Companies are increasingly relying on Managed Service Providers (MSPs) to handle and optimize complex mobile and IT lifecycle management. Today, in an attempt to reduce costs and improve efficiency, 67% of organizations outsource their mobile device management to MSPs.
Moreover, 82% of businesses consider MSPs to be essential partners in managing the complexities of mobile technology and ensuring smooth operations. However, the nature of lifecycle management and mobility is changing: it increasingly demands sophisticated integration and enhanced visibility into device and infrastructure management. Moreover, the role of MSPs is also evolving, with businesses looking to them not only for operational support but as partners who can optimally guide them through the complexities of IT transformations.
As the scope of IT lifecycle management expands, MSPs are now tasked with overseeing a broader range of IT assets — making sophisticated solutions like ZTM increasingly relied upon for comprehensive management.
To streamline deployment, improve visibility, enhance security, and for other benefits, MSPs are adopting Zero Touch Management (ZTM) models and systems that empower them to proficiently manage and scale mobile device operations.
ZTM for MSPs: 7 Key Benefits
ZTM equips Managed Service Providers with the tools necessary to tackle the complex demands of modern mobile device management. Here are seven of the ways that MSPs benefit.
1. Streamlined Deployment and Management
ZTM automates the entire deployment and management process of mobile devices, from initial setup to regular maintenance.
By integrating with ServiceNow, ZTM enables MSPs to seamlessly execute bulk configurations and updates across a wide range of devices. This reduces the need for manual intervention, minimizes errors, and accelerates deployment timelines. The automation also extends to policy enforcement, ensuring all devices comply with company and security standards without the need for continuous manual oversight and the associated consumption of resources.
2. Improved Visibility and Collaboration
ZTM addresses a core challenge in mobility lifecycle management: improving asset visibility. With its comprehensive dashboard, MSPs can mitigate common client complaints by tracking real-time statuses of devices, significantly reducing the volume of support tickets.
Moreover, with ZTM, MSPs gain a comprehensive dashboard that provides an overview of all mobile assets, including device status, location, and performance metrics.
This unified view enhances visibility, allowing MSPs to proficiently monitor and manage devices and respond quickly to any issues that arise. Enhanced collaboration is achieved through sharing real-time data across departments, which ensures all teams have access to current information. This integration fosters coordinated efforts and accelerates problem resolution.
3. Optimized Expenditure and Utilization
ZTM offers tools for detailed tracking and management of costs associated with mobile devices, including procurement, service plans, and carrier contracts.
By automating these processes, MSPs can achieve optimal cost efficiency, negotiating better terms based on accurate usage and needs data provided by ZTM. Additionally, the platform's capability to monitor device usage and performance helps MSPs recommend and implement right-sized solutions for their clients, preventing overspending and enhancing device utilization rates.
4. Enhanced Security and Compliance
ZTM supports robust security protocols and compliance management by automating the enforcement of security policies across all managed devices.
It regularly updates security settings and configurations in response to new threats, ensuring all devices adhere to the latest security standards. Moreover, compliance tracking features help MSPs maintain records of these actions, making it easier to demonstrate compliance with various regulatory requirements during audits — thereby reducing the risk of non-compliance penalties.
5. Efficient Onboarding Process
ZTM simplifies the onboarding of new devices into an organization’s ecosystem.
Through its integration with ServiceNow, Samsung ZTM automates the enrollment process, setting up devices with predefined security protocols, applications, and settings. This automation yields multiple benefits: it speeds up the onboarding process, ensures that each device is configured uniformly, and makes sure that processes meet both operational and security standards right from the start. This leads to a reduction in initial setup errors and quicker deployment to end-users.
Furthermore, ZTM’s automated onboarding features provide transparent, step-by-step updates during the onboarding process. This not only accelerates setup but also enhances client satisfaction by showing them real-time progress from provisioning to deployment.
6. Strategic Positioning for Digital Transformation
Adopting ZTM positions MSPs at the forefront of digital transformation in mobile device management.
By leveraging ZTM’s advanced features, MSPs can offer cutting-edge, scalable solutions that are adaptable to the evolving needs of the market. This helps MSPs attract new clients and retain existing ones by demonstrating their capability to manage modern mobile ecosystems effectively and innovatively — particularly given the increasing need for MSPs to advise on IT and infrastructure strategies rather than only responding to issues as they arise.
7. ServiceNow Ecosystem and Stability
ZTM's integration with the ServiceNow platform brings stability and enhances the capabilities of MSPs by providing a reliable, scalable framework to manage mobile devices.
This ecosystem allows for the use of ServiceNow's extensive features, including its powerful workflow automation, inventory tracking, and incident management capabilities. It ensures that MSPs can offer consistent, dependable service delivery.
Exploring the Core Functions of Samsung SDS's ZTM
The device management landscape is changing. Mobile devices are increasingly serving as sensors, facilitating dynamic data collection, enhancing safety, and supporting various other use cases. MSPs must adapt by developing offerings and services that cater to these emerging needs. This shift requires MSPs to innovate and expand their capabilities to manage and integrate these sophisticated mobile functionalities effectively.
Samsung SDS Zero Touch Mobility provides a suite of functionalities that respond to changing trends and demands in the MSP sector, particularly addressing the convergence of mobility and IT management.
Zero Touch Deployment
Samsung ZTM enables MSPs to deploy devices directly to end-users without manual setup. This zero touch provisioning feature automates the initial setup and provisioning of devices, reducing deployment times and minimizing the need for manual intervention during device rollout.
Moreover, Zero Touch Deployment within ZTM aligns with the industry shift from BYOD to corporate-owned mobile devices — empowering MSPs to centrally manage device policies and security measures while ensuring compliance and consistency across the entire device fleet.
Automated Lifecycle Management
ZTM’s automated lifecycle management is designed to streamline the complex processes involved from procurement to retirement of mobile devices. This automation supports MSPs in their evolving role as strategic consultants, enabling proactive management of IT and infrastructure.
It streamlines the integration of sourcing, fulfillment, and financial/asset management systems — aiding MSPs as they address complex requirements such as dynamic data collection and sensor-based device usage.
Unified Dashboard and Analytics
The unified dashboard feature in ZTM offers real-time visibility into all managed devices. This comprehensive view aids in dynamic integration with customer systems, allowing MSPs to offer better-informed recommendations and prompt responses to client queries.
The unified dashboard also enables dynamic integration into customer systems, facilitating enhanced enterprise catalog management. This allows MSPs to offer their clients a singular, comprehensive view of the service lifecycle, from order initiation through fulfillment.
Custom Workflow Creation
Using ZTM's custom workflow creation capabilities, MSPs can design and implement specialized mobility management processes using low-code/no-code options within ServiceNow. This adaptability meets the growing need for MSPs to offer tailored solutions that respond to specific business requirements, matching the market trend towards more personalized and integrated IT management solutions.
Security and Compliance Features
As regulatory demands increase and the security landscape grows more complex, ZTM offers features such as remote lock and wipe, secure enrollment, and continuous compliance monitoring. These features ensure that MSPs can uphold stringent security standards across all devices, managing the increasing risks associated with a broader array of mobile and IT assets.
Cross-platform Support
ZTM ensures compatibility with multiple mobile operating systems, including Android and iOS — enabling Managed Service Providers (MSPs) to handle a mixed environment of devices without compatibility issues.
ZTM's cross-platform capabilities extend to integrating with various Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) and Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) systems. This means that MSPs can apply uniform security policies and management protocols across different device types and brands within the same infrastructure.
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) and Corporate Owned Device Measures
While BYOD systems dominated corporate device management in recent years, companies are increasingly adopting corporate owned devices. Whichever a business chooses, Samsung ZTM positions MSPs to effectively manage both approaches. Samsung ZTM facilitates this transition and operation by providing robust management tools that adapt to either BYOD or corporate-owned device policies.
Specifically, it ensures seamless integration and management by allowing MSPs to tailor security and operational policies according to the nature of the device ownership. For BYOD, ZTM focuses on balancing employee privacy with the need for corporate security, implementing features such as secure authentication and selective wipe, which removes corporate data without affecting personal information.
For corporate-owned devices, ZTM supports more comprehensive control measures, enabling full device management. This includes deeper monitoring and restrictions, ensuring uniform compliance and security across all devices.
Samsung SDS: Next-Generation IT Infrastructure Management for MSPs
MSPs commonly face the following nine challenges. Here’s how Samsung ZTM works to address them.
1. Supporting customers throughout the entire mobile lifecycle: Samsung ZTM provides a comprehensive, end-to-end lifecycle management solution that automates and simplifies every stage of the mobile device lifecycle — from ordering and deployment to ongoing support and repair, within a unified ServiceNow platform.
2. Integrating sourcing, fulfillment, and financial/asset management systems: ZTM seamlessly integrates with existing Enterprise Enrollment Platforms (EEPs) and logistics systems, ensuring that sourcing and fulfillment processes are efficiently managed. Its integration capabilities extend to financial and asset management systems, streamlining asset tracking and cost management.
3. Integrating diverse systems and platforms: With its native integration capabilities, ZTM bridges various systems and platforms, including EMM/UEM, logistics, and mobile analytics — ensuring cohesive operations and data consistency across the ServiceNow environment.
4. Managing vendor relationships: ZTM facilitates enhanced vendor management by centralizing control and visibility of all vendor interactions within ServiceNow, allowing MSPs to efficiently manage vendor relationships and performance.
5. Ensuring regulatory compliance: By automating compliance tasks such as device security settings and data handling, ZTM helps MSPs ensure that all mobile devices are compliant with current regulations and standards, reducing compliance risks.
6. Optimizing service plans and negotiating carrier contracts: ZTM integrates with carriers to manage service plans and connectivity, enabling MSPs to optimize service plans and automate the negotiation of carrier contracts directly within the platform.
7. Controlling costs while delivering consistent and reliable services: Samsung ZTM reduces operational costs through automation, minimizing manual tasks and streamlining workflows. This results in consistent and reliable service delivery at a lower cost.
8. Adapting to the dynamic demands of the mobile landscape: ZTM's flexible architecture and its integration with ServiceNow enable MSPs to quickly adapt to changes in the mobile landscape, efficiently managing any shifts in device management demands or technology updates.
9. Limited global distribution reach: Through its integrated logistics capabilities, Samsung ZTM extends MSPs’ distribution reach globally, managing the complex logistics involved in mobile device distribution and ensuring timely MDM.
Samsung SDS's Zero Touch Mobility offers Managed Service Providers a comprehensive suite of tools for optimally managing the lifecycle of mobile devices. As businesses increasingly rely on digital solutions, ZTM provides a streamlined approach to mobile and IT infrastructure management.
It propels MSPs beyond the limitations of isolated, standalone environments by fostering an integrated approach that enhances the management of mobile devices across various platforms and systems. On the cost savings front: ZTM significantly reduces operational costs by eliminating the need for physical, swivel chair interaction with devices. This automation of forward and reverse logistics streamlines order fulfillment while also diminishing the hidden costs associated with manual handling of devices.
These efficiencies in managing services help MSPs to remove clunky, outdated systems, further driving cost savings and improving service delivery.
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