Founded as a telephony business in Stockholm in 1876, Ericsson is a provider of wireless and 5G services to telecoms operators worldwide and is currently investing heavily in cloud-based enterprise solutions. At the same time, the business’s basic principles remain unchanged.
“Our culture is very much based on technology and innovation,” says Henrik Thunell, Global Head of Client Solutions at Ericsson. “We have a lot of patents and we are developing new ideas, new solutions and new intellectual property all the time.”
That innovation extends to a focus on the employee experience and integrating technology that meets the needs of a demanding workforce. A lean client services team is responsible for delivering secure end-user computing services to some 130,000 users in 140 countries and digital workplace services are central to its operations.
“End-user computing is like a constantly evolving Swiss Army knife,” says Thunell. “It’s the primary tool for our users and it is used for everything. Our challenge is to find the right balance for end-point security, defining what we can and can’t tolerate without hampering innovation.”
Ericsson is a longstanding customer of HP, now 20 years into the relationship. The company is also an early Device as a Service (DaaS) adopter. In 2019, when Thunell assessed the Ericsson computer fleet and its strategy for connectivity and security, he saw an opportunity to take it a step further.
Specifically, he wanted to retain the primary benefits of DaaS and device provisioning, while extending to Modern Management and built-in 5G connectivity. New goals were to increase IT efficiency, reduce security risk, enhance employee experiences and achieve a more sustainable technology footprint. Thunell was looking to strengthen end-point security with a zero-trust approach.
For sustainability benefits, measurably reducing the carbon footprint and energy consumption throughout the device lifecycle was key.
A new chapter in the era of connectivity
“We wanted to show our partners that we are serious about making things better by building in 5G because we are a 5G company,” says Thunell. “We wanted to push the envelope and we wanted connectivity that would provide a consistent and secure user experience independent of location or the end user’s circumstances.”
Thunell saw the strength of HP demonstrated in the EliteBook series notebook PCs with HP security features that are part of the HP DaaS solution with global provisioning. HP stood apart with built-in 5G1 capabilities in a wide range of EliteBook models which would support Ericsson in its pursuit of a 5G-enabled future.
“A unique benefit was HP security solutions, in particular HP Sure Admin and Sure Start,” Thunell notes. “We have a very firm requirement for BIOS management and HP provides military-grade encryption technology to manage that.”
Ericsson established the HP DaaS arrangement to include over 90% of its devices. HP prepares the devices by deploying Ericsson’s standard pre-provisioning package using Microsoft Intune. The devices are then resealed and shipped to an Ericsson office location or sent for home delivery.
“It’s an awesome solution, and very convenient for the IT staff and the end users,” Thunell explains. “You receive your device, type in your email address, get a multifactor authentication prompt and 10 minutes later you’re enrolled and ready to work.”
Delivering connectivity with control
In the new contract, Ericsson has a fleet of devices that enable its staff to work effectively and securely, worldwide. At the same time, its client services staff retain control of the full device stack, from application and OS level to the BIOS and hardware.
The combination of device performance and cloud-based applications has cut cold boot times from 120 seconds to between 30 and 40, while always-on 5G connectivity simplifies cloud management and ensures that updates and new services are provisioned quickly and easily.
The Break/Fix agreement means user uptime is increased, with devices simply exchanged for new replacements if required.
Thunell also notes that user adoption rates are high and user feedback is overall positive. “Things are working very well overall—better than I expected,” he says. “At the beginning of the project, I said that if we could get a 70% adoption rate on Modern Management, that would be good. Now we’re reaching close to 100%.”
Thunell notes that staff appreciate the possibility of having a choice when selecting their new computer. Based on user persona the users choose from a catalogue with the latest models. He also believes the new environment gives Ericsson an advantage in terms of attracting and retaining talent.
“Do people want to work for Ericsson with HP devices, or for some other company with a less attractive digital workspace?” he asks. “At Ericsson, you can choose from a range of attractive models based on your preferences with affordable monthly price points, for example, a cool Dragonfly or an EliteBook 850 with a 4K display. End-user choice and predictable financials are very important considerations these days.”
Thunell believes the flexibility and scalability of Modern Management bring the most value to Ericsson. “We let HP prepare everything for us, so our colleagues can focus on supporting users and advising them on how to maximise productivity from the devices,” he explains.
As part of the industry, Thunell is excited by the new 5G-enabled computer environment.
“Everything is Internet and cloud-enabled end to end, from before the device is even manufactured until it is fully retired,” he concludes. “Modern Management, combined with 5G, is the ultimate solution for a hybrid workforce.”
Click here to read the full case study from HP and find out more about HP’s Workforce Solutions here.
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Source: News