David Tucker, VP and GM of the small business unit of Cisco, took the stage at ITEXPO (News - Alert), presenting a keynote speech. As with many of the discussions held that day, the main focus was the cloud, mobility, and BYOD, and how they’re affecting the workspace.

With the devices available, the extent of wireless technology, and the advent of the cloud, the world has become a “be anywhere office.” Tucker feels that as technology is becoming almost entirely wireless, and with the cloud as a vehicle for mobility, the workspace will be more about “how I do work” than “where I do work,” and there are numbers to support it. 56 percent of U.S. information workers now spend time working outside of the office, and by 2014, 90 percent of organizations will let employees use personal devices for work.

However, Tucker is looking to what comes “beyond BYOD,” resulting from its effects and to make it easier: unified policy across devices, an uncompromised user experience, and (to the relief of IT workers everywhere) a simplified IT experience. With mobility and the cloud driving productivity, we’ll be seeing cost control and improved productivity from any time and any place. The new collaborative workspace will consist of mobile, social, visual, and virtual connectivity and communication.

“How can I do more with less?” Tucker asked, voicing the question of many organizations. The answer he says, is in the network. Wireless device traffic is expected to exceed that of wired devices by 2015, while the cloud is making wireless connectivity critical to businesses. The key is integration of 3G, 4G, LTE (News - Alert), and Wi-Fi networks, providing strong connectivity from almost any location.

Tucker also took some time to talk about video, and how it’s slowly but steadily replacing voice as the preferable form of communication. “Slowly” being key here, due to the issues that video still faces. Incompatible systems and poor media handling slow down the growth of video, and make for a poor experience, and these issues must be dealt with for video to become the communication method it’s meant to be.

What the people want, he says, is the experience. More than the devices and computer brands, users care about the best quality devices, the most affordable, reliable, and secure. (That’s not to say some people don’t get far too caught up in Mac vs PC debates online, but it does often come down to the quality of the devices.) As such, devices are constantly changing and upgrading to try and improve, and companies and their employees must remain on their toes to keep up with it.

“The Post Fixed Desktop Era is here,” Tucker claimed. “But mobility brings risk.” The right network is required for keeping everything simple and secure, while still providing interoperability, scalability, consistent management, and a unified user experience.

David Tucker’s keynote address was optimistic, but cautious. He presented a view of the wireless, mobile future that we’re headed to, while still providing notes of caution for the difficulties that lie in the road ahead. Still, nothing worth reaching is achieved easily, and the mobile, connected world will be worth the trials.

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