That Tech Pod
Welcome to That Tech Pod, a podcast co-hosted by Laura Milstein, Gabi Schulte and Kevin Albert. Each Tuesday, That Tech Pod will feature in depth discussions about data privacy, cybersecurity, eDiscovery, and tech innovations with heavy hitters in the industry. Subscribe so you don't miss an episode! Visit thattechpod.com for more information.
That Tech Pod
How To Capitalize On Hybrid Work As A Business Strategy With HP Anyware's Ziad Lammam
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Today on That Tech Pod, Laura and Gabi talk with Ziad Lammam, Head of Product for HP Anyware. Ziad leads product management, strategy and planning for HP Anyware (previously Teradici CAS). Has over 20 years experience in the end-user computing industry spanning desktop virtualization, remote workstations and cloud PCs. Passionate about creating unique and delightful customers experiences. Holds Masters in Business Administration at Simon Fraser University and Bachelor of Applied Science in Computer Engineering at the University of British Columbia. Outside of the hybrid office, find me outdoors (skiing, running, cycling, volleyball).
Hello and welcome to that tech pod where we discussed all things e-discovery, cybersecurity, data privacy, and tech innovations. I'm Laura Millstein and I know a little bit about technology.
SPEAKER_03And I'm Gabby Schulze and I also know a little bit about technology. Well, we are talking to Ziad Lamon. He is head of product for HP Anywhere. So Ziad leads product management strategy and planning for HPAnywhere. He has over 20 years experience in the end-user computing industry, spanning desktop fertilization, remote workstations, and cloud PCs. So, Ziad, thank you so much for being here today.
SPEAKER_01Thank you, Gabby, and thank you, Laura. Great to meet you both. Excited to talk to you today.
SPEAKER_03Absolutely. So we hear that we have some new reports coming out today. So we're very excited to dive into that information. But before we do that, tell us a little bit about yourself, kind of how you embarked on your technology journey, how you got here where you are today.
SPEAKER_02And what's what's been keeping you there? Because this is a long time. What's keeping you in this field?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, that's actually probably the best question. Yeah. So the field that I'm in, I call it end user computing. It's really an amazing area to be in because it's really technology that is being used by all of us, all of us on this call, all of your listeners. We're the end users that are consuming the technology. And so I really started in this space, you know, almost 20 years ago. And um and the world was different back then, right? We didn't have a lot of the cloud technology we did we do today. We didn't have so many devices that everybody carries around. And so really the end user computing industry or world has evolved over the past five, 10, 15, 20 years. And we're at a point today where we can do so much in the cloud and remotely. And for me, really kind of being part of that evolution has meant that I was able to work on changing technology, work in different industries around the world, uh, right? Every industry is really touched by this. So that's sort of the space that I'm in, and the reason I'm still there, because it really has evolved and changed so drastically over the years in a good way.
SPEAKER_02I mean, honestly, everything is changing so much that the fact that because of the changes, you're happy to still be in it, is what I appreciate because I think so many people almost get deterred from those changes, and because of that, they leave. So I think it's impressive that you're not getting kind of in that mindset. Um, HP is a good company. Uh, you've been there for a long time and you clearly have a good background. That's why we wanted to bring you on. We knew you had the knowledge to kind of dive into things. Can you tell us? And this is not an exciting question, but it's a real one. Uh, when we're looking at different things, we're looking at Linux and we're looking at Microsoft or Google or AWS or you know, any of these names, people may know them and hear them. But as simple as going on to a Google browser when you look at uh Explorer and hear it's going away, and you hear something like that. And to most people, it's like, who cares? Who uses Explorer? But it's still the standard on many phones, on many computers. What is something like that doing? And what impacts does something as simple as, oh, this may go away. What does that mean?
SPEAKER_01HP is a big company, and kind of maybe to touch on that a little bit, we all use devices, right? Whether you use a device from HP or another vendor, you use a mobile device, a laptop. We're all you know accessing browsers and and getting most of our services and information, you know, from the cloud today. So, you know, the the use case you described, going on a browser, doing a search, downloading whatever you need, or or um watching some videos, every one of us does that. And so, you know, that's something that won't go away. We all use some kind of device running some kind of OS, Windows, Linux, Mac OS, Android, iOS, if you're using a tablet or a phone. And so, you know, what we're doing stays kind of constant, uh, but how we actually do it and how we um ensure that we get the best user experience and that we get the best security protection, especially in the enterprise world, but also in the consumer space too. So that's really kind of the sort of behind the scenes piece is okay, I want to give you the best experience on your browser, no matter where you are, no matter what device you're using, but I also want to make sure you know you're secure. So those are some of the technology components that that we work on as HP to make sure you have a really good user experience and that you know everything is secure on the back end. And so things like cloud technology and edge technology, even, allows us to do that in a way that we couldn't do before, where before you had to depend on your local device for most things. Now we can actually depend on the cloud or a data center or even a combination of both to actually give you the same information, but to improve the user experience in the security profile. If that makes sense.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, and like so, as we mentioned, um you have new data coming out today. Um, I'm excited to hear about it. So let's let's dive in. What are what are like the top lines?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, you'll be seeing a new report that's really all about uh hybrid work. Not surprising, that's where all of us or many of us are focused on today. And so we actually surveyed a lot of a lot of folks in the IT enterprise space and really started asking questions about their priorities and their plans all around hybrid work and what we call uh digital workspace. And so we're all living in this remote work environment, you know, still working from home, going to the office. You know, one of the very first basic questions we ask is is hybrid work moved from something you do to more of a strategy? And we actually got an overwhelming response of hybrid work is actually more of a strategy today. 60% actually of respondents said that it is really more of a strategy. And I think that speaks to some of the big benefits that have been gained by introducing hybrid work as the new normal. And corporations and IT, and even you know, the people management organizations in each one of our uh companies really recognize how strategic it is to employees and to the community. That was kind of one really interesting top-level conclusion that came out of the report. And we drilled into that a little bit more and kind of said, well, why is it strategic? And this is where you'll see some of the details around well, hybrid work does really increase productivity, right? You're able to collaborate with so many more people by being able to connect from anywhere and use any device. And we also saw another benefit was around employee satisfaction. Certainly, the quality of life of being able to choose to work remotely, uh part-time or even full-time has really increased employee satisfaction.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, like so. What do you think about companies who are trying to drive uh employees back into the office? Um, you know, I think that once we've had a taste of what's possible in terms of remote work, it's kind of hard to get back into that daily grind of every day going into the office, doing that commute and everything that comes with it. So, what would you say to like companies who are maybe fighting against that kind of sentiment that we're seeing? That people are like, no, we've seen it's possible to do remote work, we're at least going to do a hybrid. Uh, yeah, like what would you say to them?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I mean, I think you know, the proof is is really out there with your employees. That's that's the first thing I'll say is is, you know, talk to your employees and really understand why you might be seeing some of that pushback. And I mean, I I can speak personally from from my situation, I do find myself really productive in a home office, remote work environment. You know, on calls like this, I've got pretty good privacy, I've got, you know, a good environment to record a podcast. But you know, when I go to the office and when I'm at when I'm in my home office, what I miss is collaborating with my colleagues. And so, you know, the thing I would say is really the reason for the productivity increase is, you know, users and employees have found ways to make use of the technology to still be productive and in most cases be more productive, and then really start to look at the office in a different way. And when I go to the office, I make sure that there are people there that I want to meet with and collaborate with so that I can use that time in person, you know, specifically and intentionally to have those collaborative exchanges. So I think that's what I'm seeing more and more of is you know, a change to how the office is being used. It's it's not going away. You can't have the same level of collaboration in some cases as you can online. So it's really recognizing that the office use case has changed and then to start to step back and make sure that you're paying attention to getting the technology in place to make that happen. Because you can't just let people go in the office and go, hey, use the same desk and computer you had before. That's also not going to cut it as well.
SPEAKER_02I also heard of um, I forget which company is doing this, but where basically you move desks. So you come in only three days a week, but like one day you have this desk, and then the next day you have this desk, and it's like to try to be more collaborative and making people feel like they're moving around more. And to me, I'm like, that is so stressful and chaotic. One, you can't really leave anything, and two, when it comes to like security and like it just, I just hate it. Even if it was just when you had your own computer at each one, to me, it's chaotic. And I just I hate that. And I think with people going and working from home to going into the office and then the different setups that people are trying to do now, whether it's commute for part of the time or come in, it really is bringing a lot of different security factors to the forefront that you're not thinking about. And it's also changing the way that people are looking at careers. We have a lot of people now that only want to work at remote positions because they were able to do it for so long. And then you have people that have to work remote that just don't work well remote. And then you're again factoring in where are you getting your laptop? Where are you moving it? How does that work? Um, and you have a stationary, like right now you can't see this, but I have three screens and I'm like having to move all of that just sounds like a nightmare. And I don't even remember life of just on a laptop unless you're on the plane. Like, what are you talking about? And so it's it's really stressful. So, what advice do you have for people that might be listening and you're just kind of like, hey, I think that in this new world, here's some just anything that you would like to share that you think is important for our for our listener?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I I mean, hearing you describe the that that pain and the level of frustration, you're certainly not the only one. And I guess my my first message is there are really great ways to improve that user experience. And that's where we're focusing on on uh helping to improve that with a solution like HP Anywhere. So, you know, you talked about going into the office and kind of having to find a desk and maybe bring your computer in and then connect it. And then if you have to move around, that's going to be time consuming and painful. You know, what if I told you there's technology out there today where you could leave your laptop at home, walk into the office, and sit down at any desk with a small, small little box at the desk that allows you to connect to the same desktop environment you were using at home without actually bringing anything in, without actually connecting any cables, simply by entering your username and password and using some level of uh multi-factor authentication ensures you get access to the same data in a super secure way. So I describe that scenario. That's something that really exists today. It's something we use as part of the HP Anywhere solution. My actual desktop is not on my local device. It's actually hosted in the cloud. So I can use my laptop at home, I can use a purpose-built box in the office, I can even connect on you know, train with Wi-Fi. I have connected on a plane as well. You know, the experience there isn't great for obvious reasons, but really shows that you can separate the user from their device and still provide that great user experience. Now, in some cases, you know, going to the office is prohibited if you're in a remote location, or if really you were hired as a remote employee. And in those cases, that's where the security story really shines because now you're not actually needing to ship that employee a device with local data on it, or the need to worry about the local data. You're simply provisioning or giving access to that employee to a desktop that is securely located somewhere in your secure corporate environment. So, kind of back to your question, the technology is there to really kind of overhaul how we access our desktops and our applications. And I encourage you know anyone to look into some of those solutions.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, so like I would say um that sounds very appealing as somebody who does hybrid work, um, and sometimes I commute different ways. I drive, I take a bike, I um sometimes have to hop in an Uber or whatever. Um, so I'm thinking about okay, what do I have to bring with me? Obviously, I have my laptop, but sometimes I'm carrying hard drives, I'm carrying other stuff. Um, so somebody from my perspective, that sounds very appealing, just being able to hop on kind of anywhere in my office and log into where I need to access my files. Um that's super attractive. At the same time, is there any um security uh hesitations that you have found people come across? And like what would you what would you say to those sort of um obstacles in that in that sense?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, so for that, and and that's the number one question to ask, obviously, is security. We're all really aware of security and privacy and the need to ensure you know things are taken care of there. So what I would say is by accessing your your desktops and your apps in this remote access way, almost all of the time it's more secure than doing it the traditional way. And what do I mean by that? The traditional way means you're actually storing your uh sensitive data on a local device, which, you know, whether you're on your bike or in an Uber or wherever you might be, I mean, the risk does exist, you know, if that device is stolen or compromised, you know, you're now worried about your data being out there. In most cases, those devices have some kind of encryption. But wouldn't it be better if you just didn't have to worry about that at all? And knowing that your data is actually securely stored in a remote location managed by an organization or a vendor that focuses on security. And so that's the first aspect is removing the data from the device. The second is all about um, you know, zero trust security models. That's something also you're gonna see highlighted in some of the communication from HP and on HP Anywhere, where really we want to move away to a model that um assumes that everything you're running on the device is secure, to a model where organizations can actually instill policies that say, hey, you can you can actually access these resources and this data based on your user profile. Those sorts of things are are more achievable when you move to this remote access model. And that's something we're going to be talking more about, is that zero trust concept. And then, you know, under the hood, you know, how does this actually happen? When I say you can access your Windows or Linux or or whatever desktop remotely, you're probably wondering, well, how do how does this happen? We actually compress all of the pixels and stream that over to you using uh a really strong encryption called AES256 encryption. So built into the technology stack, I guess where I'm getting at is security models and security solutions that are even more secure than what you are using today. So that's kind of you know the the low bar is is let's make sure we're at least as secure as you are today, but then we want to get you even better in terms of your security profile.
SPEAKER_03No, that's super interesting. Um, what are some interesting uh trends that you see coming down the pipeline in terms of remote work? Um obviously we're in this sort of new frontier of hybrid models. Do you see that becoming the new norm? I mean, I guess one could argue it already is, but take us a little bit down the road and like what do you see coming down the pipeline that you think our listeners would be interested in? Yeah.
SPEAKER_02And I I want to expand on that just a little bit. And when we're talking about what the future of this is, do you think we ever go back to the office 100% or do you think that will never happen?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I firmly believe the model has changed and going back to the office 100% won't happen. Yeah, I'll I'll kind of put that out there. I think we've all seen enough benefits from the hybrid work model that it would really be kind of going back in time, right? There's other examples in the world where we've gone forward and not backwards. And this is just another one of those points in kind of world history where we're well, why didn't we do that sooner? Right. And so the pandemic kind of fast-tracked it, I think. So we're we're certainly seeing the trend to utilizing the office in a different way, like I described. And I think that's going to take some work, um, to be honest with you, because it's not just about, you know, how does IT equip the office, but it's about how does an enterprise organization think about hybrid work policies. And, you know, it kind of blends a little bit, you know, IT strategy and people, people strategy too, right? It's now they're kind of related because you really have to focus on ensuring you have kind of a good environment and good processes and good policies, so that when you do go into the office, it's not a surprise to not have a place to sit. Or, you know, it's not as not a surprise to not be able to join one of your online calls. And there's a really easy way to do that. So those are some of the active trends out there that we see right now. And then the other one that we do see is because we're all accessing a lot of our Environments remotely, there's more interest in actually looking at cloud and edge technology more than there was before, where you know, we might have just focused on getting getting my data center out to stuff and all provisions. Now it's about well, how can we use cloud even more or better than we were before? And how can we improve the user experience if some of our users are traveling or if they're in a different state or even a different country? So those are some of the things that are actively being looked at by IT organizations around the world. And it's enabling new use cases too. You know, a lot of us rely on freelance and contract worker. And um, I can tell you it's really fast, secure, and easy to onboard a freelancer or contract worker if you're able to just shoot them, you know, a link and say, hey, you can now access your the enterprise corporate environment from your existing laptop, and all you do is run this application and you connect. So it's also kind of empowering teams to look at freelance and contract workers more uh fluidly. And and in these times today, especially as the world economy is is you know adjusting down and up and down and up, and and there's a lot of uncertainty out there, it's important to be able to adapt as well and rely on the scalable talent.
SPEAKER_02When you were talking, the whole thing I kept thinking is is this zoom on steroids or remote desktop 2.0? You know, it's just there's there's a lot, there's a lot there. Honestly, I'm I'm processing all of this and I'm I never want to go back to an office. And I think you are right in the fact that we are in a new world, you're constantly thinking of how technology changes, but this isn't just technology changing, this is people having to adapt not just to again technology, but also to the new way of life and work and and what that really looks like. So it's a you brought up a lot of really interesting things. I think everybody's going to will put a link to the report that we mentioned at the beginning so everyone can see that came out today. So we're all pretty excited about that. Um, and before we let you go, is there anything else that you feel that our audience should know? Is there anything that we should keep a lookout for? Is there anything else that you just think, hey, everybody who's listening right now, you think that your remote life is safe, but surprise insert something scary.
SPEAKER_01You know, um, your your sort of key on Zoom on steroids or remote desktop was interesting because you know, we we all use Zoom or Teams or or any kind of conferencing solution. And um, and that's not gonna go away. But the the the thing to look forward to is being able to continue to use those types of applications and and then dive into that remote desktop or remote access world. So like I think that's what I would leave you know everybody with is there's no better time to, if you haven't looked at a remote access solution today, uh, there's no better time to kind of take that plunge, right? Because you will quickly see how it enables a more secure way of accessing data and applications. And if you haven't taken that plunge yet, you know, I'd recommend that you do. And there's lots of solutions out there. You know, we are uh you'll hear more about HP Anywhere from HP. Um, but yeah, that would be what I would leave you is is take that plunge, check out some of these remote access solutions, and um yeah, it'll make things more secure and and empower employees to do more.
SPEAKER_02Awesome. Well, thank you so much for being on our show. We uh we loved having you on today. Yeah, thank you so much.
SPEAKER_01Thank you, Gabby, and thank you, Laura. It's great chatting with you both.
SPEAKER_03So Laura, that was Ziad Lamam. Um, he is head of product management at HP Anywhere. Tell me your tech takeaways. Tech takeaways.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, I think he was really interesting, and I feel this way about most of the people that come on the show. I can't say everyone, but the majority of of our guests have been really smart, interesting people. And I like his protect perspective coming from HP Anywhere. But Kevin, you know, I'm just here to talk about how great the guests are because I, you know, I've found him and I I want to support him and I think he's amazing. But for everybody else out there, can you tell us really what was this episode about? What did you learn? What were your tech takeaways?
SPEAKER_00So for me, I think the interesting piece of this was his commentary about the fact that, you know, we are in a kind of a new reality. You know, I definitely agree that we're not going back to the office 100%. Uh for me personally, I'm in the same sort of vote boat as he is, where I am very deliberate now with my going into the office, right? When I go in, I really want to see specific people. I'm I'm not just sort of going in to do my work. If I'm gonna be doing my work, I'm gonna be doing that at home where I can really focus and don't have to worry about getting dressed, don't have to worry about commuting, you know, all that. Where if I'm in the office, I really want to see these three people. I want to make sure that I have time with the folks that I really need to be, you know, in front of. And then that's it. That that that's kind of my feeling is I feel like that's really the new norm. And his, you know, take on that was was really, like I said, the same as sort of mine. I definitely thought the tool sounds interesting. You know, we've had some data privacy people on in the past where we've we've talked about kind of the security aspects of this. You know, what happens if your device gets stolen? What happens if you're in an Uber and your your the car bursts in flames and your laptop is gone? You know, this definitely was a more reassuring type of technology, which I think solves some of those worries. And and so from my perspective, I thought this was an interesting episode.
SPEAKER_02I completely agree. Yeah, but you could I could tell you completely agree.
SPEAKER_03Laura, where can people find us if uh they want to learn more about ZAD and HBAnywhere and us?
SPEAKER_02Well, well, hopefully they already know everything about us and they just want to go and subscribe. Where to do that, I'll tell you our website, www.thattechpod.com. That's also good news where you can get your merchandise. Holidays are just around the corner. Obviously, we know everybody wants a nice, you know, sweater shirt, some slides, some hats. And we know because we sell the most weirdly of the mouse pads. So get them under your stocking, under your menorah, or under any other holiday tree decoration star that you may celebrate because I don't know them in just a few months, or for Thanksgiving a few weeks away. Everyone loves tech pod gear for the holidays. Don't forget to swing over to LinkedIn slash that tech pod, Twitter, TikTok, be real, get real, all the reels. And uh yeah, Gabby, anything else they can do for us?
SPEAKER_03Why, yes, Laura. They can go to Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Um, yeah, you know, I'm just being goofy. Uh and give us give us a five-star rating or review. We would we would love you forever. I mean, that is no exact.
SPEAKER_02That's true. It's true. If you're still listening, you can just can you just feel how much love Gabby has today? I have so much love. So much love. Kevin is smiling. Screaming out of me. Gabby is just smiling so much about it.
SPEAKER_03And go, everyone, the Phillies choose your team. No, don't worry. We are Go Phillies, and they other people cannot be. That's fine, but we're I'm not I'm not Go Phillies, so if you're listening, not all of us support the Phillies.
SPEAKER_02Or do you support support? The Orioles? Obviously. Obviously, I support the Orioles. Go. Are you serious? Yeah, obviously. All right. Is it? Wait, wait, can we all just agree? Fuck the Yankees.
SPEAKER_00Obviously.
SPEAKER_02Yes, yeah, yeah, yeah. All right. So fuck the Yankees. Done. See you next time. See ya.