For IT, the focus at the start of 2021 is probably still very much where it was during most of 2020. They’re still grappling with PC fleet management issues around security, compliance, software patches and maintenance updates. Any IT administrator can attest to the challenges in managing a large fleet of PCs across distributed teams — a trend that research firm ForresterOpens a new window suggests is set to continue in 2021 and beyond, as companies embrace the ‘anywhere-plus-office hybrid’ model.
A workhorse of digital ecosystems — the PC shoulders the computing, security and performance load of an increasingly distributed workforce. Yet, despite being a core business enabler and accelerator for end-users, especially so in WFH environments, it doesn’t figure high up in the pecking order in IT purchase cycles. In a bid to set up an optimal infrastructure for long-term hybrid work, IT decision makers (ITDMs) made quick and massive investments in remote technology enablement tools, such as online whiteboards, project management software, and business messaging apps to power productive workforces. But missed the opportunity to drive workforce productivity with a strong PC foundation.
A recent Lenovo and Intel study, Empower Your Employees with the Right TechnologyOpens a new window , found that around half of surveyed employees felt their PC devices are out-of-date or insufficient (e.g., not fast enough, reliable enough or powerful enough), clearly underscoring how digital workspace technology investments don’t match the priorities of distributed workforces.
But it is essentially the PC — the most underestimated technology in the workplace — that is at the heart of an organization’s transformation strategy. Even as the digital ecosystem grows more complex, the PC is the mainstay for remote workers to get daily jobs done. It is the technological backbone for powering collaboration apps, ensuring reliable connectivity during Zoom calls, processing large amounts of data and reports, running multiple business apps, and driving heavy-duty graphics processing for video editing.
As companies accelerate their roadmap to digital transformation (DX) in post-COVID environments, it’s time to make PCs the ground zero for DX by offering advanced, user-friendly devices that tick all the boxes for today’s key business and business user needs.
Digital Employee Experiences Matter
In the new digital world order, PC users are demanding far more than standard-issue endpoint devices. They want convenience and mobility to perform tasks seamlessly from anywhere, without delays or disruptions. They expect business-class devices that afford higher productivity, memory and processing power. They prefer thin-and-light form factors that blend performance, stability, and security in a lightweight package. Plus, in an always-on digital workplace, reliable connectivity, extended battery performance, and self-aware technologies take center stage.
All compelling reasons to replace the ad-hoc, built-over-time collection of outdated PCs and modernize with a true business-class PC fleet. Unlike personal PCs, business-class PCs are designed for productive computing experiences, enhanced video and audio conferencing, and are light, portable, stable, and secure by design.
PC devices that adapt to the unique needs of today’s computing environment are not just a nice-to-have, they are undoubtedly a strategic must-have.
This is why progressive and visionary leaders should prioritize PCs in the early planning phase of their upcoming hardware refresh cycles. Lenovo and Intel’s report supports these findings. “Ultimately, both IT decision makers (ITDMs) and employees agree that refresh cycles can be improved and better aligned,†the report found. The studyOpens a new window also showed 84% of ITDMs believe employees can easily switch to a different PC device if their current one needs to be replaced.
Without a doubt, Intel processors and Microsoft Windows have been central to the global PC industry’s transformation efforts. So when you have a committed computing partner who responds to your key computing needs, it doesn’t make business sense to stay one or two generations behind.
In this article, we delve deeper into how Intel vPro® platform-based PCs bring the multiple pieces together by delivering a more secure, high-performance PC platform with unrivaled productivity, offers up to 2x fasterOpens a new window performance for content creation over previous generation, and reduces IT service callsOpens a new window .[1]
In the long-term, a PC refresh cycle that includes Intel® vPro® platform-based endpoint devices can help lower PC management costs and enable more productive, engaged workforces.
11th Gen Intel vPro® Platform: A Look Under the Hood
The latest Intel vPro® platform powered by 11th Gen Intel® Coreâ„¢ vPro®Opens a new window mobile processors are the first in the industry to offer “silicon-enabled threat detection capability.â€[2] With the latest line of processors for business, the Intel® vPro® platform also raises the bar on productivity and manageability. Want proof? Hear it from Stephanie HallfordOpens a new window , VP and GM of Business Client Platforms, Intel, who demonstrated how the 11th Gen Intel vPro® platform trumps the competition at the all-virtual CES 2021. “The 11th Gen Intel vPro platform means performance, delivering up to 23% faster productivity with Office 365[3] … up to 50% faster productivity compared to the competition while on video conference[4] … up to 1.8x faster video editing[5],†noted Hallford.
The newly launched Intel® Evo™ vPro® platform takes things up a notch, with thin-and-light laptops that blend security and performance benefits in a lightweight package. Organizations looking to unburden their IT teams and at the same time satisfy the high-performance, speed, and convenience needs of mobile workforces should lean on the Intel® Evo™ vPro® platform.
With the Intel® Evo™ vPro® platform, IT can experience the broad array of features — security, manageability, remote support and PC fleet stability they have come to expect from the Intel vPro® platform, coupled with ultra-portability that end-users demand. The sleekly designed and impressively engineered devices also pack extended battery life, a must-have for powering jaw-dropping performances.[6]
Streamline your technology needs with Intel® Evo™ vPro® platform devices that deliver the most premium mobile experience!
Here are three ways IT decision-makers can tailor PC fleets to the end-users’ evolving needs with the 11th Gen Intel vPro® platform.
1. PCs to power an intelligent workday
In today’s highly connected work environment, the PC is firmly rooted in our work and personal lives. In noisy home environments, as workers transition from room to room, a “one-size-fits-most†approach for devices doesn’t work anymore. This changing work paradigm leaves plenty of room for AI-powered devices with ‘self-aware, adaptive technologies’ that can offset a wide range of concerns in home office environments, such as background noise suppression for optimal video conferencing and automatically adjusting display brightness to changed surroundings.
Corporate PCs outfitted with the 11th Gen Intel® vPro™ platform deliver significantly higher performance gains over rival AMD:
- Up to 23% faster productivity with Office 365[7]; users also get up to 1.8x faster video editing with Adobe Creative Cloud.[8]
- More connection with 3x faster Internet with built-in Intel® Wi-Fi 6 technology, rather than standard Wi-Fi.2, resulting in faster speeds for file-sharing and cloud-based apps and improved performance.[9]
2. PCs to secure against threats that fly under the radar
In today’s cyber-conscious landscape, secure computing isn’t just about software safeguards. The role of security needs to be greatly expanded to endpoint devices, and ITDMs need to ensure that their PC fleet has been designed with security in mind. With hackers turning their attention to firmware vulnerabilities, business-class PCs outfitted with comprehensive hardware-based security can stop malicious attacks in their tracks.
A potential overlooked attack vector is BIOS — software that can give hackers free rein over the system if compromised. The firmware-level vulnerabilities allow hackers to gain complete control over the operating system (OS), subverting the security controls, bricking devices, and escalating privileges to move laterally across enterprise networks, as evidenced by a recent report from Advanced Intelligence (AdvIntel) and Eclypsium security researchers.
While other chipmakers are still getting their security act together, the 11th Gen Intel vPro® platform packs the most comprehensive hardware-based security available for businesses today.[10] The platform offers integrated hardware-based PC protection through the Intel® Hardware Shield, which uses artificial intelligence for threat detection, helping to stop ransomware and crypto-mining attacks. There’s also Intel® Control-Flow Enforcement Technology to shut down attacks that software solutions can’t stop.[11]
3. PCs that enable IT to transform support
Yes, the global outbreak turned out to be a game-changer in some ways. Employee productivity was reimagined and reinvented during the pandemic, and there’s no going back to the old order. While IT teams quickly ramped up support to reach thousands of endpoints across different geographic locations, deploying fixes, patches, and updates on a range of devices with varying OSes added to high overhead costs.
Aside from the impact on overheads, the swift enablement of remote work also negatively impacted employee experience (EX). What happens when a laptop is unresponsive or out-of-band (OOB)? In many cases, the answer is effectively ‘nothing.’ In a hybrid work environment, IT needs to manage and repair PCs remotely, regardless of power state. That’s why organizations must use next-generation business PC platforms that allow IT teams to securely access OOB devices and fix the problem. Intel’s unique hardware-based management allows IT admins to help users stay more secure and productive wherever they work by repairing corrupted drivers, application software, or the OS on non-responsive systems.
In Conclusion
Working from home, office, or anywhere is not going to change any time soon. ITDMs need to ensure that their PC fleets are modernized and can support new hybrid workforce models. The foundational endpoint device layer must deliver employees the best working experience and ensure that employers see undisrupted productivity without any vulnerabilities.
Notes and Disclaimers
1 As measured by Video Editing workflow. 11th Gen Intel® Core™ vPro® i7-1185G7 Processor vs. 10th Gen Intel® Core™ vPro® i7-10610U Processor. Visit for details. Results may vary.
2 In thin & light Windows-based PCs, based on December 2020 IOActive study (commissioned by Intel) comparing malware detection by Intel 11th Gen Core vPro platform with Intel® TDT and AMD Ryzen Pro 4750U-based system. Visit www.intel.com/11thgenvproOpens a new window for details on Intel’s industry-leading CPU behavior monitoring technology. Results may vary. No product or component can be absolutely secure.
3 As measured by Microsoft Office 365 workflow. 11th Gen Intel® Core™ vPro® i7-1185G7 Processor vs. AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 4750U Learn more at . Results may vary.
4 As measured by Productivity and Collaboration Workflow. 11th Gen Intel® Core™ vPro® i7-1185G7 Processor vs. AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 4750U. Learn more at www.Intel.com/11thgenvpro. Results may vary.
5 Up to 1.8x faster video editing with Adobe Creative Cloud with 11th Gen Intel® Core™ vPro ® i7-1185G7 vs. AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 4750U as measured by Video Editing workflow Learn more at . Results may vary.
6 Measured average responsiveness of premium Windows OS-based designs while performing typical workflows in a realistic environment, compared to 3-year-old premium design. Visit for details. Results may vary.
7 As measured by Microsoft Office 365 workflow. 11th Gen Intel® Core™ vPro® i7-1185G7 Processor vs. AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 4750U. Learn more at . Results may vary.
8 Up to 1.8x faster video editing with Adobe Creative Cloud with 11th Gen Intel® Core™ vPro ® i7-1185G7 vs. AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 4750U as measured by Video Editing workflow Learn more at . Results may vary.
9 Nearly 3X Faster: 802.11ax 2×2 160 MHz enables 2402 Mbps maximum theoretical data rates, ~3X (2.8X) faster than standard 802.11ac 2×2 80 MHz (867 Mbps) as documented in IEEE 802.11 wireless standard specifications, and require the use of similarly configured 802.11ax wireless network routers.
10 In thin and light Windows-based PCs, as measured by December 2020 IOActive study (commissioned by Intel.) The study compared the 11th Gen Intel Core vPro mobile Intel® Hardware Shield hardware-based security capabilities within these categories: Below the OS, App Data Protection, and Advanced Threat Detection, with all available corresponding technologies of the AMD Ryzen Pro 4750U. IOActive also analyzed respective security assurance processes and performed some feature testing. See full report here. No product or component can be absolutely secure. Results may vary.
11 Intel Control-flow Enforcement Technology (CET) is designed to help protect against jump/call-oriented programming (JOP/COP) attack methods and return-oriented programming (ROP) attack methods, malware known as memory safety issues and which comprise over half of ZDI-disclosed vulnerabilities. Visit www.intel.com/11thgenvproOpens a new window for details. Results may vary.
Performance varies by use, configuration and other factors. Learn more at www.Intel.com/PerformanceIndex​. Performance results are based on testing as of dates shown in configurations and may not reflect all publicly available ​updates. See backup for configuration details. No product or component can be absolutely secure.
Some results may have been estimated or simulated. Intel contributes to the development of benchmarks by participating in, sponsoring, and/or contributing technical support to various benchmarking groups, including the BenchmarkXPRT Development Community administered by Principled Technologies. Your costs and results may vary. Intel technologies may require enabled hardware, software or service activation. Intel does not control or audit third-party data. You should consult other sources to evaluate accuracy.
All product plans and roadmaps are subject to change without notice. Statements in this document that refer to future plans or expectations are forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations and involve many risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. For more information on the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, see our most recent earnings release and SEC filings at www.intc.comOpens a new window .
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