on the other side of the moat. In other words, IT departments, as well as HR leaders, are being charged with keeping workers who are well outside the bounds of corporate networks fully connected, secured, monitored, motivated, communicated with and collaborating in the same ways as the workers residing behind the firewall. And while it’s true the initial surge of investment – and even over-investment – of remote work technologies has come and gone, most companies still are navigating this complex IT and information landscape that is no longer limited to a centralized and controlled environment. That suggests further need for solutions surrounding managed connectivity; security, identity and access management; remote monitoring and management; UCasS and virtual collaboration enterprise content and data management; virtualized desktops and devices; SaaS management; internal enterprise-wide communications; and hybrid work room environments, among others. It also suggests a continuing and growing opportunity for partners and MSPs that can serve as trusted advisors to organizations that are finding their way to and through the future of work. Remote Tech Just Warming Up Martin Vilaboy Editor-in-Chief martin@bekabusinessmedia.com Brady Hicks Contributing Editor brady@bekabusinessmedia.com Percy Zamora Art Director percy@bekabusinessmedia.com Rob Schubel Digital Manager rob@bekabusinessmedia.com Jennifer Vilaboy Production Manager jen@bekabusinessmedia.com Berge Kaprelian Group Publisher berge@bekabusinessmedia.com (480) 503-0770 Anthony Graffeo Publisher anthony@bekabusinessmedia.com (203) 304-8547 Michael Burns National Account Executive michael@bekabusinessmedia.com (262) 993-9116 Beka Business Media Berge Kaprelian President and CEO Corporate Headquarters 10115 E Bell Road, Suite 107 - #517 Scottsdale, Arizona 85260 Voice: 480.503.0770 Email: berge@bekabusinessmedia.com © 2023 Beka Business Media, All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in any form or medium without express written permission of Beka Business Media is prohibited. RWS and the RWS logo are trademarks of Beka Business Media 5 REMOTE WORK SOLUTIONS rwsmagazine.com
By Celine Fosse Designing effective collaboration solutions for the ‘Return to Work’ trend Even with return-to-office incentives such as charity contributions and wellness perks becoming the norm, employers are struggling to rally employees back into the office after over two years of remote work. It’s safe to say that the “perks” aren’t exactly working. But what will? At Airtame, we believe that a central focus for employers should be to invest in the office environment itself – to create a place where employees, quite frankly, want to work. Technology is paramount to this, and installers and IT resellers are essential to making an engaging, productive office a reality. This makes the selling opportunity significant for the industry at large. Employers, office managers and commercial designers are looking for ways to make the office more enticing as they require employees to travel into the office multiple days a week. Our industry is uniquely positioned to design systems that create an even better experience working in the office than working from home – and we can use the lessons we’ve learned throughout the pandemic to design the most engaging, efficient systems possible. Lessons Learned for Collaboration The shift to remote work, followed by the adoption of hybrid arrangements, taught valuable lessons about team collaboration that we can carry back to a traditional office setting when designing new systems. Throughout the pandemic, offices learned that collaboration looks different for each organization; that flexibility is of the utmost importance; that if it’s difficult to use, it simply doesn’t work; that being able to tap into systems remotely has been, and will always be, important – just to name a few. With this in minds, below is a list of recommendations on designing an ideal collaboration system to accommodate return to work trends in today’s corporate environment: • Customize Systems Based on Customer Needs: Each company has different needs for collaborating – and many organizations learned what they want and need for effective collaboration thanks to years of hybrid work. Installers can leverage these unique “lessons learned” to design and implement tailored collaboration solutions that meet the unique needs of each customer. This may include integrating specific tools and platforms to create a custom solution. • Ensure Inclusivity: Ensuring that every team member feels included, regardless of their location (whether in office or remote), is paramount. A collaboration platOffice Space 2.0 ON PREMISES 6 REMOTE WORK SOLUTIONS rwsmagazine.com
SECURE REMOTE NETWORKING BUILT TO ASTOUND To learn more, visit us at: astoundbusiness.com Virtual Office from Astound Business Solutions. The rise of remote options for employees requires a cloud-based, integrated communications platform that delivers a seamless work-from-home environment. That means minimizing hassles for your workforce while maximizing peace-of-mind for your IT administrators with an easy-to-deploy turnkey solution that ensures compliance. Virtual Office extends SD-WAN to the home and helps you maintain control of your network environment— wherever that network happens to reach. With a new name that reinforces our legacy of providing reliable, nimble network solutions from coast to coast, Astound Business continues to be your trusted partner to deliver a secure and consistent network experience for remote employees.
form should empower both those present in the office and those participating remotely to contribute actively and engage in discussions. • Ensure Scalability and Flexibility for Growth: The last thing a company wants is to continually update their technology to accommodate a growing team or shifting work environment. By enabling scalability and flexibility, installers can help design future-proof systems for customers. The pandemic taught us that we never know when we may need to return to a remote work structure, and flexible solutions mitigate against other investments that need to be made in the eventuality. That being said, installers should design solutions that can scale to accommodate the organization’s growth and/or changing collaboration needs. • Prioritize User-Friendly Interfaces: Throughout the pandemic, companies learned that even with good intentions, programs and systems that are difficult to use ultimately don’t work. It’s imperative that systems designers utilize user-friendly interfaces for collaboration tools that require minimal training and technical expertise – lessening onboarding time and ensuring widespread adoption. • Enable Universal Compatibility: Given that employees got accustomed to using various programs while working remotely, collaboration tools should be compatible with a variety of devices and operating systems. This ensures that everyone, whether in an office or remote location, can connect and collaborate using their preferred platform – whether they are dialing in from Microsoft Teams, Zoom, Google Meets, or beyond. • Make Remote Management Possible: A major takeaway from the pandemic has been how important the ability to manage systems remotely is. Installers should be able to remotely manage and troubleshoot systems for customers to allow for easy monitoring and assistance. Screens to Boost Morale Even beyond offering superior collaboration capabilities, installers can design technology systems that utilize screens to engage employees and broader audiences to cultivate a positive office environment that they can’t get at home. Screens provide a versatile platform for extending brand messaging, fostering engagement and leaving a lasting impression on various stakeholders. For example, screens in common areas can showcase company achievements, employee spotlights and community involvement, fostering a sense of pride and connection among employees. Interactive screens in lobbies or waiting areas can captivate visitors with multimedia presentations, demonstrating innovation and professionalism. With return-to-work mandates throughout the U.S. increasing daily, the time to act is now. Technology resellers have the opportunity to take the lessons learned from remote work and design systems that make the office a better place to work. J Celine Fosse is the CMO of Airtame, creator of the hardware-enabled SaaS platform that allows seamless collaboration in businesses and schools. How can organizations improve in-office employee experiences? Provide consistent and simultaneous communications to all employees, whether they work from the office building, remote or hybrid 53% Offer more flexibility on hybrid/remote options 44% Offer more training on workplace tools 36% Reduce the number of apps/tools necessary to do my work 35% Introduce more helpful digital signage around the building 26% Support room/desk reservations 20% Facilitate wayfinding around the building 18% Provide contactless check-in 17% There’s nothing my organization could do to improve … 7% Source: Appspace survey of 900 U.S. employees and IT managers What capabilities would help employees perform their job more effectively, at the office? Self-service IT options 42% Easy communications 37% Easy file sharing 33% Easy collaboration 31% Automated workflow/processes 25% Ability to work on the go (from mobile devices) 22% Easy integration with third-party tools 19% Ability to access information about other employees 19% Virtual watercooler to help stay in the loop 12% Personalized newsfeed 7% Source: Appspace survey of 900 U.S. employees and IT managers ON PREMISES 8 REMOTE WORK SOLUTIONS rwsmagazine.com
Bringing it All Home Businesses with remote employees face so many challenges today. Whether they’re concerned about communication, connectivity, security, or visibility over a disparate workforce, EnTelegent Solutions’ Small Office / WFH “In-a-Box” “super-solution” concept offers the perfect portfolio to assist technology transformation and support remote employees. “We custom package things to fit the customer’s needs,” said EnTelegent VP of channel sales, Mark Sondergaard. “For WFH ‘In-a-Box,’ we’ve taken some of our traditional and some of our newer solutions, and combined them for many different scenarios. It works not just from home but from anywhere.” There are several solutions listed as part of EnTelegent’s concept. All are integrate-able, yet can be chosen a al carte and customized to an organization’s need. According to EnTelegent, having multiple components available as part of a single, consolidated portfolio helps not just to streamline problematic remote-work concerns but also offers a truly customized, payper-use offering. “You can truly put whatever you want in the box,” added Sondergaard. “Plus you have the EnTelesource portal and can add billing, management and complete inventory to all of that. The portal is the glue that holds all of this together. Even if you’re pairing our WFH solution with individual workers’ home internet, we can offer the option to ping what they have and at least keep an eye on it.” The ENCOMPASS SD-WAN component, meanwhile, is designed to bring “always-on” access that supports improved remote-work communications options at a more predictable cost. EnTelegent packages these elements in a single box full of a la carte options in order to deliver full management and, if necessary, remediation. Its multi-link aggregation integrates aspects of DIA, broadband, MPLS and LTE connections into a streamlined network with real-time, seamless failover. In particular, it can intuitively note the presence of business applications and steer them through a “best available” connection to navigate congestion and downtime. With options to foster better connectivity, management and remediation, this home internet component helps improve connected access to keep your employees online. “If I have, for example, Comcast, as my main connection out of my house,” said Sondergaard, “what can I do if that goes down or I have sharedaccess issues with other family members? Our Universal Connect router offers a second connection. I can either combine connections for a better one, or have it as a failover option.” EnTelegent also provides a single management portal (the Entelesource portal) for overseeing the complete platform, replete with inventory, staff activity, usage stats and more. Through ENCOMPASS SD WAN’s Orchestrator software, administrators can view statistics on employees’ remote connections, including its strength, stability and user reliance. Plus, EnTelegent offers content filtering and other options to ensure that those logged onto a corporate computer are doing the right things. “Even if you have our work-fromhome solution and are using your employees’ own home internet, we can help keep an eye on it,” Sondergaard added. “We can let the company know if things are up or down. The SD WAN solution is going to let us know.” This solution – which is designed to support both primary and secondary business internet needs while addressing limited, isolated or temporary connectivity – specifically employs vSIM tech as part of an integrated router connecting up to 32 devices. It provides anywhere from 5GB to 1TB of domestic or international access, with optional Hotspots that support on-the-go internet for up to 10 devices. Meanwhile, EnTelegent’s Hosted UCaaS solution serves to bolster employee communication, whether between remote coworkers, partners, or customers, while secure options include wireless internet, DIA, Ethernet, cable, DSL and broadband connections. And they can all be fully managed, monitored and remediated. To top things off, EnTelegent’s EnVision brand delivers a set of AI-driven options for administering and managing third-party provider services. The option, which is backed by EnTelegent’s support staff, can serve as a valuable resource to streamline service cost, complexity, optimization and visibility. Plus, it includes custom reporting and business intelligence tools to back existing services. Regardless of scale or need, EnTelegent Solutions believes that it has the answer for just about any demand. “We can be your easy button,” smiled Sondergaard. “The problem in the marketplace is a lot of companies sell pieces of what we’re offering. Maybe an SD-WAN or connectivity. If you need phones, there’s another group. Basically, it becomes your job to cobble all of this together. We’re giving you the whole package, if you want it.” J For more information on EnTelegent Solutions and its Small Office / WFH In-aBox products, visit www.entelegent.com/ small-office-wfh or call (800) 975-7192. By Brady Hicks PROFILE Mark Sondergaard, VP of channel sales Customize remote work technology with EnTelegent Solutions’ Small Office / WFH “In-a-Box” 9 REMOTE WORK SOLUTIONS rwsmagazine.com
Forty years ago, this reporter for a Phoenix suburban daily newspaper wrote a story on what was called a “smart home.” Everything from the way the house was built to maximize the sun for natural lighting to appliances being controlled by programming such things as timers off a home computer made the building seem futuristic. It’s been a long time since then, and with current “smart” options, those first attempts look quaint. Today, thanks to information technology advancements and the Internet of Things (IoT), we are looking at smart homes, warehouses, manufacturing, airport security and even whole towns and cities – without MS-DOS. Indeed, today is much different. As Digital Global Systems (DGS) chief technology officer Dr. Armando Montalvo said, “Today’s industrial applications, business success and, ultimately, the economy at large, rely on consistent and reliable access to IoT sensors.” Sensors are the foundation of an IoT ecosystem. They are the hardware that detect changes in an environment and collects data used to bridge the digital world to the physical world. IoT sensors may detect everything from temperature, pressure and motion, and if they are connected to a network, they share data with the network. IoT for smart factories and warehouses, smart cities and other industries use private wireless networks to handle the growing number of low-power, wireless sensors. Which is why channel partners may want to sell them or at least explore the opportunities. Game changing Private wireless networking became a reality recently for U.S.-based enterprises when the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) conducted auctions for spectrum that enables private wireless. A game changer in this area was the use of Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) because it opens shared wireless spectrum to the public. According to the Dell’Oro Group, private wireless networking will reach between $800 million and $1 billion by 2026, which matches the threeyear exponential growth timeline that Montalvo said IoT is following. Private wireless networks provide the same wireless broadband connectivity as public wireless networks and require the same components: licensed or unlicensed spectrum: a network core: a base station; radios and antennas; and a form of connectivity to enable the network, such as LTE or 5G. However, for IoT to work efficiently on a wireless network, some hurdles must be jumped first. For example, suppose a wireless network requests access to a congested channel. When this happens, the IoT sensors work harder to relay even small amounts of data, reducing their battery life and potentially preventing critical data from being delivered, Montalvo explained. When sensors fail to connect in these environments, products can spoil, machinery can overheat or be damaged; business operations can be affected and working conditions can become unsafe. Efficient operations Reliability of the sensors is key for smooth operations, Montalvo Get Smarter By Bruce Christian Private wireless decisions key to IoT deployment success 5G & loT 10 REMOTE WORK SOLUTIONS rwsmagazine.com
said. This requires some forethought on where and how to place the sensors, so they can gather and transmit the data most efficiently. He also recommended taking a “worst case” approach at this stage. Another consideration to make everything run at the optimum level is the operation has to fit with the wireless protocol. Is it 5G? LTE? 4G? Montalvo cautioned that the protocol may not always be the way of using your power resources. IoT depends on low-cost, efficient and reliable telecom network access. However, Montalvo pointed out that today’s wireless networks were built for voice, data and text, but certainly not at the data consumption level IoT needs to operate efficiently. In fact, data from the IoT sensors strain the already saturated wireless spectrum. Montalvo, who has been active in the U.S. national public sector committees overseeing spectrum policy as a member of subcommittees for the Federal Communications Commission, the National Telecommunications and Information Agency, the National Spectrum Consortium and the U.S. Department of Defense, suggested network congestion from managing the growing number of wireless IoT sensors in a smart factory or warehouse creates a need for these devices to work harder with repeated requests. He said IoT’s demands on wireless networks differ greatly from traditional carrier services that need to support data-hungry services such as streaming media or mobile video chat. When it comes to IoT applications for business, industry and public services, a network’s reliability, security, reach and capacity to handle the number of connected devices is major factors for ensuring critical applications, services and technologies perform without fail. “Private wireless networks are the first venue where similar issues confronting IoT services in a public wireless network will manifest in scale, especially while servicing verticals with large number of sensors and devices transmitting short bursty information with disparate reliability, latency, security and density requirements per network access point (base station, microcell, femtocell, etc.),” he said. “In such verticals (such as production factories, smart cities, distribution and logistics warehousing), the problem of optimizing the network resources to support a variety of signals with different service requirements is integral to a solution that can be applied to supporting a variety of IoT devices and services in the public wireless network,” Montalvo added. Finding the sweet spot Shared spectrum offers the most effective option for keeping critical IoT applications operating. But there’s a catch: spectrum is finite and limited within the sweet spot between 800 MHz and 6 GHz. Montalvo said that if you go to higher frequencies, there is a need for more nodes and additional costs. “Wireless spectrum in this sweet spot is intensely saturated, increasing the demand to expand shared spectrum with future allocations to maximize utilization of high-quality spectrum at all times.” That’s where the regulatory agencies need to step in. “Current and future services, such as IoT, virtual reality, connected cars, smart cities and nearly infinite other categories, demand access to wireless spectrum. And the number of possible services will continue to grow, putting even more stress on the spectrum,” Montalvo explained. “As the FCC considers new allocations for spectrum sharing, it must strongly consider how pending spectrum policy decisions will impact technological innovation in the United States,” he said. Because data are the lifeblood of our economy, he said spectrum policy – specifically shared spectrum – is key to ensuring the country evolves at the forefront of a global technological revolution. Since multiple signals exist in the environment, Montalvo suggested one might want to have devices set for at different error rates and latencies. “There are different requirements than the conventional requirements, so you need to understand what other environments will support those requirements so the IoT can be safely connected and satisfy the mission the service is trying to provide,” Montalvo explained. Adding that when connecting for large-scale industry and commercial users, private wireless networks using simple shared spectrum approaches such as CBRS offer greater security and better network infrastructure for the applications. Shared spectrum also has the potential to optimize beyond the capabilities of CBRS to deliver more robust services by leveraging dynamic management technologies that can achieve greater reliability for organizations – both on private wireless networks and carrier networks – that tap into the unlicensed spectrum to augment their cellular services. Montalvo said regulatory bodies such as the FCC and the NTIA have been exploring how to increase the use of spectrum, including spectrum slicing to allow more capacity without interference. He said the FCC must not turn back the clock and be content with a “legacy model of auctioning exclusive rights to spectrum bands.” Instead, he encourages policymakers and regulators to make wireless spectrum accessible, affordable and efficient to accelerate technological development for every business as soon as possible. In an article he wrote earlier, Montalvo stated, “There is no question in my mind that shared spectrum is the inevitable model for spectrum use and management in the future. The question is whether we want to lead and gain a competitive advantage or let American business and industry continue with the status quo, pretending that this won’t hurt them.” J 11 REMOTE WORK SOLUTIONS rwsmagazine.com
For the uninitiated, it’s easy to think of an enterprise Internet of Things deployment as little more than “dollars per boxes” and some lowbandwidth circuits. It’d be more accurate to think of IoT as “touching everything.” As IoT projects and budgets continue to expand, deployments are becoming less about clusters of siloed IoT devices and more about fully interconnected and autonomous IoT environments. In turn, it’s not uncommon for an IoT implementation to involve a number of other systems and solutions such as security, storage, data analysis, compute, backhaul, onIoT Touches Everything By Martin Vilaboy MSP partners can play a pivotal role in rollout of IoT platforms 5G & loT 12 REMOTE WORK SOLUTIONS rwsmagazine.com
going monitoring, managed connectivity, private wireless and vertical specific capabilities, among other functions and features. In many cases, all or most of those services are critical to reaching intended outcomes. In other words, IoT is certainly more about selling and deploying a “platform” than a “service.” If that sounds complex, it’s because it is. And early adopting enterprises have had to work hard to piece together IoT projects – which tend to encompass many technologies and integration points, while unleashing an onslaught of data – and move those projects out of trial and into enterprise-wide production. Not that this has persuaded adoption or soured adopters. Surveys suggest IoT budgets are growing healthily, and the vast majority of early adopters are satisfied with initial results. As much as 93 percent of respondents surveyed by 451 Research described their IoT initiatives as “successful,” including 38 percent dubbing them “very successful.” For the next stage of adoption to occur, however, things will need to get much easier for customers. And as the business IoT platform providers pull the ecosystem together, it appears there’s a clear role for channel partners and providers of network and communication services. Make no mistake, despite the emerging long tail of IoT platform and solutions vendors, the major hyperscalers and larger, wellknown IT vendors have pulled ahead in terms of offering “IoT platforms” that are integrated with related infrastructure and technologies (emphasizing the importance of cloud compute, storage and data analytics to IoT outcomes). And these types of platforms sit at the center of most IoT enterprise deployments. Among enterprises surveyed for 451, a division of S&P Global Market Intelligence, the most widely deployed IoT platforms come from Microsoft (used by 38 percent of respondents), followed by AWS (30 percent). AT&T comes in third at 28 percent, the first time the company ranked that highly, the study noted, with IBM (18 percent) and Google (17 percent) rounding out the top five. Microsoft was also the highest ranked “primary” platform vendor at 24 percent, “reflecting the ongoing trend of industry platforms often running on top of cloud IoT infrastructure,” said the research group. Most initiatives also involve a systems integrator or consultant type that holds some expertise in the enterprise IoT platform of choice, said the research firm. And in addition to those key partners, enterprises work with an average of nine vendors in their IoT projects, providing elements including connectivity, security, premises gear, analytics and integration, among others. When choosing those vendors, enterprises value above all else the ability to consult on and deliver “best of breed” technologies, suggest the 451 surveys, more than IoT-specific expertise, cost, ability to deliver outcomes and vertical expertise. “IoT platform/infrastructure vendors often sit at the center of such projects, but other providers are also critical,” wrote Rick Karpinski, principal analyst at S&P Marketing Intelligence. IT service providers and consultants help from deployment through data analysis, while vertical application vendors, especially in the industrial sector, play a key role as well, he continued. “Coordination of those vendor relationships and a pilot-to-production, edge-to-cloud view of how IoT technologies fit into enterprise-wide architecture choices are essential.” Enterprises are pretty evenly split between a build, buy or partner approach to creating their IoT ecosystems. The largest group, at 38 percent, choose to “build,” asIn addition to platform functionality, has your organization purchased other products/services from an IoT platform vendor? Choose all that apply. Cloud storage 50% Cloud compute 44% Security 39% Data platforms/analysis 38% SaaS/IaaS/PaaS 33% System/infrastructure management software 33% Servers/gateways 28% Network switches/routers 26% Line of business applications 18% On-premises storage 17% Sensors 15% Other 1% None 3% Source: 451 Research; S&P Global Market Intelligence 13 REMOTE WORK SOLUTIONS rwsmagazine.com
sembling individual pieces on their own, while 31 percent buy preintegrated platforms, applications and services, and 30 percent enlist partners such as cloud providers and systems integrators to do the heavy lifting. The three choices “are certainly not mutually exclusive,” said Karpinski, as many organizations likely leverage all three approaches. More than half of respondents said they have used an opex or “asa-service” mode of purchasing IoT infrastructure and applications, while a similar 51 percent claim to have opted for a capex approach to purchasing. Also of note, 33 percent of respondents said they have opted for an “outcome-based” approach to at least part of their IoT initiatives, paying IoT providers based on the delivery of successful business outcomes. Challenges & Opportunities Among the many opportunities up and down the IoT value chain, a few areas stand out, both in terms of their compatibility with the existing specialties of the network and communications services channel as well as the primary challenges faced by IoT buyers. Namely, those include interoperability/integration, cybersecurity and managing connectivity. While the IoT ecosystem is forming rapidly, as of now IoT platform providers tend to draw the demarcation line at where their services and devices end and an organization’s internal operations start. Buyers have had to fend for themselves or turn to the providers of their other internal systems to addon and integrate in ways that deliver intended business outcomes. “[T]he IoT industry hasn’t achieved a genuinely seamless experience in which devices pass into and out of physical environments and are identified, trusted and managed without a need for separate (and at times manual) authentication steps,” said analysts in McKinsey & Company’s IoT practice. Much of the value of an IoT deployment, all the while, comes from the ability to provide that seamless experience, argued McKinsey analysts. Various devices must communicate through heterogenous operating systems, networks and platforms, often through cloud-based data storage and cloud-native programming, thereby empowering constant information exchange with a high level of autonomy. “Imagine the ability to drop a new device into a network and have it immediately scanned, welcomed, and assigned a trust score,” said McKinsey. We’re not there yet, leaving ample areas of opportunity for Source: TD SYNNEX st Source: 451 Research; S&P Global Market Intelligence Which of the following, if any, are compelling reasons to deploy SaaS loT applications? Please select all that apply IoT Sentiments, % of Respondents 27% 25% 43 billion th: -7.1% 45 billion th: -2.6% 79 billion th: 11.1% 24 billion th: -2.8% 17 billion th: -0.1% 33 billion wth: 5.5% 423 billion wth: 0.9% 506 billion th: -7.1% 67.83 Easier/faster to deploy, manage and update We use SaaS applications successfully in other parts of our business Meets our needs without providing more functionality than we require Appreciate subscription purchasing - save money/cuts costs A partner or customer suggested/mandated we use the application We lack the developer headcount/skills to build our own applications 57% 49% 48% 38% 30% 25% Source: IDC Worldwide IoT Spending Guide, 2023 forecast Top IoT Industries Based on Market Share 37.9% 9.4% 10.0% 21.2% 13.3% 8.1% Discrete Manufacturing Retail Others Process Manufacturing Professional Services Utilities Providers Buyers 31 61 38 1 57 12 Importance of digital trust in loT systems Importance of privacy in loT systems Critical Important Not considered Critical Important Not considered Average Increase in IoT Spending if Cybersecurity Risk is Managed, By Use Case Healthcare 53% Mobility and transportation 33% Smart cities 31% Oil and gas 31% Utilities 25% Manufacturing and industrial 24% Smart homes 23% Retail 20% Smart offices 20% Logistics 13% Source: McKinsey & Co. 5G & loT 14 REMOTE WORK SOLUTIONS rwsmagazine.com
trusted providers that can help with effortless integration within and across tech stacks of devices; grease processes with sign-in efforts, self-managed devices and over-the-air patch updates; and simultaneously leverage multiple connectivity standards, platforms and back-end systems. “The ability to develop seamless experiences will likely spur further adoption of the IoT, as it helps address critical factors such as confidentiality, connectivity performance, cybersecurity, installation, interoperability, privacy and technology performance,” said McKinsey’s IoT experts. Among the areas of integration, cybersecurity stands alone as the biggest challenge for adopters and arguably one of the biggest early opportunities for the value chain. Survey respondents across all industries cite cybersecurity deficiencies as a major impediment to IoT adoption, showed McKinsey data. Roughly 30 percent of respondents name cybersecurity risk as their top concern. Of these respondents, 40 percent indicate that they would increase their IoT budget and deployment by 25 percent or more if cybersecurity concerns were resolved. Compared to enterprise IT, solution design in the IoT space lags behind in terms of security assurance, testing and verification, said McKinsey. This despite the possibility that risk profiles of many IoT systems are elevated compared with that of enterprise IT, given IoT’s control over physical operations. “Cybersecurity risk multiplies due to the interconnectedness of IT and operational technology within the IoT, especially in use cases that involve the transmission of critical data or the operation of critical business processes,” said the research firm. Incidentally, IoT application software and human-machine interfaces are the most vulnerable layers of the IoT stack, McKinsey found. Up until now, achieving a trusted level of IoT cybersecurity has been difficult, IoT buyers tell McKinsey. There is little multilayered security embedded in today’s IoT solution designs, leading to vulnerabilities that require regular over-the-air updates and patches, which can be difficult to implement. Most providers in the space have tended to treat cybersecurity as a separate software category, providing bolt-on solutions rather than making security a core, integral part of the IoT design process. In turn, IoT buyers are taking on an enormous responsibility of protecting the IoT value chain, argue McKinsey analysts. “They typically do so by partnering with cybersecurity vendors to provide add-on solutions. These tend to be enterprise-wide cybersecurity solutions rather than IoT-specific products, with additional security features bolted on later as needed.” An Issue of Trust Cybersecurity factors such as digital trust and privacy weigh much more into enterprise purchase decisions for IoT platforms than IoT providers realize. Among IoT buyers surveyed recently by 451 Research/S&P Global, 61 percent rank digital trust as a critical element of their purchase decision, while only 31 percent of IoT providers rank it as a critical element in their system design. Likewise for privacy, 61 percent of IoT buyers deem it critical, compared with 47 percent of providers. Researchers at 451 believe this discrepancy is hampering adoption. Source: 451 Research; S&P Global Market Intelligence Source: 451 Research; S&P Global Market Intelligence IoT Sentiments, % of Respondents Appreciate subscription purchasing - save money/cuts costs A partner or customer suggested/mandated we use the application We lack the developer headcount/skills to build our own applications 38% 30% 25% Source: IDC Worldwide IoT Spending Guide, 2023 forecast Top IoT Industries Based on Market Share 37.9% 9.4% 10.0% 21.2% 13.3% 8.1% Discrete Manufacturing Retail Others Process Manufacturing Professional Services Utilities Providers Buyers Providers Buyers Providers Buyers 31 61 38 1 57 12 Importance of digital trust in loT systems Importance of privacy in loT systems Siloed loT cybersecurity decision making leads to delayed loT adoption. % of respondents agreeing Critical Important Not considered Critical Important Not considered 5G & loT 16 REMOTE WORK SOLUTIONS rwsmagazine.com
“Enterprises struggle to understand the security risks that IoT devices bring to their network and technology ecosystems,” agreed Gartner analysts. “Enterprise investment in IoT security is generally insufficient and reliant on provider security.” Here again, the value chain ecosystem is rapidly forming. Approximately 80 percent of IoT providers surveyed by McKinsey are embedding security in some form into their IoT products, and roughly 70 percent of cybersecurity providers are making IoT-specific products. Further indicating early signs of convergence, approximately 60 percent of providers are partnering with security specialist to offer comprehensive IoT and cybersecurity solutions rather than building those capabilities in house. About half of providers, meanwhile, are building what McKinsey described as more “holistic solutions for both cybersecurity and the IoT.” Even so, “it’s hard to create a one-size-fits-all solution for cybersecurity needs across different verticals and use cases,” McKinsey researchers continued. “Specialized companies will continue to play a role in IoT and cybersecurity operations because of their differing functionality, their heterogenous operating systems and the lack of standard interfaces and criteria across regions, industries and requirements.” Getting Connected Things haven’t been all that much easier when it comes to managing connectivity. IoT deployments tend to require a bundle of connection technologies (LTE, wired, satellite, low-power wide-area (LPWA) networks, etc.) in addition to a few emerging standards. Among providers of managed IoT connectivity, for example, connections reported in Gartner’s most recent Magic Quadrant report on the subject showed 101 percent year-over-year growth in 3GPP LPWAN, moving to 20.5 million from 10.2 million and representing almost 12 percent of the overall net growth of all vendors. “Enterprises see 3GPP LPWA networks with LTE-M and NB-IoT as the right alternative to replace existing 2G/3G deployments in countries where these networks are being sunsetted,” said the report. Gartner also has observed several vendors adding private and public LoRaWAN to their portfolios and showing moderate growth, as well as vendors starting to test and integrate LEO satellite capabilities, including 3GPP WAN to satellite as an option for areas with no cellular coverage. The gradual rise of eSIMs replacing branded SIMs, in particular, provides an interesting opportunity for attackers, argue its proponents. Offering the flexibility to switch between networks, eSIMs effectively break “vendor lock-in,” while offering means to reduce some costs and integration headaches. And the major hyperscalers are among those attackers. Meanwhile, Apple’s iPhone 14 already has an eSIM with a satellite overlay, allowing emergency texts via satellite, point out executives at IoT connectivity provider Eseye. If nothing else, the primary role that connectivity plays within IoT efforts seems to suggest healthy growth in the demand for managed IoT connectivity as well as private networks. Despite any nascency that remains within the larger IoT market, it’s certainly not dampening the enthusiasm among IoT buyers and potential adopters. Several surveys suggest satisfaction and intent is high, and most experts predict healthy growth for the category. Quite simply, it’s hard to envision a picture of the future that does not include a myriad of connected devices that collect mountains of data, control environments and processes based on that data and seamlessly communicate with personal devices. And when considering the complexities to pull this off, it’s not surprising that a team of integrators, trusted advisors and third-party providers will be enlisted to bring this future to fruition. Indeed, “this won’t be a winnertakes-all market environment,” McKinsey IoT experts conclude. “To maximize the opportunity for the IoT to play an increased role in many aspects of people’s lives, numerous players will have to work together to reduce risk, and numerous players will be in a position to reap the rewards.” J Source: TD SYNNEX Resale of hardware Source: 451 Research; S&P Global Market Intelligence Which of the following, if any, are compelling reasons to deploy SaaS loT applications? Please select all that apply 6% 9% 17% 16% 7% 6% 10% 15% 20% 35% 18% 4%4% 3% 16% 14% 2023 Resale of software Selling your own IP Selling consumption based XaaS Selling product lifecycle services Selling managed services Selling professional services Resale of packaged services Easier/faster to deploy, manage and update We use SaaS applications successfully in other parts of our business Meets our needs without providing more functionality than we require Appreciate subscription purchasing - save money/cuts costs A partner or customer suggested/mandated we use the application We lack the developer headcount/skills to build our own applications 57% 49% 48% 38% 30% 25% Source: IDC Worldwide IoT Spending Guide, 2023 forecast Top IoT Industries Based on Market Share 37.9% 9.4% 10.0% 21.2% 13.3% 8.1% Discrete Manufacturing Retail Others Process Manufacturing Professional Services Utilities 17 REMOTE WORK SOLUTIONS rwsmagazine.com
By Karen Gondoly I hear a lot of buzz about Microsoft licensing, these days, in particular the fact that it cannot be used much in other clouds, such as AWS. If organizations are looking to move some workloads off premises and into a public cloud, has Microsoft tied the hands of IT? I say, resoundingly, “No.” Sure, if an organization is highly invested in Microsoft offerings, and there is a need to move to or combine a public cloud with the datacenter, then Azure may be the clear path forward. That said, even if that is the preferred direction, whether or not the organization is a Microsoft shop, Azure isn’t the only option. AWS EC2 for remote workers As a practitioner in the space, I have worked with many enterprise users who have chosen to move their workloads to AWS EC2 instances, and learned much along the way. Here’s a sample of the use cases that lead users down that path, followed by some useful tips should it be decided to move in that direction. If any of these scenarios look familiar, maybe it’s time to start the journey to a hybrid cloud, as well. 1. Access to other applications – No end user really wants or needs access to a particular operating system. What they need is to use a particular application and to manipulate certain data to get the job done. There are plenty of cases where those applications are not Office365. CAD work, film editing, and engineering simulations are just a few tasks that come to mind. If managing a subset of workers whose daily work has Why AWS is ideal for remote workers … even if Office365 can’t be used SECURITY CYBER 18 REMOTE WORK SOLUTIONS rwsmagazine.com
nothing to do with Microsoft Office, these are ideal candidates for moving into AWS. 2. This is especially true if these users are running graphically or computationally intense tasks, which can be run on the larger GPU-enabled instances in AWS. Moving these resources to a cloud absolves IT from the burden of hardware maintenance. Then, the only other thing these power users need to be productive from anywhere is a high-performance display protocol. Conveniently, they can connect to AWS EC2 instances using the NICE DCV high-performance display protocol at no extra cost. 3. Linux – OK, so maybe some users really do want and need access to a particular operating system. They tend to be called developers and engineers, and they love Linux. Linux instances in AWS are less expensive than their Microsoft Windows counterparts, making Linux workloads even more ideal for running in AWS. Even better, avoid all of the confusion associated with licensing the user or the client device when users connect to their remote Linux desktop from their personal laptop. 4. Hosted macOS – Some applications are finicky about what operating system they will run on, too, and those applications typically require macOS. AWS macOS instances provide an easy way to present users with access to these applications without requiring that everyone be sent into the wild with a corporate-owned macOS device. 5. Google Workspaces or other productivity suites – Do IT operations include the use of Google for productivity applications instead of Microsoft? Google Drive, Docs, Gmail and the entire suite of tools all can be accessed from any AWS instance. In addition, if an organization isn’t married to Office365, the user has open-source options such as LibreOffice that can be leveraged on any AWS instance. 6. Locally installed or Web-based Microsoft Office – It honestly feels odd to me that 2019 was four years ago. If it feels like holding onto Microsoft Office 2019 licenses has gone long enough, one would be well in their rights to run them on AWS EC2 instances. Do we see this use case a lot? No, but for completeness I’ll tack it on at the end. AWS for remote workers Using a public cloud as part of a remote work solution, or generally as part of building a hybrid cloud, requires one to think differently about how to use and manage hosted resources. For example, on-premises virtual machines can often remain running when not in use with little or no ill side-effects. That is not the case if that machine is hosted in the public cloud where users pay a usage fee. No matter what cloud is selected, here are some key design considerations for practitioners in the field: Diligently manage capacity – EC2 instances used for application access do not typically hold data, rather these applications access data stored elsewhere. Therefore, one can consider these instances as ephemeral. Manage and, as possible, automate capacity so that instances are launched just when they are needed and terminate those instances when users are done. This allows the minimization of both compute and storage costs (don’t forget to delete that EBS volume). Never leave an instance running – For EC2 instances that are persistent, manage cloud costs by being diligent about shutting down instances when they are not in use. Don’t just rely on the end user to do this. Put in place methods that monitor remote sessions to determine if the user logged out or disconnected, or if they have been sitting idle, for example, and automatically shut down instances so IT doesn’t have to monitor the AWS console and user behavior. Be aware of cloud limitations – We like to think of the cloud as providing infinite capacity. But remember that behind that imaginary cloud lies real hardware and, depending on demand, the instance size planned for launch or start may not be available. Always have a plan to failover to a backup availability zone or region in the event it is not possible to satisfy user demand within the primary region and zone. Put security top-of-mind – Public clouds are, well, public, but virtual desktop instances don’t have to be. Design the VPC, security groups, firewalls, authentication methods and the entire architecture with security at the forefront. Make sure these instances are locked in a private network, implement rock-solid access control rules, and require MFA for access to any resources hosted in a public cloud. Adding a public cloud component into the remote access or hosted desktop/application solution is a powerful way to modernize workfrom-anywhere organizations, and is equally applicable if that “anywhere” is the beach or an office. By keeping cloud options open, even in the face of Microsoft licensing complications, one can design the best solution for the company and end users. J Karen Gondoly is CEO of Leostream, a vendor agnostic platform providing a comprehensive and scalable solution for organizations to securely deliver and manage remote access to physical and virtual machines hosted on-premises and in cloud environments. 19 REMOTE WORK SOLUTIONS rwsmagazine.com
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