The MDM space, or what I guess is now called the EMM space, is very competitive. Ten years ago this industry had no major players (unless you count Blackberry), but now everybody knows names like Mobile Iron and Airwatch. Device management is definitely a huge trend! However, people aren’t interested in just managing mobile devices anymore. Companies have realized that in the future, using a multitude of software to manage everything is just not feasible. It makes sense to instead have only one software, or suite, to manage all devices from mobile phones to laptops to servers. Hence the term UEM, or unified endpoint management was created. Obviously this is a tough goal to hit, and some have even seen it as impossible. Well, as of today it looks like Microsoft has created an actual UEM solution.
Gartner started an EMM Magic Quadrants report in 2017 with the purpose of showing the top companies in the new space enterprise mobility management (EMM). This year they updated that report to use the terminology EUM instead and listed Microsoft as a leader, leading Microsoft to publish a very proud blog post on the Microsoft.com website. When it comes to Microsoft being a leader however, I think their potential is severely understated. Technology platforms depend on the strength of their ecosystems and Microsoft has an outmatched offering. Although the company is still working on integrations, the options are endless with applications such as Active Directory, Exchange, Office 365, System Configurator, and more. While other companies may be able to offer specialized MDM products, Microsoft will be able to offer bundles that are unmatched in the industry. This is what I believe makes them a true UEM solution. It will be very interesting to see how Microsoft grows over the next few years!
Related Links:
- Microsoft emerges as a Leader in Gartner MQ for Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/blog/2018/07/25/microsoft-emerges-as-a-leader-in-gartner-mq-for-unified-endpoint-management-uem/