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Advancing enterprise mobility through the cloud

Easing burdens placed on legacy infrastructure by the rapid growth of mobile technology in the enterprise requires a cloud-based approach.

Technology use in the modern workplace has changed drastically over the past decade. Employees were traditionally tied to their desks with large, cumbersome workstations. The introduction of laptops freed staff members to take their work with them to meetings and even home. The recent growth of affordable mobile technologies such as smartphones, tablets, and wireless connectivity allows employees to remain connected and work from just about anywhere.

Enterprise mobility initiatives such as BYOD and virtual workspaces are becoming popular mechanisms to empower employees to work more efficiently and ultimately increase productivity. Intel recognises the incredible strain placed on legacy infrastructure by the proliferation of mobile technology, and suggests that a cloud-based approach to enterprise mobility is necessary to support such rapid growth.

One of the key functions of enterprise mobility is to provide workers with access to up-to-date information so they can stay connected with colleagues, clients, and customers. From facilitating access to internal applications and collaboration solutions such as mail and conference services, to providing connectivity between personal devices such as smartphones and tablets, mobility solutions can present numerous security and management challenges. Personal devices often access public wireless or cellular networks for on-the-go network connectivity and require firewall-enabled Virtual Private Network (VPN) services for remote access to internal systems. Shifting delivery of on-premises applications to virtualised, cloud-hosted services will simplify access and allow users to collaborate easier and complete tasks quicker.

Intel believes that business can benefit substantially by developing end-to-end cloud-based mobility solutions. Intel-powered tablets or ultrabooks provide employees with the compute power necessary to work more effectively wherever they are located. Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) is another burgeoning technology allowing users to access virtual environments hosted on servers located in the datacentre from low-cost thin clients. Applications and services delivered via virtualised cloud infrastructure built on high-performance Intel architecture allow access from any device and provide flexibility and scalability required to support the growing number of mobility-enabled users.

The consumerisation of IT and the emergence of enterprise mobility are dramatically changing the workplace. Employees no longer need to be physically tethered in an office to complete their work. In moving from a technology-centric to a user-centric model, fundamental tenets such as self-service and user experience are key to unlocking their full potential. With enterprise mobility playing such a critical role in your organisation's future, it's important to develop a cloud strategy that provides the infrastructure necessary to support your expanding mobile workforce.

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