Managing Your Mobile Workforce in a 21st Century World

Mobile workforce management presents a major headache for IT departments. Imagine the task of maintaining control over a mobile workforce that could be located around the country or around the world.

Mobile workforce solutions have answered the prayers of IT managers everywhere. Mobile workforce solutions give managers the ability to monitor employee laptops and handhelds for compliance and to automatically download the latest security patches and software whenever a laptop or handheld is turned on. The advent of cloud based technology has made this happen.

Cloud based technology enables companies to manage and maintain a mobile workforce. LAN based technology was once the driving force behind company IT networks that operated solely within the framework of the four physical walls of an office environment. However, as companies grew to meet the demands of a global economy, their workforce went out on the road to accommodate expanding client demands. LAN, by its very nature, could not support workers' connectivity to their home networks. Cloud based technology maintains that connectivity, regardless of whether workers are at home or on the road.

And how does that mobile workforce maintain its connection in a way that doesn't threaten the security of the network? Mobile workforce solutions can restart firewalls and anti virus software in the event either is shut down virally or by the user. In fact, mobile workforce solutions can prevent non compliant endpoints from connecting with the network altogether. Another feature of mobile workforce solutions, the visibility service, allows IT departments to monitor what workers are doing with their endpoints (i.e., downloading questionable applications or connecting from unsecure hotspots like coffee shops or airport lounges) and whether that activity threatens overall network security.

No discussion of 21st Century network security would be complete without a mention of the threats that originate from sources that are out of our control. Terrorist attacks, natural disasters and pandemics are all too possible and cannot be ignored. Mobile workforce solutions platforms include In Case of Emergency (ICE) services that provide the business continuity and disaster preparedness that is so necessary to company operations in the face of sudden security threats. ICE mobile workforce services keep employees who are confined to their homes or remote locations during a crisis connected to the network through global Internet connections with their international network partners.What a relief for parents to be able to stay abreast with their work responsibilities while monitoring a sick child at home!

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