View report
Taking Stock
An endpoint manageability state of the nation
A Computing content hub, in association with Intel vPro®
Managing devices for today’s anywhere, everywhere workforce
Find out more
Developed for the IT professionals of today and tomorrow, Intel vPro is built for business. The manageability technologies allow IT to keep a highly dispersed workforce patched and protected, whilst the stability features allow for consistent rollouts and reliable lifecycle management. So, no matter where your users find their office, managing a fleet is made easier. With each component and technology designed for professional grade, IT can be confident with tools to enhance everyone’s productivity and help secure their business’ data.
How IT leaders are meeting human workforce challenges with modern technology solutions
View article
In a software-centric world, don’t lose sight of the need for secure, manageable hardware
Covid: The great reset means IT leaders must now think ahead, not just cope with an inconvenient present
Why your organisation’s human and technology cyber security challenges are inextricably linked
ARTICLES
Modern manageability
Taking charge of your increasingly remote, diverse, and numerous endpoint devices
Behind the keyboard
IT leaders reveal how they are meeting their human workforce challenges with modern technology solutions
The hardware platform in 2021
How the enterprise endpoint needs of IT leaders are changing
Power to the people
Why your endpoint device strategy should be driven by user experience
COMPUTING REPORTS
The past two years have demanded rapid digital acceleration.
Computing, in association with Intel vPro, brings you a series of research reports, videos, webinars, and articles, featuring the experiences and outlooks of today’s IT leaders on endpoint manageability, designed to equip you with everything you need to know. Over the coming weeks we will be releasing a stream of exclusive multi-media content. Bookmark this page to ensure you – and your organisation – have access to the latest endpoint estate insight.
More customers and employees are working from home, expecting a good user experience from their endpoint devices, as well as secure, seamless, and remote access to their data and services. For IT teams, this involves huge workloads as they juggle greater responsibility, support challenges, and security risks. This content hub will explore the range of issues impacting endpoint manageability, including remote working, hardware, user experience, and people problems.
Is ‘Problem in Chair, Not in Computer’ a cyber security misnomer?
No PICNIC
Refresh
Is it time to modernise your endpoint buying process
Prevent & Cure
IT leaders reveal their biggest technology, people, and process ailments – and prescribe the most effective remedies
IT leader challenges
Computing's associate editor Penny Horwood spoke to Field Fisher's chief information officer Nigel Lang about the challenges today's IT leaders are facing
VIDEOS
Stuart Sumner, Editorial Director at Computing, speaks with New Look CTO Ed Alford about managing endpoints today
Remote endpoint management
INTERVIEW
12:37
IT leaders reveal endpoint manageability struggles
Secure your endpoint estate and shift left on support
Time-poor? Refresh and rethink endpoint management
Computing editor Tom Allen hears from interim CTIO at StepChange Joanna Smith about endpoint buying in the public and private sectors
Endpoint buying process
15:08
Computing editor Tom Allen talks to Sridhar Iyengar, managing director for Europe at ManageEngine about modernising the endpoint buying process
11:43
Endpoint Endgame
How your endpoint strategy can enable Zero Trust cyber security ambitions
Intel’s Stuart Dommett and VMWare’s Spencer Pitts discuss endpoint manageability, alongside dedicated research
Computing webinar
46:40
Why your organisation's human and technology cyber security challenges are inextricably linked
Find out more about interconnected human and technology impacts on cyber security
FURTHER READING
Read the full report
Technology solves and creates problems, both mitigating and creating risks. It can drive productivity or hinder efficiency, defend attacks or lead to vulnerabilities. There is a human element to these issues, as the actions of those using the technology have an impact. ‘PICNIC' - problem in chair, not in computer - is often used to flippantly summarise this impact; however, it suggests that human and technology challenges are distinct. This is not the case. Humans make mistakes, we are not flawless. Cybercriminals even exploit this humanity through phishing or social engineering attacks. While investing in effective and regular security training for all employees is vital, there needs to be technology in place to minimise the effects of and possibilities for human oversights. Organisations' human and technology cyber security challenges are inextricably linked. Therefore, the cyber security strategies for both need to be linked. Computing's latest research in this area, conducted in partnership with Intel, reveals how IT leaders are addressing endpoint hardware and remote manageability in the context of their modern cyber security strategies.
Evolving cyber crime
Cyber-attacks are becoming more frequent and more sophisticated. The nature of attacks has changed in the past few years, increasingly aiming at below-the-OS levels by targeting inherent flaws within hardware, the BIOS, and firmware. GCHQ reported a doubling of ransomware attacks on UK institutions last year, while 65 per cent of survey respondents from Computing's research experienced up to 10 cyber security incidents per week. Attackers often migrate laterally through networks, seeking out and retrieving backups before they are detected. This gives the attackers maximum leverage, exfiltrating data alongside encryption, to then publish or sell data, further reducing the victim's ability to fight back. 64 per cent of respondents say they expect incidents to continue increasing, yet, the entire cohort rate their confidence in their endpoint security an average of 7 out of 10. This reveals weak endpoint security in a time of progressive cyber-attacks.
Computing research from the past two years demonstrates organisations are consistently worried about security outside the work network perimeter. A huge concern reported by IT leaders surrounds newly minted remote workers and what that means for cyber security on both a personal and conglomerate level. According to Computing's latest research in the area, the greatest enterprise security threats are phishing and malware, the former often being the vehicle for the latter. 59 per cent of respondents said phishing was their greatest cyber security challenge, followed by 55 per cent reporting malware or ransomware. Phishing weaponises our humanity - tapping into our kindnesses, curiosities, concerns, and fears. Remote working has meant isolated workers are far more vulnerable. Ordinarily, colleagues would turn to each other if they received a questionable email with a dubious link. Alone, in the home, the temptation may be to just ‘click it and see'. Being outside a corporate environment also impacts the probability of phishing success as employees have domestic distractions and, generally, a less guarded mindset within their own homes. Organisations recognise that this cannot be entirely combatted by IT expertise. Seven per cent rated inadequate cyber security as the greatest cybersecurity challenge for their business, with 13 per cent expressing a lack of cyber security expertise in their IT departments. These low numbers demonstrate that expertise is in place, but not being transferred to employees. So, what can be done? 61 per cent of respondents said they conduct security awareness training between one and three times a year. Three per cent admitted their employees had never received such training and 39 per cent said it occurred annually. However, these findings cannot reveal the extent or nature of the training. Do they offer in-person training with a chance to engage with the experts and ask questions? Is it a fixed question assessment with a minimum pass rate? Barely more than a quarter said they were completely happy with employee security training at their organisation, highlighting widespread ‘people' vulnerabilities.
Human error
No organisation can completely rely on their employees to never make security mistakes. Having below-the-OS cybersecurity capabilities for endpoint devices is crucial considering the sophistication, spread, and ruthlessness of attacks. 83 per cent agreed either somewhat or strongly that "the most effective user device security strategies combine software, hardware, and cyber risk training." Having built-in, hardware-level security on a reliable, stable platform can blend technology and supplementary training to reduce overall risks. Hardware-enhanced security features, including below-the-OS security, such as BIOS protection through to advanced threat detection, can help protect against and prevent cyber-attacks.
The importance of capable hardware
ARTICLE
Learn more about how the enterprise endpoint needs of IT leaders are changing
Having a technology infrastructure that enables enterprises to pivot at a moment's notice used to be something that business leaders heard about from analysts at cloud conferences. But in the year since lockdowns began, the pandemic has forced that need on every organisation. Indeed, it's no exaggeration to say that failure to satisfy it could have meant the complete failure of the enterprise. Those that already had a culture of remote, flexible homeworking in place were better able to get up to speed in this alarming new world, while others struggled to port traditional office-based workflows and management practices into a largely home-based environment. However, the uncomfortable truth is that the crisis should not have forced an overnight transformation on any forward-looking digital business. Remote, flexible working, mobility, cloud platforms, and collaboration tools have been the direction of travel throughout the 21st Century.
Evolution not revolution
The need to be flexible so that even long-established businesses can compete with nimble start-ups for disloyal customers - who increasingly demand low-friction services - could not have been clearer in a century in which every market has faced constant disruption. But even those organisations that had journeyed deeper than others into the flatter, more collaborative culture of remote working had to support it with hardware as the crisis intensified. Managing the crisis was as much about providing laptops, tablets, desktop computers, phones, and ancillary technologies as it was about software collaboration tools, especially when some employees were less well equipped at home than their peers. In a survey of 150 IT leaders, Computing found that mobile hardware, such as laptops and tablets, was cited by 71 percent of respondents as an essential component of surviving the crisis, along with endpoint security (mentioned by 65 percent); and Office and productivity applications (by 64 percent). This suggests that the right choice of hardware platform has been at least as important as the right cloud suite or conferencing app - and ideally should support the latter choices as a factor of design. That demands standards, manageability, trust, and security, so that the hardware itself can be the bedrock of a malleable yet robust IT infrastructure - one that can bend, but which should never break.
As well as supplying reams of new kit in many cases, most IT teams have had to support their dispersed workforces in new ways, and certainly at a much wider scale than ever before. Again, that demands standards-based hardware that has manageability at its core. In that environment, it has rapidly become apparent that organisations need a hardware estate that can function effectively long into an unpredictable future, rather than merely get the enterprise over an unexpected hump. It has also revealed that organisations need a hardware estate that is manageable remotely, while also being secure and reliable. This is why IT leaders need to regard the pandemic as having hit the reset button on their technology investments. While we all hope that the crisis is passing or may simply become a manageable seasonal problem like the flu, that is far from certain. If nothing else, we have all learned that our organisations must have the flexibility to adapt to new circumstances and bend into new shapes. Asked which of the following aspects of remote working have been particular challenges since the crisis began, some strong themes emerged in Computing's survey, alongside the familiar topic of enabling collaboration in the cloud. These included:
Remote manageability
So, to what extent would more capable endpoint hardware platforms and/or remote management functions have reduced the impact of problems? Nearly 60 percent of IT leaders either agreed or strongly agreed that they would have done. For team leaders and the workforce, hardware manageability equals power and flexibility. It also provides the ability to ensure that applications and employees can keep working uninterrupted and securely. We have to assume that many of the changes we have made to our organisations will be permanent, or at least long-term. Even if they are not, we know other crises will come along. At the heart of IT leaders' jobs today must be a realisation that adaptability is central to our working lives now. Yet, many of the changes were an acceleration of existing trends, which is why some organisations have coped much better than others. IT leaders urgently need to understand those trends, and see them as milestones on the strategic satnav, rather than a brief detour.
The endpoint hardware platform
endpoint performance endpoint stability/reliability endpoint manageability, along with security, connectivity, data/application access, and process/operational changes
These are all hardware-centric issues, especially in an environment where some staff may be using their own devices, making device management and security harder in many cases.
• • •
Since March 2020, most of us have come to rely on mobile apps, cloud suites, collaboration platforms, and video conferencing tools to do our jobs, liaise with colleagues, and talk to loved ones, family, and friends. It's no exaggeration to say that these technologies have kept many businesses afloat during the pandemic and enabled isolated people to stay connected to the outside world and essential services. We have all been able to shop, manage our finances, access life-saving information, and transact business online - assuming that we don't live in broadband ‘notspots' of poor connectivity.
Don't forget the hardware dimension
But with so much emphasis placed on software over the past year, it is easy to overlook the critical importance of the hardware we rely on to access that ever-changing set of applications, which are so often driven by fashion and peer pressure. For the enterprise, its laptops, desktops, tablets, smartphones, monitors, networking tools, and ancillary hardware all demand significant financial outlay, management, interoperability, support, maintenance, and security. This makes them both strategic and operational considerations. So how do IT leaders believe that their hardware has been performing in a year that has seen widespread digital transformation during this global shift to homeworking? The surprising news, perhaps, is that more than half of respondents to a Computing survey of 150 IT leaders found their corporate hardware more flexible than they had previously thought it to be. That said, over 15 percent admitted that their platforms had proved to be less flexible and adaptable than they had imagined.
Whichever might be the case organisation by organisation, Computing found that most respondents have been forced to plan an upgrade of at least some of their hardware over the next three years, now that staff have been using sanctioned devices daily in this unexpected context. Eighty percent of organisations answered between ‘5' and ‘10' when asked, on a scale of 1 to 10, how significantly they have been obliged to look at upgrading staff hardware - with 1 being not at all and 10 very significantly. So, why is this? The Covid-19 crisis has forced many IT teams to equip remote workers with basic hardware so they can continue doing their jobs away from the office. This has certainly been the case where there was no culture in place of employees using their own devices.
Planning the upgrade path
But even well-equipped and better-funded organisations have faced hardware-centric challenges. The biggest of these has been enabling remote management and improving cybersecurity on all of those dispersed devices - thousands of them in larger organisations. Remote working at scale has made remote management and security more difficult at a time of significant stress and change, if the device itself does not support it at the hardware level. New types of threat have certainly emerged during the pandemic. Widening the perimeter of the organisation to include home offices and family routers has increased the risk to sensitive data, as has the rise in organised crime, fraud, hacking, phishing, and social engineering attacks. Robust device security needs to underpin the post-perimeter Zero Trust strategies that are essential to surviving in this new world. It can't be left to chance and/or to employees' common sense. So, what are the key hardware manageability and security must-haves? According to Computing's research, the top six are:
Managing the estate
Multi-factor authentication (cited by 68 percent of respondents) Cloud-based administration (55 percent) End-to-end encryption (52 percent) Advanced access control (46 percent) Zero Trust security (33 percent) Off-domain device management capabilities (33 percent)
In conclusion, the hardware platform of 2021 must, above all, be flexible, independent of geography, OS, and network. In other words, it must reflect the modern workforce that it equips and enables. And it should be standards-based and built for a future that is emerging fast, and which itself demands flexibility.
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
Yet the existing stock of laptops and tablets may have been just that, basic (or out of date) and so not up to the task of running the latest remote access systems, collaboration platforms, videoconferencing apps, VPNs, authentication tools, and/or high-speed networking. In some cases, hardware may have been running outdated operating systems or applications. Other organisations may only have had emergency standby stocks available, and so supplying a device to every member of staff may never have been considered, let alone budgeted for. In some communities, companies may also have had to invest in mobile broadband hotspots for their staff, while employees living in accommodation that was ill-suited to their jobs might have needed other forms of help.
Basic is not enough
The enormous acceleration of digital initiatives, changes in technology priorities, and rapid scrambling to maintain lines of business - all whilst attempting to maintain cyber security standards - has been the common experience of IT teams across the world over the past 18 months. Amongst this technology-focussed setting, it's easy to forget that behind every decision are distinctly human needs, motivations, benefits and downfalls. Having taken a top-level look at how the enterprise endpoint needs of IT leaders are changing in 2021, Computing has now drawn on a series of frank conversations with IT leaders to better understand the reasoning behind their own plans and opinions, as well as the human needs and implications surrounding the endpoint technology changes they are seeing. Experience management has become a vital pillar of the IT team's remit. This report brings our headline research findings in this area to life with real world case studies that speak to the everyday impacts of these figures and help IT leaders to understand how their peers' endpoint hardware platforms will support their organisations' post-pandemic visions.
Key learnings
Well-specified devices and advanced endpoint management have vital roles to play in the success of hybrid working models The user experience, and understanding workforce needs and expectations, are central to modern device strategies The influence of IT leaders is expanding to give them a seat at the table for all major digital initiatives but it is vital that they are on top of their day-to-day estate management if they are to flourish in this environment The future of work will be predominantly hybrid, combining home and office-based work, at the organisations we spoke with Hybrid meetings will play a key role in successful collaboration as we emerge from the pandemic - with an emphasis on robust meeting room hardware and unified communications software
• • • • •
The interviewees
Mark Hill, CIO at cloud talent solution firm Tenth Revolution Group Ian McKetty, CIO at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Mark Mamone, Group CIO at fraud and identity specialists GBG Group Nick Rosser, Head of IT at financial services company Saunderson House
• • • •
Learn more about Computing’s latest research into the endpoint manageability state of the nation
Remotely managing endpoint estates is a growing challenge for the modern workforce. The increase in remote working means IT leaders have more responsibility than ever and, in turn, demands are rising. However, IT teams’ capacity to fulfil digital business priorities often takes a back seat. Computing’s latest research in this area, conducted in partnership with Intel, reveals how IT leaders are coping with workloads and the proliferation of endpoint devices. 150 IT decision makers involved in endpoint strategy or implementation at their organisation were surveyed. Only a third of survey respondents say their IT team’s capability to tackle company objectives is at least ‘good’, while 44 per cent say it is ‘adequate’ and 19 per cent admit it is ‘poor’ or ‘very poor.’
IT teams are time-poor
For many, this is because IT personnel are being bogged down in day-to-day management and support, detracting from their organisation’s longer-term productivity and development. Thanks to advances in digital capabilities, BYOD and geographically spread devices are the norm, but IT teams can struggle to keep pace. Around half of survey respondents agree that endpoint management takes up too much of their IT personnel’s daily time, and that efficiency and innovation are struggling as a consequence. Endpoint manageability must be remote, secure, and seamless for users. They expect straightforward, fast access from anywhere, anytime. Employees are rarely on-site and often keep to their own schedule. Remotely patching, onboarding, and accessing their devices, independent to device power and OS states, is now essential – modern businesses will simply not maintain proper IT standards without effective endpoint management. Because of this, organisations are seeing their IT team’s availability become increasingly depleted wherever they lack effective endpoint management capabilities.
Assess and refresh
77 per cent of respondents agree that reliable and scalable remote endpoint management would reduce their personnel’s workload. Effectively monitoring and supporting endpoint estates, updating devices when appropriate, will ensure solutions have modern feature sets that meet organisational needs. According to Computing’s findings, typically endpoint refresh cycles are greater than three years and around a third of respondents refresh their estates every five years or more. In many cases, organisations are clearly failing to take a long-term approach to assessing and modernising their endpoint manageability at the point of refresh. Without such evaluation, vulnerabilities go undetected and improvement opportunities are missed. Monitoring device health and, therefore, device compliance should be a key initiative when refreshing endpoint manageability. As PC fleets expand, ensuring endpoints are up to date, performant, and secure is crucial in avoiding preventable support issues. Endpoint manageability challenges and the IT workload that comes with it are set to remain. To reduce IT burdens, lost productivity, and security vulnerabilities, ensure your endpoint estate is visible and performant through regular review and refresh. IT teams can then prioritise and focus on broader digital objectives. IT leaders must plan ahead and look outwards. Moving to modern management tools, and supporting hardware platforms, will guarantee endpoint estates are maintained as efficiently and effectively as possible. Streamlined endpoint manageability that permits remote endpoint updating, troubleshooting, and administering, whenever and wherever, is vital to remain competitive and productive.
It is widely recognised that the severity and sophistication of cyberattacks will continue to rise. IT teams face the challenge of ensuring devices are visible, secure, and trustworthy for both authentication and management purposes. Additionally, high compliance standards and regulations must be adhered to. Computing’s latest report in this space, conducted in partnership with Intel vPro, explores endpoint manageability security challenges and the state of support across a range of industries. 150 IT decision makers involved in endpoint strategy or implementation at their organisation were surveyed.
Out of sight, out of control?
Malware, resourcing issues for remedying and monitoring endpoint alerts, as well as the increased use of devices on vulnerable networks were all voiced as major issues for IT leaders. Remote devices create greater attack surfaces for cybercriminals to exploit. Off-site employees are also less vigilant when it comes to security procedures and protocols – they may be distracted at home, lend work devices to family members, and cannot immediately ask colleagues for advice. IT personnel want to provide a seamless experience for their dispersed employee devices that won’t infringe on privacy but complies with stringent requirements.
Protecting estates
Alarmingly, 15 per cent are not sure if their organisation has experienced a successful cyberattack in the last five years, while around a third report they have. Given the current security landscape, and worldwide advocations to bolster security in the wake of increasing domestic and state-sanctioned cyber attacks, organisations need endpoint estate visibility. 90 per cent of respondents recognise that effective endpoint management prevents and limits cybersecurity incidents. The most important feature for IT leaders is security patch deployment, followed by remote access. Accurate, efficient user support is critical for productivity and user satisfaction.
Support shift
‘Shifting left’ on support – moving from reactive to proactive device management by resolving issues before they become a problem, self-remediation, and utilising the helpdesk rather than contacting engineering teams, is recognised as valuable across industries. Shifting left reduces the pressure on more resource-heavy IT teams and rapidly combats incidents. This is especially important as devices proliferate. While 100 per cent of survey respondents say the demands placed on their remote endpoint estate has increased or stayed the same, just 7 per cent of respondents are extremely confident in their endpoint manageability. Organisations may be compromising on security and support if their endpoint manageability is flawed. Regular solution evaluation as well as modernising tools will guarantee estates are protected, stable, and visible.
Shifting left’ on support – moving from reactive to proactive device management by resolving issues before they become a problem, self-remediation, and utilising the helpdesk rather than contacting engineering teams, is recognised as valuable across industries. Shifting left reduces the pressure on more resource-heavy IT teams and rapidly combats incidents. This is especially important as devices proliferate. While 100 per cent of survey respondents say the demands placed on their remote endpoint estate has increased or stayed the same, just 7 per cent of respondents are extremely confident in their endpoint manageability. Organisations may be compromising on security and support if their endpoint manageability is flawed. Regular solution evaluation as well as modernising tools will guarantee estates are protected, stable, and visible.
Employees now rarely set foot on-premises and self-determine when they are at their desks. Therefore, remotely managing endpoint estates regardless of power or OS state, or location is essential to the modern workforce. Organisations must onboard new workers, update existing endpoints, and patch problems anywhere, anytime. Computing’s latest research on this subject, conducted in partnership with Intel, highlights the chief endpoint manageability concerns for IT leaders today. 150 IT decision makers involved in endpoint strategy or implementation at their organisation, from a range of industries, were surveyed. 100 per cent of survey respondents saw endpoint estate management demands increase or stay the same over the last two years. However, less than a quarter say they had an advanced, reliable remote management technology in place pre-pandemic, and under half say they have improved their processes.
Distance difficulties
Computing survey respondents voiced the challenges:
New ways of working have meant a proliferation of devices. IT teams have to keep up with the demands, and for many, issues have occurred. A selection of responses that reflect the most common sentiments follows.
“All our staff are now working from remote endpoint devices which must be managed within a mobile device platform.” “People working from home are no longer using the corporate internet gateway. Workers are not regularly connecting to the network, creating difficulties with updating patches and new configurations.” “Bandwidth restrictions and usage of remote devices has been an issue.” “The increased usage of multiple devices from home caused performance issues on endpoint infrastructure.” “Endpoints being out of date and working in remote areas are not able to connect back in and receive updates. Visibility is a real problem.”
“We had to accelerate our plans and rapidly roll out additional devices. Time was a challenge and demand for better endpoint security greatly increased.” “We have a lack of resources to support the increase in remote devices. There’s insufficient staff, knowledge, and skills internally.” “There are issues with the availability of IT staff to monitor status of endpoints and their capacity to respond to alerts.” “Physical control of assets, off network management, and overall visibility are major challenges.”
Skills shortages
Advances in digital capabilities have supported the seismic shift to remote working, but digital acceleration of this kind has placed greater responsibility on IT teams, creating workload and skills problems.
“BYOD is difficult. There are human errors and clashes between BYOD support and endpoint security management. User awareness, education, and errors are a challenge.” “It’s difficult to get end users to accept policies, procedures, and tools now they are remote.”
People problems
As users become increasingly dispersed, it becomes more difficult for IT teams to provide support. Making sure users are remaining vigilant and aware is also tricky.
Across the board, endpoint manageability struggles are taking their toll. Only 7 per cent of respondents are extremely confident in their current endpoint processes. As devices become increasingly dispersed, they must be secure, stable, and efficient. In order to manage estates as efficiently and effectively as possible, IT leaders should review and refresh management solutions, modernising their approach and keeping pace with the demands of today and tomorrow.
