Over the years, the Internet of Things (IoT) has become more than just a buzzword, as now it seems that most people have at least one internet-connected device in their home. From smart thermostats to smart cars, consumers are using these connected devices to transform how they live. But how can IoT transform the way that people work?
Recently, Microsoft, aware of the impact and role IoT will play in any organization’s digital transformation strategy, announced that it will invest $5 billion in IoT. As referenced in the aforementioned article, by 2020, IoT is predicted to lead to a $1.9 trillion productivity increase and $177 billion in reduced costs.
Throughout my years at Citrix, customers I’ve spoken with have always talked about the value that our solutions bring to their businesses — value — not only just in terms of their bottom lines, but also in the benefits we’ve brought for their end-users. We’ve allowed them to be able to work from anywhere, on their choice of device. But how can we bring even more value to customers, specifically automating workflows whenever and wherever possible?
If you’re a long-time reader of the Citrix blogs, you may have caught glimpses of some of the work that we’ve been doing in regard to The Future of Work with the Citrix Ready workspace hub and how it relates to IoT. While the Citrix Ready workspace hub is still in tech preview, we are excited to announce that the Citrix Ready workspace hub is now Microsoft Azure Certified for IoT. What that means is that you know the workspace hub is Azure Certified for IoT — at launch. Azure Certified for IoT is a program to help customers ensure that their devices of choice have been tested to work with Azure IoT technology.
How do the Citrix Ready workspace hub and Azure IoT fit into an organization’s digital transformation strategies? Let’s take a look at a very relatable scenario for many of you: meetings. Meetings are often seen as time-wasters, getting in the way of the work that we already have on our plates; however, they’re still necessary. Traditionally, I’d walk into a conference room, start an online meeting application, dial into the conference room’s phone, and plug my laptop to an HDMI cable (that’s if I’m in a meeting room with an HDMI cable, if not, I have to go grab a dongle) to project on the big screen in the room. Now, while all of this may sound trivial, I’ve wasted a lot of time. Those are minutes spent away from the meeting just setting myself up to conduct it.
With a workspace hub and Azure Logic Apps, all of that can all be automated. I can review the my presentation slides within my Citrix session, on a tablet device on my way to the conference room. Once I walk in, Citrix Casting allows me to cast my Citrix session to the Citrix workspace hub connected to the room’s big screen. My online meeting software kicks off automatically and calls the conference room phone. The meeting is underway. At the end of the meeting, I simply pull my session from the workspace hub back to my tablet, and the online meeting software automatically uploads the recording of the meeting to a ShareFile folder. It’s a seamless, automated meeting experience. This is just one example of how the workspace hub and automating workflows can impact employee productivity. You can read more about how to enable workflow automation with Microsoft Logic Apps from this blog post by my colleague, Rachelle Tobkes.
Be sure to periodically check out the Citrix Blogs for more Citrix Ready workspace hub news. If you’re attending Citrix Synergy 2018, be sure to register for “Discover Citrix Workspace Hub,” breakout session on May 9th, 11:30am PDT to get more details and a hands-on experience of the Citrix workspace hub.
