Rapid technological advancements and workplace dynamics are redefining the way organizations operate. As enterprises strive to modernize workplaces and elevate security, transitioning from traditional device management to device-as-a-Service (DaaS) can be an organizational game-changer for them.
DaaS allows you to embrace hybrid workplaces, enable critical functions during disasters and facilitate scalability as needed. However, transitioning from siloed device management to DaaS requires a strategic shift in your mindset and the implementation of effective digital initiatives.
In this blog, we explore the significance of DaaS in modern workplaces, and the crucial steps you can take to ensure a seamless transition to it.
The significance of DaaS
DaaS is a game-changer for modern workplaces, offering cost savings, improved scalability and enhanced security measures.
The growth of hybrid workplaces and the rising need for effective collaboration has pushed organizations to adopt a personalized approach to addressing specific roles within their business. This shift has popularized DaaS among the knowledge worker domain, presenting several opportunities to cater to their needs.
Liberating IT resources
The talent shortage has been one of the pressing industry challenges of the past few years. Talent retention, recruitment, technology adoption and strategic maintenance initiatives are core issues that you must address to facilitate efficient operations. DaaS can resolve this issue by liberating IT resources for utilization in other resourceful tasks.
DaaS provides access to the latest devices and technologies, ensuring that you’re always up-to-date with the latest advancements. With DaaS, you can achieve enhanced security and data protection, as service providers are responsible for ensuring that devices are secure and compliant with industry standards. According to a 2021 worldwide survey of 3,991 IT decision makers, 55% of medium-sized and 49% of large companies said a key benefit of DaaS was focusing their in-house IT team on more strategic projects. DaaS enables organizations to focus on their core business objectives and helps them shift from CapEx to OpEx.
Addressing price unpredictability
With traditional device management, it’s important to make a significant upfront investment in purchasing devices, which can be a significant financial burden. Additionally, the cost of maintaining and upgrading devices can be unpredictable and vary significantly depending on the device's age and condition.
In contrast, DaaS provides a predictable and manageable monthly fee, enabling you to budget more effectively and avoid unexpected costs. Moreover, DaaS providers are responsible for maintaining and upgrading devices, ensuring that you always have access to updates without the need to incur additional costs. This lets you focus on your core business needs without worrying about spiraling IT costs.
Transition to DaaS: Key factors to consider
Compared to traditional device management approaches, DaaS is beyond the contractual relationship that requires organizational change and commitment. You must address the following key factors while transitioning to DaaS:
Outsourcing
DaaS involves outsourcing device management and maintenance to a third-party service provider, which can be a significant change for organizations that are used to managing their devices in-house. Therefore, it’s essential to assess the comfort level with outsourcing and ensure that your organization is willing to trust a third-party service provider with your devices.
Organizations must also consider the level of control they’re willing to relinquish over their devices and data and ensure that the service provider has adequate security measures to protect their data. Additionally, evaluating the service provider's reputation, experience and track record in providing DaaS solutions is essential.
Refresh cycles
DaaS providers typically offer regular device refresh cycles, ensuring that organizations always have access to critical IT resources. However, it’s essential to evaluate the frequency and terms of the refresh cycles offered by the DaaS provider to ensure they align with your organization's disaster recovery plans.
You must also consider the impact of refresh cycles on your budget and ensure that you can manage the cost of regular device upgrades. Additionally, it’s essential to assess the level of flexibility offered by the DaaS provider to ensure you can accommodate changes in your organization's device requirements.
High availability
DaaS providers offer cloud-based device management solutions. This enables you to provide access to your devices and data from anywhere, anytime. You must also consider the level of redundancy that your DaaS provider is offering and ensure that you have adequate backup and disaster recovery solutions to ensure high availability. Additionally, it’s essential to assess your DaaS provider's level of support and ensure that they offer timely and effective support to address any issues that may arise.
Information sharing
Evaluate your DaaS provider's data security and reporting level to ensure adequate measures to protect and share your organization's data. You should also consider the level of control your service provider has over your data and ensure that you can access and manage your vendor's dashboards as needed.
Additionally, assess your DaaS provider's level of transparency and ensure that they provide regular reports and updates on your organization’s devices and data.
Data sovereignty
It’s important to evaluate your DaaS provider's compliance, control and transparency level to ensure your data is protected and managed according to data sovereignty regulations. DaaS providers must provide solutions that meet your organization's data sovereignty requirements. During a cyberattack, a DaaS provider must facilitate platform-based security to ensure comprehensive mitigation of cybersecurity threats, providing complete visibility into the endpoint with the latest intelligence safeguards.
Conclusion
The move towards modern workplaces, need for flexibility and operational agility, changing cyber threat landscape and rising sustainability concerns are pushing organizations to shift their IT approach. DaaS has become an integral component of this change by fundamentally changing how you and your employees perceive their workplace.
DaaS offers several benefits over the traditional approach, including cost savings, improved scalability and enhanced security measures. However, to embrace DaaS you must adopt robust digital initiatives and strategies to build hybrid workplaces. With devices at the core of innovation, talent retention and employee experience, DaaS is becoming a game changer. Therefore, the DaaS model will likely grow in popularity for most IT use cases in the future as it helps you address today's rising technology concerns.
