What is autonomous endpoint management?
In today's digital landscape, employees use a wide range of devices to access sensitive company data, applications, and networks. This increased device usage has created a significant challenge for IT teams, who must balance security with user productivity. Autonomous endpoint management (AEM) is a solution that addresses this challenge head-on. By automating the management of all devices, including laptops, desktops, rugged devices, and mobile devices, AEM frees up IT teams to focus on more strategic initiatives.
Breaking down autonomous endpoint management
AEM is a part of unified endpoint management (UEM). It lets organizations manage all their devices from a single console. It uses artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to automate tasks. This approach eliminates the need for manual intervention, reducing the risk of human error and increasing the speed of incident response. With AEM, IT teams can:
- Discover and inventory all devices on the network, regardless of their location or ownership.
- Enroll and provision devices with the necessary security policies and software updates.
- Monitor and report on device health and compliance in real time.
- Remediate security threats and issues automatically, without disrupting user productivity.
AEM is a process that uses smart automation and decision-making to make employees' lives easier and make managing devices easier. The biggest advantage of AEM is that it doesn’t need constant human intervention because it has the capabilities to proactively monitor, analyze, and respond to security threats, performance issues, and even compliance requirements in real time.
Benefits of autonomous endpoint management
AEM is more than just a security solution; it's a business enabler. By automating the management of all devices, organizations can:
- Improve user productivity by reducing the time spent on device management tasks.
- Enhance security by detecting and responding to threats in real time.
- Help reduce costs by minimizing the need for manual intervention and reducing the risk of data breaches.
- Simplify compliance by automatically enforcing security policies and maintaining audit trails.
Real-world applications across industries
AEM is a game-changer for any organization that relies on devices to get work done. For example, a healthcare provider can use AEM to make sure all medical devices and wearables are safe enough to access patient data. A retailer can use AEM to keep point-of-sale devices up to date with the latest security patches, reducing the risk of a data breach. And a manufacturer can use AEM to monitor and manage the devices used on the shop floor, improving overall operational efficiency.
Why autonomous endpoint management matters
AEM is a fundamental component of every company’s digital workspace, where hybrid work and BYOD policies have become the norm. By adopting AEM, organizations can stay ahead of the curve in terms of device management, security, and user productivity, while also reducing costs and improving business outcomes.
Leveraging AEM brings organizations closer to achieving an autonomous workspace, providing the ability to:
- Automate device onboarding and offboarding: Automatically provision and deprovision devices, reducing the risk of human error and improving employee experience.
- Provide self-healing capabilities: Automatically detect and remediate security threats and performance issues, reducing downtime and improving employee productivity.
- Enable zero-touch security: Automatically enforce security policies and configurations, reducing the risk of human error and improving overall security posture.
Related terms and resources
- Unified endpoint management (UEM): A comprehensive approach to managing all devices, including AEM, mobile device management (MDM), and mobile application management (MAM).
- Autonomous workspace: An approach to digital work where AI/ML algorithms proactively identify issues and secure the environment. An autonomous workspace self-configures, self-heals, and self-secures without the need for manual intervention.
- Enterprise mobility management (EMM): A set of solutions that helps organizations manage and secure the mobile devices, applications, and data used by employees, especially in "bring your own device" (BYOD) environments.
- Artificial intelligence (AI): The use of AI and ML to automate tasks and improve decision-making in AEM.
- Zero-Trust security: A security approach that assumes all devices and users are untrusted, and verifies their identity and permissions before granting access to sensitive data and applications.
By adopting AEM, organizations can maintain a competitive edge in an increasingly connected world, where security, productivity, and compliance are top priorities.
