HP looks to lead with hybrid work collaboration and productivity portfolio

In the post-Covid era, most businesses with knowledge workers have been obliged to establish hybrid working practices, yet research from HP has revealed that companies are still figuring out how to make the model work, with only 22% of hybrid workers describing themselves as “thriving”. As a result, the technology giant has introduced products and solutions to help firms usher in the next step in their evolution of the new workplace.

According to HP’s The future of work report, 80% of workers want to be in the office some of the time, but many companies continue to struggle to get workers back to the office. It also suggested that the most significant barrier to their return is a sub-optimal technology experience, with 89% of respondents regarding technology as the most important factor in return-to-office decisions. Similarly, of those who claim to be thriving in hybrid work, 90% believe access to the right technology and tools leads to a positive work experience.

To accelerate employees’ return to work, HP stresses that the right technology is required for optimal work setups, enabling success for companies and their employees.

“Hybrid work does not equate to remote work. True hybrid work creates a great culture that connects people, raises productivity and builds engagement. Technology is the biggest factor in doing that,” said Guayente Sanmartin, global head of commercial systems and displays solutions at HP Inc.

“Most companies want to move past the ‘forced return’ to the office era of hybrid work,” added Alex Cho, HP Inc’s president of personal systems. “The challenge is, they’re not sure how to. We believe the future is hybrid flexibility, which delivers the best of the home and the office to workers everywhere.”

To this end, and to address the needs of workers and make hybrid work across the third workspace, the company is recharging its next-generation commercial PCs, across its HP EliteBook, ProBook and ZBook range of devices.

Launched in 2021, HP Presence is said to deliver enriched video conferencing experiences on PCs, with intuitive collaboration innovations for people to truly feel connected while working together at home or in the office. Going forward, HP Presence will be available across all HP commercial notebooks – from ProBook and Dragonfly series to Z by HP mobile workstations.

The tech firm said this would provide companies with critical solutions for revitalising collaboration, culture, innovation and productivity to make working in or out of the office a “seamless” experience. Other enhancements include a multi-camera experience that enables users to be shown while whiteboarding at the same time, and auto camera select for face tracking to make meetings more engaging and natural.

The next generation of HP EliteBook and ProBook devices will be equipped for premium collaboration with HP Presence and next-level productivity. According to HP, these devices are designed for hybrid flexibility as users move throughout the day from home to office to meeting rooms.

HP claimed it was reinvigorating innovation, with a focus on technology and solutions that not only deliver high performance, but also address new challenges with hybrid work when collaborating on large projects with complex workflows. It cited research showing that since 2019, 71% of companies have increased workstation deployments to future-proof workforces with reliability, expandability and remote access.

HP believes its range of Z by HP mobile workstations with HP Presence provides the collaboration tools and high-performance compute solutions needed to power workflows.

Noting that hybrid work is not just about working remotely, but about delivering an experience that works seamlessly both for those in the room and for those joining remotely, HP is working with office and collaboration technology specialist Poly to deliver commercial video conferencing devices for hybrid work.

Poly Video OS 4.0 delivers experiences like artificial intelligence-driven multi-camera mode that can keep multiple speakers in the frame to boost the remote collaboration experience. The Poly Video OS 4.0 is available across the Poly Studio X Series of video bars and the Poly G7500 modular video conferencing system.

The Poly Studio X70 is said to be the first and only video bar for large rooms certified for Microsoft Teams, along with the Poly G7500. Additionally, the Poly Studio X Android-based video bars are available and certified for Google Meet.