In 1965, Gordon Moore, co-founder of Intel, made the prophetic observation that computers would continue to get smaller and faster at an exponential rate. Known as “Moore’s Law,” this rule-of-thumb proved to be largely true and became a reliable maxim for nearly half a century.
Today, Moore’s Law has evolved—along with our complex relationship with computers. It’s no longer just about brute processing power, but also about adaptability. From artificial intelligence to wearable technology, we expect computers to not only be efficient but to make us better humans by amplifying our strengths and bridging our shortcomings. This is all great in theory, but for organizations looking to marry our expectations with the reality of the legacy technology they usually have on-site, undergoing a workplace transformation can feel daunting at best.
“One of the biggest ways in which businesses are achieving transformational change is by upgrading to the latest digital tools,” says Khidr Suleman, a technology journalist who works with Intel’s IT center. “Refreshing to mobile devices and cloud-based services, in particular, are key to increasing the productivity of employees and ultimately boosting business revenue.”
Today, technology and job satisfaction are closely linked. While technology can help a company attract the right people, it can also be the deciding factor for why a promising prospect will forego a job. In a Future of Workforce Study, for example, 42% of millennials said they would be willing to quit a job if the company’s technology wasn’t up to today’s standards. What exactly are those standards? They usually center around encouraging productivity so an employee can focus less on how they’re getting something done and more on the work itself: Gone are the days of employees simply making do with slow computers during a 9-5. As employees are expected to be available outside of traditional working hours, they in turn expect more from their company’s technology. Tech that stymies productivity will likely not keep employees satisfied in a job for long.
Despite all of this, however, the average company still loses more than 20% in employee productivity because of outdated equipment. Intel, the company that in 1968 set a new standard for computer memory, is working to change that by making it easier for IT departments to meet the new expectations employees have for workplace technology. The company’s new vPro technology focuses on faster multitasking (65% faster to be more exact) by automatically shifting power to where it’s needed most and is built specifically to boost productivity and support remote work. Ultimately, this one change in hardware could boost a company’s bottom line with hours gained in efficiency.
Once employees actually have devices in hand, the real work begins. In the early days of computing, security was an afterthought. Today, a single breach can result in millions in damages and lost revenue. With the average data breach costing a company $5.9 million, Intel makes it possible to enable two-factor authentication through biometrics and Bluetooth. That gives users of the 7th Gen Core vPro processor access to cutting-edge performance and gives IT the means to protect data as more employees work remotely.
Just as Moore’s Law set the path for the first wave in computing, vPro technologies look to set a course for the next 50 years in the future of work. The new force is flexibility, and easily managed technology built with multitasking and security at its core gives businesses the room to grow exponentially.
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This article was produced on behalf of Intel by Quartz Creative and not by the Quartz editorial staff.