From installing social distancing apps and non-touch print technology, to rightsizing licensing, resellers and MSPs are busy helping their clients as they attempt a safe office return. Bosses from Insight, XMA, Jigsaw24, Phoenix Software, SBL, DTP, Total Computers, European Electronique, ASL, Bamboo and Arkphire weigh with their top tips.
Name: Edel Creely
Company: Arkphire Services
Role: Managing director
Talking to your clients, roughly what percentage are currently returning - or looking to return - staff to the office/site?
Where organisations have the facility for their people to comfortably, securely and productively work from home, there is no pressure to return people back to the office. As the gradual reopening of the economy is happening and services critical to working from ‘the office' are in place to allow people to return such as safe transport and childcare, the majority are looking at blended options until such time as staff can safely return to work or a vaccine is in place. All companies are working on strategies to return staff safely to work and taking a sensible, measured approach, allowing those who cannot work from home or don't enjoy working from home to return to work in the first phase etc.
What products and services do you expect to be in the hottest demand over the coming months as clients look to reconfigure their offices for social distancing, and are there any new technologies you expect to take off?
Enablement of seamless workforce productivity and the ability to give the employee access to company applications while working anywhere has become an increased imperative. The ease of setup of devices and for many companies the flexible supply, configuration and management of those devices whether at home or in the office is a set of services which are increasingly in demand. Scaling of technology and ensuring its effective performance also comes under the spotlight with network optimisation and user experience being at the centre. We see visibility into performance and usage becoming more critical so that informed judgements can be made as to where the appropriate IT investments should be made. We see that managed services providers who can partner with their customers in a strategic role using technology to provide insights and analytics will become central supports to the effective operation of IT departments.
Given the rise of remote working and socially distanced offices, how do you expect the role of resellers or MSPs change over the coming months?
MSPs need to be the enabler of the new way of working for their customers. The ability to deliver an effective supply chain for their customers, be agile and responsive to changing workplace needs, offer secure, scalable solutions that support the business and drive the analytics and insights which will help their clients have performant IT environments is key.
See next page for Insight's Emma de Sousa's answers
