This content was prepared by PB Tech and is being published by NZME as advertorial.
When Emerge Aotearoa – a national charitable trust – wanted to support their employees’ work-from-home IT needs at the peak of Covid-19, it turned to PB Tech.
The problem was that Emerge needed its employees to be able to work effectively from home during the lockdowns, but their existing methods were only suited to in-office device deployment and management.
Emerge Aotearoa provides a wide range of health and social services to strengthen whānau so communities thrive – including a wide range of recovery and rehabilitation services designed to empower people and support them to reach their full potential.
It also acts in accordance with Te Tiriti o Waitangi to better meet the needs of Māori and fulfil the requirements of other cultures. It also celebrates diversity and inclusivity and works in close partnership with people from all communities and walks of life.
They engaged PB Tech to solve the issue and were recommended Microsoft Intune and Autopilot as a solution. The latter allows the registration of devices in Intune when you use it to buy new hardware.
For example, staff can unbox their new laptop, log into their Microsoft account, and have a fully set-up device. Intune syncs with Autopilot and provides updates and configurations to the devices.
“It allowed us to provision and deploy new computers quickly and easily,” Emerge Aotearoa Infrastructure Analyst Brad Palmer says.
PB Tech’s familiarity with hybrid work and modern management enabled Emerge to implement best practices to support their scattered workforce. It saved time and cost because Windows Autopilot allows devices to be remotely configured and deployed without needing IT teams and end-users to be at the same physical location.
The majority of the process was handled by PB Tech and the remainder was automated by leveraging Microsoft systems. “Autopilot policies and profiles were set up to ensure devices were up-to-date and compliant,” said Palmer.
PB Tech Services Lead Tyler Coster knew the Intune/Autopilot solution would be particularly helpful for the IT team when staff members were working from home.
Fast-tracking the Microsoft Intune method allowed these traditional processes to be replaced, reducing the cost and complexity associated with managing and maintaining assets.
Since Microsoft Intune is a cloud-based solution, various devices can be managed within a single platform, aligning with Emerge’s technology roadmap.
Emerge has now leveraged these gains and further developed its capabilities as a hybrid organisation with advanced modern management capabilities.
Key results:
- Efficiency when rolling out large numbers of computers or devices.
- Ability to “white-glove” computers and send them directly to staff, bypassing the need for an IT staff member to set the computer up.
- Ability to more easily control and track computers through the Intune platform.
For more information: business.pbtech.co.nz/services/managed-services/order-to-desk