January is a universally symbolic month: it represents a fresh start, a time to think about the year ahead, and to plan for what we want to achieve in the coming months. Last week, the 1E team headed to our North America HQ in Austin, TX for company and sales kick-off to do exactly that.

Following a week of inspiring presentations and keynote speeches, thought-provoking breakout sessions, and team-building events, we're excited to take on 2024. 2023 was a good year for 1E, and 2024 is set to be great! Let's explore some of the key takeaways and highlights:

Top 3 takeaways

1. Employee experience is top of mind

One thing is abundantly clear heading into 2024, the digital employee experience (DEX) market continues to grow. DEX vendors have increased their installed bases. By expanding their functionalities, new vendors are entering from adjacent markets like endpoint management, ITSM, and DEM. Experience is top of mind for leaders, with 63% of decision-makers indicating that improving IT capabilities to enhance employee experience would be a high priority over the next 12 months.

In terms of key DEX market trends and drivers, IT leaders are increasingly focused on improving the digital employee experience. They are shifting focus from technology management to business-value-added work, transforming IT operations into strategic enablers. In fact, Gartner predicts that "by 2025, 50% of IT organizations will have established a DEX strategy, team and management tool, up from less than 20% in 2023".

Even with an increased DEX market, there are still major opportunities for growth and development. Large enterprise customers make up 75% of the DEX market, and the demand is scattered across multiple industries. For example, pharma, IT services, retail, financial services, healthcare, and manufacturing—all of which are expecting more from emerging technology. DEX is transforming to meet the diverse needs of different buyers: from artificial intelligence, tool consolidation, third-party data integration, ongoing hybrid work, and sustainability considerations.

2. Focus on digital friction 

A key takeaway from our sessions was that digital friction is business friction. What does this mean for organizations? It means that focusing on digital friction will be essential for DEX vendors, decision-makers, and IT leaders alike this year.

Digital friction manifests as application crashes, incompatible drivers, and slow boot times. It leads to lost hours, missed meetings, and poor productivity. In turn, this has an impact on an organization's bottom line.

IT leaders and business decision-makers will need to invest in solutions that help eradicate digital friction to avoid a wider impact on their business. Vendors, on the other hand, need to fix these digital workplace issues fast and forever. That means providing customers with the ability to predict and resolve digital friction, fix device drift, and deliver superior digital experiences.

3. ROI is king 

Forget what you thought you knew about creating a competitive edge. Having the shiniest, newest product isn't enough alone. A solution is only as good as the ROI it provides for customers.

While we take pride in winning deals, the real merit is in delivering value for our customers. Sure, 2023 confirmed that the 1E platform is a technically superior product. But last year also revealed the hard ROI we deliver to customers:

  • A large retail client saw $16 million saved over three years with the 1E platform
  • A manufacturing client saw 177% ROI over three years with 1E
  • A significant financial client saved $6 million over three years with 1E automation capabilities

Keeping customers (and the ROI we can bring them) front and center in all we do will continue to be a priority for 1E in 2024.

Introducing 1E Intelligence

With the last point in mind and our customer-obsessed approach, kick-off wasn't just about internal strategy. It also marked a significant milestone for the 1E platform, as we launched 1E Intelligence, an AI engine that's set to redefine digital employee experience (DEX).

1E Intelligence is revolutionizing IT management by combining edge computing and AI to offer real-time, localized data processing for a proactive digital employee experience. With its advanced Hybrid Edge AI, localized data processing, and innovative features like Intelligent Sentiment and Intelligent Insights, it sets a new standard in the industry. 1E Intelligence is more than just a technological advancement; it's a strategic asset for businesses aiming to optimize their digital environments and create a truly frictionless IT experience.

You can learn more about 1E Intelligence here

Team culture

A large part of kick-off was re-enforcing our 1E values and exploring new ways to truly embody what it means to be a 1E-er. The heartbeat of 1E resonates within its remarkable company culture, which we celebrated among Austin's southern hospitality. Exploring the live music and diverse food scene, we strengthened our sense of community and recognized team members for their exceptional hard work in 2023. But don't just take our word for it, see for yourself.