CONTROL 38 CHANNELVISION | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2024 have with their network is what’s most important at the end of the day. The only norm is that the definition of a normal network has changed forever. Access to applications, information and services needs to be as strong at 9am as it is late at night. Both office and remote locations – including home offices – need the same power and guaranteed connectivity. With cloud computing as the baseline for your network architecture, service providers can ensure that organizations have immediate access to what they need – and can quickly scale network resources up or down based on demand. The cloud enables organizations to be flexible and handle sudden increases in bandwidth, while guaranteeing seamless movement for employees between remote and in-office work. Understanding Traffic Patterns One aspect of the variable work environment that service providers need to deal with is the fact that employees transitioning between remote and in-office work and back create fluctuations in network usage. A large number of employees on-site means you need the bandwidth to match; when traffic shifts to remote work, there is a need to again adjust to bandwidth accordingly. Different types of network traffic can have different importance to a company. By understanding what that traffic actually is, it can be prioritized and optimized. A Zoom call is much more critical to operations than personal emails, for example. Routing and usage decisions can be based on need and efficiency, helping service providers add or free up bandwidth (and other network resources) as necessary, prioritizing critical applications and ultimately making for a better, more consistent end user experience. The productivity of the modern office – whatever that may end up being – requires agility in managing network traffic. With the expectation that sudden changes and rapid adjustments in bandwidth requirements will be needed for the foreseeable future, it is important that organizations ensure their networks can scale accordingly. Prioritizing the UX In the realm of remote work and the hybrid model, providing a superior user experience is crucial. MSPs play a significant role in optimizing networks for seamless collaboration, communication and resource accessibility. Fine-tuning network configurations to minimize latency and maximize throughput is essential. MSPs can use quality of service (QoS) policies to prioritize critical applications such as video conferencing and cloud-based collaboration platforms. Regular network monitoring and proactive troubleshooting help identify bottlenecks before they affect users. With knowledge of the traffic on a network and the performance of the network, service providers can take remedial actions promptly, such as adjusting network configurations, resolving congestion points or upgrading infrastructure where necessary. Additionally, MSP-provided usercentric support and training empower end-user organizations to unlock the full potential of their network resources, boosting productivity and user satisfaction. Focus on Cloud Performance When it comes to cloud services, immediate availability and expected speeds are paramount for user satisfaction. Are cloud services working as expected? Being able to answer this in the positive at any time of day is the only measurement that truly matters in today’s world. To do this successfully, it is essential for service providers to understand the traffic traversing a network. Identifying critical traffic and routing it appropriately based on the ever-changing Source: KPMG By 2030, how do you expect your organization’s office space to change? Source: 8x8 Future of Work: 2030 Vision Report What do you believe the future of work will predominantly be? Source: 8x8 Future of Work: 2030 Vision Report By 2030 which of the following do you think will most closely reflect your organization’s average full-time employee work schedule? Source: 8x8 Future of Work: 2030 Vision Report Remote/hybrid workers’ reactions to a full transition back to the office How would you feel if your company made a shift to full-time office-based work? Please select all that apply. (% of US working adults that work remote or hybrid) Source: YouGov, November 2023 I would want to quit My morale would be negatively impacted My productivity would be negative impacted I would accept it grudgingly It wouldn’t make a difference to me I would be happy about the change Overall survey IT leaders CX leaders Reduced office space, used primarily as hybrid work deskshare Reduced office space, used primarily for client/team meetings No change, used as a 9-to-5 workplace By 2030, my organization could operate without a physical office By 2030, most organizations could operate without a physical office 42% 43% 41% 18% 19% 17% 22% 13% 31% 10% 15% 5% 8% 10% 6% Overall survey IT leaders CX leaders Hybrid Work-from-anywhere Remote In-person/office 60% 56% 63% 22% 23% 22% 11% 15% 7% 7% 6% 8% Overall survey IT leaders CX leaders Daily flexible/asynchronous Weekly flexible/asynchronous Task oriented Company schedule/traditional 9-to-5 38% 40% 38% 27% 30% 24% 9% 8% 9% 26% 21% 31% 29% 28% 28% 22% 20% 14% Willingness to trust and accept AI systems Source: KPMG By 2030, how do you expect your organization’s office space to change? Source: 8x8 Future of Work: 2030 Vision Report What do you believe the future of work will predominantly be? Source: 8x8 Future of Work: 2030 Vision Report By 2030 which of the following do you think will most closely reflect your organization’s average full-time employee work schedule? ‘How willing are you to trust AI [specific application]?’ [8 items] % Unwilling to trust % Ambivalent % Willing to trust % Low acceptance % Unwilling = ‘Somewhat unwilling’, ‘Unwilling’, or Completely unwilling’ % Willing = ‘Somewhat willing’, ‘Willing’, or Completely willing’ % Ambivalent = ‘Neither willing nor unwilling’ % Low acceptance = ‘Not at all’ or ‘Slightly’ % High acceptance = ‘Highly’, or Completely’ % Moderate acceptance = ‘Moderately’ % Moderate % High acceptance Trust Acceptance ‘To what extent do you accept the use of AI [specific application]?’ [3 items] 29 29 38 33 32 39 Overall survey IT leaders CX leaders Reduced office space, used primarily as hybrid work deskshare Reduced office space, used primarily for client/team meetings No change, used as a 9-to-5 workplace By 2030, my organization could operate without a physical office By 2030, most organizations could operate without a physical office 42% 43% 41% 18% 19% 17% 22% 13% 31% 10% 15% 5% 8% 10% 6% Overall survey IT leaders CX leaders Hybrid Work-from-anywhere Remote In-person/office 60% 56% 63% 22% 23% 22% 11% 15% 7% 7% 6% 8%
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTg4Njc=