INTHEBLACK April 2022 - Magazine - Page 70
WORK SMART
// T E C H TA L K
TOOLS TO KEEP
HYBRID WORKERS
ENGAGED
Below: With
Workspace 365,
employees can tailor
a digital hub with easy
access to Microsoft
365 and other apps,
along with commonly
used files and data.
STORY GLENN REES
THE PR ESSUR E IS O N
O RGAN ISATION S TO
CONT I N UE TO IMPROVE
THEIR D IGITAL
I NF RASTRUCTUR E F O R
REMOTE STAFF AND
“HY BR ID” WOR K ERS,
WITH THE LATTER
SP LIT TIN G THEIR
WORKIN G WEEK
BET WEEN HOM E
AND THE OFFIC E.
E
mployee engagement can be challenging
even in a physical workplace, but in a
hybrid setting, it involves adopting a
strategy that the International Data
Corporation (IDC) calls “technical parity” (see
INTHEBLACK March 2021).
The IDC defines this as ensuring “all workers
have secure access to the resources required
to do their jobs no matter their preferred
device or if they are local, remote, in the field,
or switching between locations”.
According to Holly Muscolino, research vice
president at the IDC, “parity must go beyond
access and provide experience parity –
meaning that all workers should have the
same, consistent experience” no matter
where they are.
For employers, that lifts the bar
considerably from simply giving employees
remote access to the apps and data they
need.
VIRTUAL DESKTOPS
This is why, for many organisations, the
emphasis has shifted from physical to digital
70 ITB April 2022
workspaces. Traditional digital workspaces
include virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI)
and Desktop as a Service (DaaS) solutions,
such as Amazon WorkSpaces, Microsoft’s
Azure Virtual Desktop, Citrix Virtual Apps and
Desktops and VMware Horizon.
These solutions are essentially “virtual
computers” that IT teams create and manage
for employees. They allow people to securely
access the same operating system, desktop
configuration and applications from any
compatible device, anywhere.
DIGITAL WORKSPACES AND
WORKPLACES
These days, however, digital workspaces or
workplaces cover a broader range of
platforms that take differing approaches to
improving the working lives of remote and
hybrid workers.
For example, Jostle is an intranet platform
that offers a company news feed, document
library and extra features such as integrations
with third-party apps. By connecting with the
likes of Okta, Slack and Google Workspace,
for instance, it integrates single sign-on (SSO)
to multiple apps offering easy access to
collaboration and productivity tools within
Jostle’s digital workspace.
Similarly, Workspace 365 creates a digital
workspace with SSO access to Microsoft 365
and other apps and files.
Salesforce has applied its customer
experience software to workforce solutions,
including Employee Workspace – a digital
hub for employees to quickly access the apps
and resources they need to work from
anywhere.
Meanwhile, Kissflow’s Digital Workplace
builds on its business process management
platform, offering collaboration and project
management apps, as well as forms and
workflow automation tools.
If your team already extensively uses a
particular app, consider if it can be extended
to create a digital workspace.
Slack, for example, offers many integrations
that allow you to share Dropbox files,
collaborate on Asana projects and more, all
from within a team channel.