Who uses Macs in the enterprise world?

[jwolf6589]

My new job has Windows 7 machines everywhere with some running 10. MS Office is used heavily and I am not sure if the Mac version of Office would cut the mustard for the needs, especially given how macs run much slower than PC's on systems with conventional hard drives. Most or all of the PC's at the job run conventional hard drives and not SSD's, and windows apps run real fast.

But I am curious as to who uses Macs in the enterprise world and can you tell me if you run Office and what you do? I doubt Apple Mail will cut it in the business world but I know MS Outlook is used everywhere. What email app do you use? Do you use Quickbooks? Etc?

 

[ZapNZs]

At the three large companies I have worked at (3,000+ employees), Macs were used at all of them but only by select creative design teams (specifically, those involved with things like printing/marketing, photography, video editing, etc.) - for the rest of the company, Windows XP was common, Windows 7 is currently common, and now Windows 10 is slowly starting to trickle in. As far as I could tell with these specific organizations, Macs were not used elsewhere because of, 1) the higher cost, 2) the lack of certain enterprise management features, and 3) several software programs a large bulk of employees use/used was/is still Windows only. Formally, there was also, 4) integration with Outlook challenges (no longer the case), 5) the version of MS Office was both limited in capability and had a different look/feel (also no longer the case.) Another factor that likely played into one company was their history of keeping old OS' for long periods because many of their employees were not computer people. They kept XP on all machines until the month before support ended, and for several years continued to use XP on quite a few systems. People flipped out when 7 was rolled out - I can't imagine how they are coping with the changes of 10.

At the company (well...technically educational institution) I am at now, iPads are huge, and luckily they are OK with employees using personal Macs for most tasks.

 

[jwolf6589]

At the three large companies I have worked at (3,000+ employees), Macs were used at all of them but only by select creative design teams (specifically, those involved with things like printing/marketing, photography, video editing, etc.) - for the rest of the company, Windows XP was common, Windows 7 is currently common, and now Windows 10 is slowly starting to trickle in. As far as I could tell with these specific organizations, Macs were not used elsewhere because of, 1) the higher cost, 2) the lack of certain enterprise management features, and 3) several software programs a large bulk of employees use/used was/is still Windows only. Formally, there was also, 4) integration with Outlook challenges (no longer the case), 5) the version of MS Office was both limited in capability and had a different look/feel (also no longer the case.) Another factor that likely played into one company was their history of keeping old OS' for long periods because many of their employees were not computer people. They kept XP on all machines until the month before support ended, and for several years continued to use XP on quite a few systems. People flipped out when 7 was rolled out - I can't imagine how they are coping with the changes of 10.

At the company (well...technically educational institution) I am at now, iPads are huge, and luckily they are OK with employees using personal Macs for most tasks.

Do you use Outlook or Mail for email at the new company?

 

[gnasher729]

Just for information: IBM has switched to Macs (about 100,000), GE is switching (about 250,000). IBM figured that in some time frame, about 45% of Windows users called the help desk, but only 4% of Mac users.

 

[Partron22]

For ipad sales declining as bad as they are, I see increasing numbers of them in inventory control and even cash registers. Likely, there's a Mac behind them somewhere. Might be too small a niche to dent sales figures?

 

[thingstoponder]

For ipad sales declining as bad as they are, I see increasing numbers of them in inventory control and even cash registers. Likely, there's a Mac behind them somewhere. Might be too small a niche to dent sales figures?

Pretty sure there's growth again with iPad.

 

[DevNull0]

My new job has Windows 7 machines everywhere with some running 10. MS Office is used heavily and I am not sure if the Mac version of Office would cut the mustard for the needs, especially given how macs run much slower than PC's on systems with conventional hard drives. Most or all of the PC's at the job run conventional hard drives and not SSD's, and windows apps run real fast.

But I am curious as to who uses Macs in the enterprise world and can you tell me if you run Office and what you do? I doubt Apple Mail will cut it in the business world but I know MS Outlook is used everywhere. What email app do you use? Do you use Quickbooks? Etc?

I get the impression even Apple could not care less about the Mac in the Enterprise, it's all iPad for them. From their recent earnings call:

We are seeing great momentum with our enterprise initiatives. During the September quarter we announced a new partnership with Accenture, who is creating a dedicated iOS practice in select locations around the world. Experts from Apple are colocating with these teams, and together they will be launching new tools and services that help enterprise clients transform how they engage with customers using iPhone and iPad. Examples include services to build new customer experiences, and to facilitate iOS integration with enterprise systems, to help businesses take greater advantage of data from Internet of Things platforms, and to enable the smooth transfer of existing legacy applications and data to modern iOS apps.

And last month, we announced a partnership with GE to reinvent the way industrial companies work, by bringing GE's industrial IoT platform to iOS. The Predix SDK for iOS will enable developers to build native apps to drive industrial operations with more efficiency and speed than ever before. GE is also standardizing on iPhone and iPad for its global workforce of more than 330,000 employees. And working with Apple, GE is developing iOS apps for both its internal and external audiences to bring predictive data and analytics to workers across a broad range of industries. Beyond our iOS devices, we're also seeing great traction for Mac in the enterprise market, with all-time record customer purchases in fiscal year 2017.

Macs are a minor afterthought.

Apple doesn't want to be in the mac business anymore. How much more clearly do they have to say it?

 

[neutrino23]

I’ve used Macs in my job at a large company since 1999. But I’m high enough up the chain I can choose what computers I use. Sometimes it’s a problem, mostly an advantage.

 

[Partron22]

Pretty sure there's growth again with iPad.

You're right. up 11% since same quarter last year: Apple iPad: Is it Turning A Corner?

 

[throAU]

IBM do. They did a study on it.

https://www.jamf.com/blog/debate-over-ibm-confirms-that-macs-are-535-less-expensive-than-pcs/

 

[superscape]

In my day job, maybe 80% of users are on macOS (we have at least 200 users at my site, and easily into the thousands worldwide). Most folks use Outlook for their emails, although my personal ethos is that I'll use what comes 'free' with the OS until I find a compelling reason not to*.

In 4 years I've not found a reason to deviate from Mail and Calendar. I don't do anything fancy with either of them and it might be a different story if I did. Luckily, I'm in a position where I can use whatever software I like to get the job done.


* I'm a Yorkshireman - we have notoriously deep pockets and short arms.

 

[Kekinash]

We don't use any Macs on my workplace. Since we use a domain with very restrictives user policies to avoid viruses and users to abuse the system, and macs can't run domain policies, scripts and registry mods at login. I'm the big boss here in IT terms so for my personal uses I do use a MacBook and love it, but for a networked domain controlled environment, macs have no place, can't control them properly, so it's a big no for us here. So far 10 years working here and we didn't have any kind of security compromise, even that we have several remote accessed servers (our stores), and all kinds of users. Of course we have around 3000 to 6000 daily non authorized logins tries each day, but we are holding well thanks to very strict domain policies only available is all your PC are running Windows.


Sorry for the long post.

 

[chrfr]

We don't use any Macs on my workplace. Since we use a domain with very restrictives user policies to avoid viruses and users to abuse the system, and macs can't run domain policies, scripts and registry mods at login.

This is an antiquated way of thinking.
Of course Macs don't allow any sort of registry mods because there's no registry in macOS, but it's absolutely possible to manage Macs in similar ways to Windows.

 

[960design]

My new job has Windows 7 machines everywhere with some running 10. MS Office is used heavily and I am not sure if the Mac version of Office would cut the mustard for the needs

I'm a researcher surrounded by more than 10,000 windows computers. I currently manage over 7500 iPads and Macs. I would call our environment Windows based, but the macs run with few issues. For example, my shop has two employee for 7500+ devices. The windows shop has over 50 employees and several subcontractors as well.

...especially given how macs run much slower than PC's on systems with conventional hard drives.

This is completely made up. Every mac in our group runs circles around PCs. The only PC I have that can compete with the mac is my ZenBook Pro 15.

Most or all of the PC's at the job run conventional hard drives and not SSD's, and windows apps run real fast.

Not sure what this has to do with Macs in a Windows environment. But seems like the Windows shop is doing a great job.

But I am curious as to who uses Macs in the enterprise world...

Me

and can you tell me if you run Office and what you do?

Nope. I use Pages, Keynote, Numbers applications on a MBPr15 and an iMac27. I can run out to any of my colleagues remote locations, log into iCloud on their Windows or Mac to edit, print, collaborate locally with my documents without even having my computer.

I doubt Apple Mail will cut it in the business world...

Works well enough for me, but I only average about 200 emails a day. I do get the occasional ( once every two weeks or so, sometimes twice in the same day, and then not again for several months ) Mail application freeze. Quick enough to Force Quit and restart Mail Application in under a minute.

 

[hobowankenobi]

We don't use any Macs on my workplace. Since we use a domain with very restrictives user policies to avoid viruses and users to abuse the system, and macs can't run domain policies, scripts and registry mods at login. I'm the big boss here in IT terms so for my personal uses I do use a MacBook and love it, but for a networked domain controlled environment, macs have no place, can't control them properly, so it's a big no for us here. So far 10 years working here and we didn't have any kind of security compromise, even that we have several remote accessed servers (our stores), and all kinds of users. Of course we have around 3000 to 6000 daily non authorized logins tries each day, but we are holding well thanks to very strict domain policies only available is all your PC are running Windows.


Sorry for the long post.

70% Macs out of maybe 4000 workstations. Nearly all the Macs are bound to AD. No big issues. The IT department is actively trying to switch everybody to Macs because our IT dept finds them easier to manage and more secure.

Are you sure they have no place?

Lots of ways, lots of tools. Here are tips and tools from 2011. This has been a thing...for quite a few years now.

 

[simonsi]

I've used my MBP as my prime work computer in enterprise environments for 6yrs. I use Airmail for email and Office apps daily...no issues whatsoever.

 

[hobowankenobi]

My new job has Windows 7 machines everywhere with some running 10. MS Office is used heavily and I am not sure if the Mac version of Office would cut the mustard for the needs, especially given how macs run much slower than PC's on systems with conventional hard drives. Most or all of the PC's at the job run conventional hard drives and not SSD's, and windows apps run real fast.

But I am curious as to who uses Macs in the enterprise world and can you tell me if you run Office and what you do? I doubt Apple Mail will cut it in the business world but I know MS Outlook is used everywhere. What email app do you use? Do you use Quickbooks? Etc?

We run Office on all machines, Mac and PC. Exchange servers. Outlook or Mail or web on Macs, user's choice.

As to the slowness: the only thing I have ever seen is that Office has been optimized on Win boxes, and snaps open. Launches slower on Macs (hard drives exaggerate this). But once open, not much of an issue. Heavy Office users don't quit apps much, so not a big deal.

Could be how things are cached (or are not), could be how the OS is optimized (or is not)...could be MS really worked hard to make Office feel faster on Windows. Why wouldn't they?

 

[960design]

70% Macs out of maybe 4000 workstations. Nearly all the Macs are bound to AD. No big issues. The IT department is actively trying to switch everybody to Macs because our IT dept finds them easier to manage and more secure.

Are you sure they have no place?

Lots of ways, lots of tools. Here are tips and tools from 2011. This has been a thing...for quite a few years now.

I recommend Apple Enterprise Connect if you are looking to bind Macs to the network. The old way of doing it was coded in the 1990's and based on a wired connection. Our current, more wireless, more mobile world will cause a lot of binding issues with AD. Enterprise Connect fixes those binding issues.

Having said that, I recommend dropping AD altogether. No one needs it anymore.
[doublepost=1510923125][/doublepost]

We don't use any Macs on my workplace. Since we use a domain with very restrictives user policies to avoid viruses and users to abuse the system, and macs can't run domain policies, scripts and registry mods at login. I'm the big boss here in IT terms so for my personal uses I do use a MacBook and love it, but for a networked domain controlled environment, macs have no place, can't control them properly, so it's a big no for us here. So far 10 years working here and we didn't have any kind of security compromise, even that we have several remote accessed servers (our stores), and all kinds of users. Of course we have around 3000 to 6000 daily non authorized logins tries each day, but we are holding well thanks to very strict domain policies only available is all your PC are running Windows.


Sorry for the long post.

I agree with @chrfr
You are currently doing things the 1990's way. Nothing wrong with that, especially how good your track record is. But don't let that comfort level settle you into older networking planning / protection. Build up, run and test a parallel deployment management solution for just some of the IT staff. Work through the learning curves, have them try to break it. That way in 3-5 years you will have at the very least an alternative deployment if something goes horribly wrong with your current deployment.

 

[kohlson]

I work at a very large IT company, with approximately 100K employees. Roughly half are Macs. MS Office is an essential part of working there.

 

[hobowankenobi]

I recommend Apple Enterprise Connect if you are looking to bind Macs to the network. The old way of doing it was coded in the 1990's and based on a wired connection. Our current, more wireless, more mobile world will cause a lot of binding issues with AD. Enterprise Connect fixes those binding issues.

Having said that, I recommend dropping AD altogether. No one needs it anymore.

I have seen an AEC demo, and I agree, it is a great solution.

Can't say there is no need for AD until the last Win boxes are gone, and never coming back. That won't happen here. So I doubt AD goes away...unless replaced by a better, cheaper, more robust directory that can handle everything AD does and more. Not holding my breath.

AEC won't get used in my environment, for several reasons, one if which is cost.

One tool that is being evaluated (to consider instead of AEC) and looks very promising is Nomad.

 

[Kekinash]

I recommend Apple Enterprise Connect if you are looking to bind Macs to the network. The old way of doing it was coded in the 1990's and based on a wired connection. Our current, more wireless, more mobile world will cause a lot of binding issues with AD. Enterprise Connect fixes those binding issues.

Having said that, I recommend dropping AD altogether. No one needs it anymore.
[doublepost=1510923125][/doublepost]
I agree with @chrfr
You are currently doing things the 1990's way. Nothing wrong with that, especially how good your track record is. But don't let that comfort level settle you into older networking planning / protection. Build up, run and test a parallel deployment management solution for just some of the IT staff. Work through the learning curves, have them try to break it. That way in 3-5 years you will have at the very least an alternative deployment if something goes horribly wrong with your current deployment.

Thanks for you recommendations, I know I can integrate Macs into my domain if needed, but since all our software is Windows based and don't have any Mac or other OS equivalents, we are forced to use Windows.

As for AD, is still needed in many companies, if you run it properly it can solve a lot of problems users can bring to the workplace (viruses, trojans and rights access to different areas, or software) I use Applock and several policies to stop any harm to my servers or workstations, and so far no virus, trojan or such has even got into my network. Of course using Mac OS stops a lot of those, but it doesn't stop for propagate to servers or other Windows users. this is just a small example.

 

[0002378]

Hey, I used a Mac for about 6 years in a large corp (a few thousand employees), and it was great for my needs as a software developer. I did use Office products, albeit not much, on the Mac, and they worked ok. But, for my work as a programmer, the Mac was supreme !

I'd say more than half the computers used by developers / graphic designers there are/were Macs, quite a few Ubuntus running on PCs, and a few Windows machines. Windows was used heavily by testers (and of course, almost exclusively by other non-technical departments), but not so much by developers.