This is quite surprising, considering that it’s been a while since the widespread adoption of hybrid models.

HP’s engagements with Chief Innovation Officers (CIOs) and Information Technology (IT) teams have revealed the complexities associated with the installation and administration of IT infrastructure.

This complication has necessitated the call for ‘Workforce Solutions’ offerings including Device as a Service (DaaS), Software as a Service (SaaS), and Customer Support into an integrated, flexible plan the end-user can subscribe to.

Many of the challenges of hybrid work can be eased with such flexible offerings by allowing economies of scale, and restructuring operations to deepen employee experiences.

This signifies a remarkable prospect for the tech industry – and one of the decade’s most significant business challenges, when combined.

Workforce Experience takes the Lead

In Nigeria today, businesses are now entrenching sustainable ‘Employee Experience’ (EX) strategies by deepening diversity, culture re-evaluation, and inclusive reward mechanisms that drive ‘Customer Experience’ (CX). That’s the differentiator in a contemporary market.

Today, an international partnership with HP covers over 90% of global wireless and 5G services provider Ericsson’s devices, traversing some 130,000 end-users in 140 countries.

Staff can now choose from several laptops available that offer various solutions that empower them to complete their workload. The devices are prepared and shipped either to their homes or offices.

All the end-user has to do is provide their email, complete the multifactor authentication, and in 10 minutes, they are good to go, thus reducing device installation time by a whopping 400%.

With the international nature of Ericsson’s business, it is vital that employees can work securely regardless of location.

Products like the latest HP EliteBook models, armed with 5G capabilities and military-type encryption, guarantee Client Services staff has full control of the device stack, from the application and OS level to the BIOS and hardware.

Great device functionality linked with cloud-based applications have lowered longer boot times to between 30 to 40 seconds, from 120 seconds, while ever-ready 5G connectivity eases cloud management and ensures rapid updates and service provisioning.

And where necessary, Break/Fix agreement implies employee uptime is secured with devices basically swapped for new replacements.

Altogether, this promotes a flexible, ultra-modern workplace setting for staff, and we all know that a cheerful, industrious workforce is a CIO’s delight.

Shedding IT and Procurement Teams’ Workload

Now, to be candid, while Workforce Solutions is a blend of vital services for simplicity and suitability, this model isn’t a one size fits all remedy.

Workforce Solutions must be flexible, considering that organizations are at different phases of development and digi-tech evolution.

A significant advantage is scalability (either up or down), sanctioning businesses to change devices and software whilst reacting to modifications in growth and approach.

Without doubt, IT units of firms stand to gain from an integrated partnership framework which processes all telemetry and data across their device networking systems.

Consequently, the CIO’s schedule is positively impacted with this unified structure that aids IT teams’ concentration on higher impact initiatives, such as enabling centralization of routine monitoring and maintenance. For instance, HP TechPulse, is a cloud-based arrangement that aggregates functional data from devices and applications, using predictive analytics and automation for practical resolution of device issues.

As such, the Workforce Solutions model provides clients clarity and serenity by pruning down organization running costs.

Advancing Sustainability through Lifecycle Management

Workforce Solutions presents an auspicious opportunity for institutions looking to reduce their environmental impact by preserving device lifespan, improving resource optimization, and offering all-inclusive collection and recycling programs.

Presently, HP Partners Nigeria, an arm of HP’s business, offers a wide range of products and services – from hardware and software solutions to consulting and support services to help businesses and individuals stay productive and efficient.

Additionally, many HP partners in Nigeria have service centers where you can bring your equipment for repairs or maintenance, rather than throwing them away.

Similarly, HP consummated an agreement with BBVA, a Spanish multinational financial service provider, to supply over 5,000 devices at its headquarters.

The partnership comprises support, configuration, delivery, maintenance, and replacement services. Thus, enabling the beneficiary to cut fleet energy consumption by 32%, adopt more circular practices, and optimize productivity.

To make the needed paradigm shift from an office-centric model to a hybrid-by-design approach, it is fundamental to note that investing in a sustainable and inspiring office environment is a given. Thereafter, Workforce Solutions models can ease this transition by synchronizing all devices and systems that staff need to operate efficiently.

In today’s landscape, it’s hard to come across an organization that doesn’t experience positive outcomes from embracing Workforce Solutions.

With this model, CIOs and IT units can prioritize their core objectives and structure their schedule, while partners can acquire the needed tools and data for building better and more lasting customer relationships. The same way, employees get better equipment that works seamlessly, enhancing productivity with sustainable engagement.

Sustainability has become a focus area for many businesses across Africa. While it is ostensibly a business function, sustainability must be a high-level agenda item for CIOs as well. Given the importance that ESG (environmental, social, governance) reporting has for organisations, there is a significant push for companies to become more socially responsible than at any time in the past.

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Certainly, it has become a popular tactic to appoint a chief sustainability officer to take responsibility for this function.

But given how integrated technology has evolved in all aspects of the organisation, CIO s must spearhead the change for organisations to become more sustainable.

According to various surveys, data centres account for more than 2% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. To put this into context, this is about the same as the global aviation industry. Furthermore, the ICT sector is responsible for up to 9% of the world’s electricity use, according to the EU.

Given how Africa has embraced the digitisation of many aspects of the corporate world, the reliance on data centres will only increase.

There is also the explosion of 5G and the increased generation of high-definition video content (soon, 16k resolution will become widely accepted) to consider.

The past two years have pushed businesses in Africa and the rest of the world to normalise video conferencing and hybrid work models.

In their personal lives, people stream high-definition content, and mobile apps continue to grow in usage. The result is that data consumption will increase at an unheard-of scale.

Becoming environmentally friendly

The good news is that technological innovation is resulting in the development of more environmentally friendly data centres, servers, mobile devices, storage, and networking. In fact, there is a concerted move to ensure every aspect of ICT becomes more sustainable.

In cool climates with neither too dry nor too moist air, free-air cooling is perfect for reducing data centre heat. Increasingly, data centres use renewable energy sources such as hydro, solar, and wind power to power their operations.

All this has contributed to a global push to have data centres reach net-zero emissions by 2030. For its part, Africa is following suit with more countries focusing on adopting renewable energy sources and finding alternative ways to traditional diesel-powered generators and an over-reliance on electricity infrastructure that is no longer maintained effectively.

There is also a trend towards greener equipment. The development of hardware today often follows the circular economy and cradle-to-cradle principles. This involves reusing and recycling recycled materials. The use of microorganisms (called bioleaching) is also showing promise for mining precious metals.

The existence of badge programs such as Energy Star has made it much easier to choose tools in good conscience. Additionally, engineers are constantly working on smarter, more efficient processes and hardware to reduce their carbon footprint.

Force for good

More practically, the automation that comes from the availability of advanced technologies can help reduce energy usage throughout the value chain. Optimised processes mean users can get more done faster.

You can think of virtual goods such as digital streaming services and music downloads as replacing physical goods such as DVDs, CDs, and books.

Think about how smart manufacturing creates more efficient products and fabrication or how smart cities lead to significant efficiencies in transportation, waste collection, and digitised services. For instance, Zoom and Microsoft Teams calls are replacing international business travel.

Even in Africa, there is a concerted push to adopt Internet of Things technologies and use sensor data to improve government services to citizens.

In addition, digital platforms and tools are the raw materials that will be used to build smarter options in the near future.

Digital efforts offer us much of the opportunity to clean up our world and renew it. In addition to making their organisations greener with ICT, CIO s can also become more cost-effective by utilising ICT effectively. Sustainability is a win-win all-around, especially across Africa, where countries are looking for more innovative ways to overcome traditional infrastructure challenges.

Making the change

However, sustainability is not just a tick-box exercise. Companies can also not solely rely on hypervisors to build net-zero data centres.

This is where the CIO plays a crucial role by enabling their organisations to move to the cloud. Even SMBs can access highly efficient resources in the cloud. These resources used to be only available to big-budget companies.

Today, high-performance computing capabilities are more affordable to small companies. They can even use the likes of artificial intelligence, robotic process automation, and machine learning to improve systems. Aside from advanced virtualisation and containers, there are also advanced technologies and skills required to maximise energy efficiency.

Cloud adoption is accelerating just as data centre design is evolving and as networks become smarter and utility-like. With the advent of the new computing grid, businesses will be able to tap into greater value and efficiency without sacrificing ethics. However, sustainability must be seen from a broader perspective.

For instance, to source components, CIO s should examine the supply chains and backgrounds of suppliers. From an organisational perspective, decision-makers can turn the spotlight inwards and look at revising policies around business travel, choice of company cars, and carbon offsetting.

These are not things that will be solved overnight. There are still many challenges to overcome. Sustainability credentials, however, will enable companies to attract and inspire the latest generations of talented people who expect employers to provide more than just a salary.