The tech attracting talent

People in a meeting room seen from above

The technology we use at work is central to our day-to-day lives, giving us access to the systems we need and allowing us to share the work we create. We need to be able to rely on it to support us quickly and seamlessly, so it stands to reason that offering the right technology is key for businesses to attract and retain talent in the modern workplace.

"The PCs a company deploys can directly impact the quality of a candidate they can hire," reads an IDC White Paper commissioned by Intel*. "Increasingly, workers are making decisions about what jobs to take based upon the hardware employers have on offer."

The same paper found that 72% of enterprise IT decision-makers (ITDMs) see the right technology as vital to recruiting and retaining talent.

In a survey of Employee Experience (EX) exploring the KPIs which IT departments are tracking, 43% of respondents said that they had seen a "substantial positive impact" when it comes to the ability to attract the best talent, and 43% said they'd seen a "moderate positive impact."**

For Gen-Z, technology is a dealbreaker when considering new roles. Some 91% said access to cutting edge technology would influence their job choice among similar employment offers†. There is evidence that it can even impact whether employees are willing to recruit friends and family to their business. To make your business attractive to new employees, offering responsive and reliable technology that allows people to get on with their work without unnecessary interruption is a clear must.

A change of form

So, what are potential employees looking for in their PCs? To attract the best new workers, you need to be embracing new form factors, notably ultra-slim, convertible and detachable laptops – like those in the Intel vPro®, An Intel® Evo™ Design range – which "allow adaptability to the way workers are accessing, working with, and managing data", according to IDC's report.

The remote and hybrid working practices that have boomed in recent years have naturally increased the need for competitive businesses to invest in technology.

"People want the environment that's best for them," said Accenture's Technology Trends Report 2021††. "For some, that will mean going back to the office; for some it will mean going 100% remote, and still, others will want a mix. But regardless, this new approach is something businesses must accommodate rather than fight."

Likewise, potential new employees will judge your company based on the technology you can offer. Between an organization with an aging fleet of laptops and one with the newest hardware designed to support the demands of our new hybrid working models, the latter has a clear advantage.

A laptop on a desk

Remote working means switching to cloud-based platforms and more people logging in from the home environment, raising the bar on data security.

Security is a top priority for mid-market organizations (500-1000 employees), with 88% mentioning it as their top priority or a priority in a recent report by Forrester (2021) commissioned by Intel§. With security such an important issue, workers want to know that their machines are sufficiently protected – for the company's sake, and so that they don't find themselves implicated in any serious breaches.

Paying dividends: an investment in the future

Keeping staff happy is paramount in the wake of the so-called ‘Great Resignation’, and technology can significantly boost employee experience (EX).

Over three-quarters of full-time employees surveyed said PCs are critical in their engagement and daily work. In addition, they agreed that PC devices are critical for customer satisfaction (69%), revenue growth (62%), and employee retention (55%)**.

The report also found that technology has the most significant impact on EX of the KPIs employers currently track. Nearly 60% of IT decision makers have seen more than 10% improvement in their EX scores by focusing on improving employees' satisfaction with technology.

"IT decision-makers are recognizing that there is a straight line connecting good technology and good employee experiences," reads the report. "They are therefore investing in technology improvements across the board. This connection was brought further into focus with the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic."

Investing in EX reaps financial rewards. Businesses can see a 5x return on investing EX, while a 5% increase in employee engagement leads to a 3% increase in bottom-line revenue**.

Plus, by ensuring that EX is high, your company will be more attractive to new hires, as well as offering an environment where they will want to stay in the long term.

Meeting the demands of a hybrid workforce

In 2020, many companies lacked the 'digital foundation' to pivot to a remote working environment – one that's almost certainly here to stay under new hybrid working models.

To develop this foundation, organizations need to regularly refresh hardware to support their working practices.

A Intel vPro, An Intel Evo Design laptop balanced on its corner

Laptops on Intel vPro®, An Intel® Evo™ Design offer a range of features like lightning-fast responsiveness, smooth multitasking capabilities and powerful security measures to support users, and are also easy to manage for IT managers and organizations. By delivering reliable hardware that can be quickly and efficiently managed remotely when troubleshooting is needed – and also reliably supports now-essential activities like video conferencing – these newer devices can help support workers in their day-to-day activities and reduce downtime, ensuring that EX is maximized wherever they're based.

Boosting EX with Intel vPro, An Intel Evo Design

Intel vPro, An Intel Evo Design-based laptops can help to deliver better performance for employees, boosting their productivity and minimizing the frustrating delays caused when hardware cannot keep up with the demands of the user. Batteries charge faster and last longer, and there's more power, too. By enabling workers to feel more productive, you can ensure a better employee experience.

Customer feedback confirms that Intel vPro®, An Intel® Evo™ Design-based laptops are easier to manage, helping to insulate employees from many of the delays associated with hardware issues so that they can instead focus on what really matters – their work.

The bottom line is that when employees get the right tools and their PCs work well, they are more productive, happier and can work creatively and collaboratively.

Laptops on Intel vPro®, An Intel® Evo™ Design are tools designed for the modern workplace, helping to build and support the hybrid working environment modern employees expect. By giving your team these business-class laptops, you can help keep EX high and make your organization a more attractive prospect.

Learn more about Intel vPro, An Intel Evo Design and how it can benefit your business

Intel technologies may require enabled hardware, software or service activation. No product or component can be absolutely secure. Your costs and results may vary.

@Intel Corp. Intel, the Intel logo, Intel vPro®, Evo, and other Intel marks are trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries. Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.

Disclaimer

** Source, Forrester Research, Invest In Employee Experience (EX), Drive Your Bottom Line Growth, October 2020

Disclaimer

† Source, Dell, as cited by Elite Group

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