One of the first lessons in running a business is balancing costs and benefits when making decisions. This can be increasingly important in today’s fast-paced technology world where the many digital solutions seem like mission-critical necessities. As hosted virtual desktops have grown in popularity in recent years, particularly during the significant uptick in remote working environments due to the recent pandemic, organizations may be weighing costs and benefits of such systems moving forward.
While costs of creating an on-premises virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) system that resides in an internal data center can be staggering at the outset and significant to maintain, the costs of a hosted virtual desktop are much more predictable. Most solution providers negotiate cloud-based services as well as needed features unique to each customer and charge a predictable monthly subscription fee, which is typically lower than the internal infrastructure and resources required to manage similar services internally.
The benefits, however, are significant.
Improved accessibility and productivity
As companies pivoted to a remote or hybrid work model in reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, one of the main concerns at the time for business owners was an anticipated loss of employee productivity due to decreased access to company systems. Several studies over the past few months show productivity while working remotely from home is better than working in an office setting. On average, those who work from home spend 10 minutes less a day being unproductive, work one more day a week, and are 47% more productive.
A key component of keeping employees productive is ensuring that company systems are up and running and accessible from any device and at any time. Since hosted virtual desktops reside centrally in the cloud, all the maintenance, upgrades and applications can be managed more easily and reliably.
At the same time, employees, customers, or other stakeholders can access the areas necessary for their particular needs from a desktop, laptop, tablet, or smartphone, keeping them productive from the office, at home, or anywhere in between. Fewer hours are lost during commute or travel time; work can be more easily completed on the road. Cloud-based solutions allow better collaboration and teamwork virtually, helping everyone stay in touch and productive from any location.
Lower capital investment and operating costs
Maintaining and upgrading the massive infrastructure that’s typically required in an internal VDI can be significant and ongoing. All these costs are shifted to a third-party solution provider when companies move to a hosted virtual desktop. Since providing this service is their core business, solution providers are motivated to stay on the cutting edge of technological and hardware developments as well as keep on top of licensing fees, which are then passed onto customers for a reasonable and predictable monthly subscription fee.
In addition, companies no longer need to dedicate space, electricity, or staff to virtual desktop upkeep; all those daily operating costs are absorbed and handled by the solution provider.
Increased agility and flexibility
For organizations that may have some fluctuating staffing needs, a hosted virtual desktop can make scaling up and down fast and simple. Instead of finding office space and equipment for temporary or seasonal employees, a virtual desktop system allows a company to essentially grant needed access and permission to new employees who can login from any location on any device. When the contract or temporary work is completed, all access is immediately revoked, keeping the centralized system more secure. No unused equipment or systems sit around, wasting resources. Companies pay for only the services they need with a hosted system. This agility also reduces the resources required to staff up or down for peak periods.
Better security
One look at business news clearly illustrates that cybercrime is on the rise. As cybersecurity becomes a top priority for more and more businesses, the question of protecting not only a company’s infrastructure but also its data arises. Hosted virtual desktops are a proven way to address those security issues as they build in high-level security features, backup protocols, and redundancy to keep breaches from happening in the first place as well as make recoveries faster and more reliable. Many solution providers offer tiered security plans, allowing customers to choose the level of service that fits their unique needs.
More reliable performance
Keeping infrastructure up and running 24/7 can be a significant challenge, but for hosted virtual desktop providers, this is a top priority to serve their customers. As a result, industry statistics report that solution providers typically reach 99.99 percent uptime levels due to high-quality infrastructure and dedicated support resources. In addition, many have data centers spread out geographically, addressing latency issues from end users. All of these performance factors reduce frustration for employees, customers, or stakeholders, and keep them productive from wherever they are working, at any time of the day or night.
Labor challenge solution
With The Great Resignation top of mind for many industries, hosted virtual desktops can help address this labor shortage on many fronts. IT professionals are in high demand and in short supply so using a hosted virtual desktop solution provider can mean that a company’s internal IT staff can focus on mission-critical IT issues without having to worry about the virtual desktop system.
In addition, having a reliable, productive, and secure virtual desktop infrastructure means that customer companies can expand their reach for new employees and top talent, even utilizing contract help as needed in a safe, secure, and productive manner.
Sustainability credit
By relying on hosted virtual desktops, a company reduces its requirements for not only new hardware, desktops, servers, and other equipment that no longer needs to be disposed of in a landfill someday, but also decreases its overall energy requirements. In addition, remote company employees decrease or eliminate commutes to the office. All these factors reduce a company’s use of limited natural resources, shrink its carbon footprint, and improve its overall sustainability efforts.
Reduced risk and improved business continuity
Because multiple locations and redundancy are built into hosted virtual desktops, customer companies automatically reduce risks for weather-related or unpredictable disruptions. The centralized nature of the system replaces the need for a secondary computing site, managed and maintained by the organization. Business continuity is more reliable and easier to manage.
Conclusion
Evolve IP partners with IT professionals to make the future of work better by seamlessly integrating their essential productivity tools into a single, secure solution, fine-tuned for the hybrid workforce. Contact us today to learn how we improve the user experience and increase uptime, while centralizing technology management.
