Why your enterprise can’t afford to delay a PC refresh

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Companies have adjusted to the hybrid workplace — and now’s the time to refresh your business’s PC fleet with a new generation of devices that have been designed for the modern way of working. Not doing so will leave your workers with outdated and underperforming devices that leave them susceptible to major cyber-attacks.

Updating to new PCs specifically designed for today’s hybrid worker can prove to be the strategic initiative that:

• Accelerates multiple business goals.
• Bolsters an organization’s defenses against cyber threats.
• Empowers hybrid work
• Creates a great employee experience.

By providing employees up-to-date technology, companies are giving employees the processing power and modern capabilities required to deliver top security and productivity, according to the white paper.

Here are the reasons why your organization must prioritize a PC refresh:

Productivity and security go hand in hand

“When it comes to how up-to-date technology benefits employees in ways older technology can’t, productivity and security go hand in hand,” according to Harvard Business Review Analytic Services.

Productivity requires devices that have the processing power and features to enable employees to get work done. Older devices that have the tendency to break down or operate slowly more often stymie the end user instead of supporting them. Additionally, security requires devices that protect workers from current and emerging cyber threats, whether they are working within or outside the corporate firewall. “In both cases, new computers offer options that outdated ones lack,” according to HBR Analytic Services.

In fact, nearly 90% of security decision-makers say that outdated hardware leaves organizations more exposed.1 Providing workers with older computers that have outdated security capabilities can result in huge financial ramifications on an organization — in 2022, the average cost of a data breach in the United States was $9.44 million.²

According to HBR Analytic Services, new PC devices can:

• Keep more-robust security features on by default.
• Scan for threats in the background while employees work, keeping both security and productivity high.

Newer computers boast upgraded hardware-based and software-based security features designed to protect against attacks that older devices would otherwise struggle with.

Devices that power remote collaboration

Since the onset of the pandemic, remote collaboration became both the new normal and a key aspect for productivity. When companies first made the shift to remote work almost overnight, many employees found themselves working on laptops that were not powerful enough to handle streaming video and audio along with other online collaboration tools.

“A lot of the devices that went home with people or were pushed into that environment weren’t really built with those workloads in mind,” says Aaron Woodman, vice president of Windows marketing, Microsoft. Even after several years of remote work, many employees may still be using machines “with specifications that don’t meet the minimum requirements of videoconferencing tools,” according to the white paper.

A PC refresh will give workers new devices with longer-lasting batteries and powerful processors to simultaneously run virtual meetings with multiple apps and better software designed to boost security against cyber threats. This includes Windows 11, which was “built on zero-trust principles for the new era of hybrid work” by providing advanced protection from chip to cloud.2 Updating to Windows 11 has higher system requirements than before, and chances are, older devices may lack the processing power needed.

PC refreshes also help vastly improve the employee experience, according to HBR Analytic Services. “If people have the latest and greatest devices, it just helps them be happy,” says Sankha Nagchoudhury, senior vice president of digital technology operations at Santa Clara, California– based cloud software provider ServiceNow.

Don’t delay PC refresh to focus resources elsewhere

Delaying a PC refresh may seem like an easy way to cut costs. But that could have negative long-term effects, according to the report. If an organization delays a PC refresh now, it won’t be long before employees are stuck with devices that are five years old, which can have serious security and performance implications.

While measuring the ROI of a PC refresh is “risky,” the report argues that measurements should be focused more on the productivity benefits of an upgrade. “It’s more about the new tools and capabilities that you’re putting in the hands of your people,” says Frank Ford, head of global cybersecurity at Bain & Co.

Refresh your business PCs with Intel vPro®

Devices built on the Intel vPro® platform have the performance for all-day multitasking, best-in-class hardware-based security, advanced manageability tools and a rigorous stability program. Intel vPro is the go-to computing foundation for businesses of all sizes.

Equipping employees with new PCs built on Intel vPro will help ensure that your organization won’t become the next big security case study — and your employees will become happier, safer and more productive.