Sprint is growing its device management portfolio for businesses with two new editions from VMware. The company is now offering VMware Workspace ONE and AirWatch Express solutions to customers to help companies manage and secure devices and apps.
Sprint has a long relationship with AirWatch, which was acquired by VMware in 2014, according to Jan Short, product marketing manager at Sprint Business Mobility & Security Solutions. Short said that Sprint is both a user and reseller of AirWatch. “We use it in our retail stores, which lets our store teams be mobilized to move around the store and we manage, keep track of and secure the data for the devices,” Short told FierceWireless in an email.
Workspace ONE is a device management platform that enables customers to access employee apps across all device platforms. It offers management of all device types including mobile, desktop, rugged, IoT, wearables and peripherals; provides centralized IT management from a single console with multitenancy for large distributed organizations; and offers single sign-on features across apps and devices.
“Our biggest differentiator is that we a deliver a full digital workspace solution in one platform, [with] no need for multiple point solutions,” Short said. “Because of the platform approach, we are also able to break down IT management silos within companies—meaning the Windows team, the mobile team, and rugged teams, as examples, can all work together by using the same platform.”
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Short added that the platform approach “helps customers recognize a return on investment more quickly and will also see cost savings right off the bat.”
AirWatch Express, on the other hand, is a mobile device management (MDM) platform designed for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Sprint says it’s the first U.S. carrier to offer AirWatch Express alongside Workspace ONE to its customers.
“AirWatch Express is a very simple MDM solution that has a setup wizard, called Blueprint, that lets a manager quickly set up devices, apps, and policies for their workforce without deployment costs,” Short said, which makes the solution ideal for SMBs. “That quick configuration capability helps ensure the workforce has the tools they need on the devices they are using.
Both solutions enable employees to access work tools on personal devices, while also protecting company data. Both solutions allow for customers to lock and wipe devices that have been stolen or lost.
“With the explosion of mobile computing in today’s business environment, it is more important than ever for businesses and their employees to have a simpler way to manage all applications and devices within their networks,” said Ivo Rook, SVP of IoT and product development at Sprint, in a statement. “Providing companies with platforms to effectively manage every kind of device will save time and resources, enable smarter business decisions, and allow easier configuration from remote locations.”