Endpoint Management | System Administration

Manage end devices centrally: The key to effective change management

24. January 2024, Avatar of Stefan TitzeStefan Titze

Change management is an important aspect of corporate operations that regularly affects IT specialists. Change requires a coordinated approach from all stakeholders including employees, the IT department and management. Unified Endpoint Management can provide vital support.

In short

  • Change management requires IT specialists to implement technical and process changes, a task made more efficient with Unified Endpoint Management (UEM).
  • UEM makes it possible to centrally implement early adopter programs for new software, new cybersecurity procedures, and make other important endpoint changes in the background.

IT specialists are often faced with the challenge of implementing corporate operational and procedural changes. This often affects technology as well as work processes throughout the organization. Changes may entail enormous work in addition to regular day-to-day work especially when an increasing number and variety of end devices are involved. However, if end devices can be managed and changes made centrally using a Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) solution then the added workload can be handled much more efficiently and consistently.

Change is often difficult

For changes to be completed smoothly and successfully, all stakeholders need to be actively involved – that means all employees in addition to the IT department and management. Introducing new technologies or systems is often a major challenge especially if they have an impact on the company’s culture. If employees find it difficult to adapt to new technologies, productivity suffers and implementation of needed changes may be delayed.

In a previous article I discussed how UEM can be used to adapt the entire IT landscape to new circumstances and challenges within a very short space of time, such as during mergers and acquisitions. It is no problem for IT teams to replace existing applications with new ones literally overnight. But is this always effective? Certainly not!

It is far better to train the various departments how to use of new programs and applications. This should also cover deeper layers, such as entries during booting (e.g. BitLocker) or general updates to the operating system. As soon as all affected employees have completed the training, the changeover can take place immediately and automatically.

Fast or slow – UEM can do both at the same time

A particular advantage of a UEM solution is that it enables new systems and technologies to be rolled out quickly and uniformly to all or selected devices based on requirements. In practice, this saves the IT department time and makes the changeover more efficient. Employees also do not have to wait for their devices to be manually updated or configured.

UEM also makes it easy to involve employees in an early adopter program. The IT team can offer interested end users the chance to test the latest project management or collaboration software in advance. This key user group can be created as a device group within a UEM solution and managed uniformly.

No compromises on safety

Another advantage is that preparatory work can be done in the background. For example, the IT department can bring all devices up to the latest security standards. When companies or departments are merged, there are often different guidelines and versions of security software in use such as password requirements, network access controls or security protocols for mobile devices. IT specialists can merge these regulations quickly and in a controlled manner and roll them out uniformly across the company.

Efficiency and control: the advantages of UEM at a glance

Implementing Unified Endpoint Management opens up a wide range of benefits for change management processes. This holistic approach enables more efficient and smoother management within a changing IT infrastructure.

Here is an overview of the benefits:

  • With UEM it is very easy to merge two IT worlds.
  • UEM enables IT teams to proceed flexibly to accommodate individual preferences and requirements.
  • UEM ensures that companies do not have to make any compromises in terms of security.
  • UEM ensures that employees can integrate changed processes more easily into their day-to-day work.

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