Does your workplace tech make employees happy?

Your brand of PC makes all the difference, one study claims

BY Rachel Ranosa 21 Jun 2019

Does your brand of office computer make your employees productive and happy?

A new survey by software management firm Jamf suggests, the enterprise adoption of the Apple Mac may spell the difference between a productive and unproductive work environment.

Employees who use the Apple computer reported high levels of satisfaction with their employer’s technology choice:

97% of respondents said using the Mac improved their productivity
95% - it boosted their creativity
94% - it helped them become more self-sufficient
91% - it enabled them to collaborate better

Four out of five Mac users (79%) said they would be unable to perform their job effectively if they were using any other device. These professionals come from a range of industries:

83% - Human resources
83% - Information technology
82% - Marketing
75% - Engineering
73% - Sales

The respondents cited the Mac’s reliability and ease of integration with other work-related apps. Other reasons for adoption included Apple’s polished UX/UI design and the seamless continuity of its platforms across other devices such as the iPhone and iPad.

But is the Mac really the best choice for enterprise users? Apart from the obvious reason that Apple products are generally more expensive because of their interface, the downside to using the Mac may be the limited range of hardware that are compatible with it.

“You don't get much choice when it comes to the processor and RAM with Macs, for example, which dictate how much power the computer has and how smoothly it'll run,” Antonio Villas-Boas of Tech Insider warns.

“You can build your own ‘Hackintosh’ computer, but you're limited in what parts you can use, and macOS is a pain to update and maintain on computers that aren't made by Apple.”