The work-from-home and remote office landscape has seen significant changes in how organisations approach work, relationships and systems.

For some companies, the move to the home has been unexpectedly simple – employees have shifted into a different gear and delivered on their remits with ease.

For others, challenges around connectivity and systems have limited uptake for their people and reduced their efficiency. As the pandemic continues its grip, it’s become critical for organisations to invest into sustainable solutions that deliver reliable connectivity, security and access to their employees.

“Many companies rushed off to purchase over-the-counter, broadband LTE products that turned out to be more of a problem than a solution,” says Jaco Visagie, director at SkyWire. “They struggled with poor service and intermittent connectivity and the systems didn’t meet the critical business needs of guaranteed security and service. It’s an understandable situation – companies were faced with the need to make extraordinary change in a very short period of time, or the decision was based on a budget or price point – but this does have to change.”

As the restrictions on office working and social engagements continue for the foreseeable future, companies need to invest into more long-term and reliable solutions that allow them richer control over their connectivity, security and employee accessibility. They need visibility into user devices and connections, and they need to be able to prioritise business critical applications and traffic to deliver superior service and solutions to their customers. Fortunately, this isn’t an impossible ask.

The right solution

“The right solution for the business needs to connect the user at home directly to the office with a service that offers guaranteed security,” adds Visagie. “This can be achieved using an enterprise solution that turns the home into a satellite office – a mini branch office that’s easily deployed, fully connected, securely managed, and provides complete transparency.”

SkyWire Fixed Business LTE (FB-LTE) is a full enterprise solution that transforms home working complexity into unified connectivity. Guaranteeing capacity and security, the solution delivers a business-level service to employees in multiple locations nationally. It allows for the organisation to invest into a reliable and available platform that isn’t going to collapse the moment someone tries to download an e-mail, or enter a video conference call.

“SkyWire FB-LTE is a direct VPN to the office that’s secure and seamless,” says Visagie. “It’s available as either capped or uncapped and can be customised to suit the needs of the business. It can also be adapted to suit different company approaches and requirements because we know that there’s no such thing as a one size fits all approach.”

This bespoke solution does more than just fill the gap for companies seeking answers to connectivity questions in the pandemic. It’s a reliable and sustainable solution that can provide employees, branch offices, and remote working areas with a service that helps them stay connected when they have access to limited infrastructure. If an area is waiting for fibre, for example, the SkyWire FB-LTE solution fits into the interim space with ease. In only two days, SkyWire can install, configure and connect the solution, providing end users or remote offices with instant, premium, business-grade connectivity, failover and redundancy.

“This solution can be used over the long term or embraced as part of the new normal, to ensure that the business remains connected and running regardless of infrastructure or lockdown legislation,” says Visagie. “We provide the security, connectivity and quality of service you need to do the work no matter what the challenges in your area. This platform is designed to support your remote staff from multiple locations and spaces and can be used in the pandemic, as a permanent solution for remote staff, and as a failover.”

Widespread coverage

What adds value to the solution is the fact that it covers a large percentage of South Africa. If there’s FB-LTE coverage, SkyWire can deliver the service. The company has developed an app that allows for potential users to assess whether or not there is LTE coverage in their area, making it easy to determine whether nor not they can take advantage of the connectivity it offers. It also comes with a customer self-service or management portal for deeper control over access and usage, the ability to tightly manage user behaviour, visibility into online behaviour, ticket logging system, e-commerce platform, and a 24/7 support centre to ensure a complete, managed service.

“Our solution covers around 70% of the country and is designed to help your company,” concludes Visagie. “Every aspect of the SkyWire FB-LTE solution is focused on giving businesses what they need. We can deploy an enterprise-grade solution at speed with all the security and access control features your business demands.”

To further enhance the accessibility of the solution, SkyWire can implement it with little to no social contact using box-dropping and ongoing customer support. The user can simply unpack it, turn it on and get connected. The solution is SD-WAN integrated, secure, customisable and accessible – everything a business needs right now to ensure that it is ready for whatever the future may hold.

About SkyWire
SkyWire is an established telecommunications service provider that offers wireless, fixed and satellite connectivity solutions across a single, next-generation network. With an international footprint, we are able to provide a suite of innovative carrier-grade products and services throughout South Africa and Africa.

Our comprehensive range of connectivity solutions mean that we are able to connect your business in the shortest possible time. With more than 50 000 high sites around South Africa, a full suite of telecoms solutions and peering points throughout the country, SkyWire is able to provide fast, effective and affordable last-mile access wherever your business is. Our products and services have been designed from the ground up to meet the needs of cellular carriers, service providers, private networks and small to large corporate businesses.

We offer a full suite of voice and data services to the corporate, government, mining, oil and gas, agricultural, residential estates, commercial estates, hospitality, rural communities, telecoms, education and finance sectors.

Visit www.skywire.co.za for more information.