3. Best Business Solutions
One platform, limitless journeys
Our conversations with business customers make it clear that high-speed connectivity for its own sake is no longer enough. Certainly, businesses expect secure and seamless connections through our fixed and mobile networks, but primarily as an enabler for their ambitions – whether that is greater flexibility for their employees, increased security for their data or more meaningful connections with their own customers.
ONE PLATFORM, LIMITLESS JOURNEYS
Through our Vodafone Business brand, we help our business customers – small office/home office (SoHo), small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and large corporates – to thrive in the digital world. We do this by delivering end-to-end, customer-centric value propositions, built around four topics: cyber resilience, the future of working, connecting your business and business innovation.
These propositions are integrated into our user-friendly digital platform, easily accessible via the One Entrance portal we launched in 2023. The platform is made up of Vodafone and Ziggo products and services combined with (over-the-top (OTT)) solutions from third parties. This ensures we live up to our promise of providing high-quality solutions that enable our customers’ ambitions and give businesses the freedom to drive their own journey in whichever direction they choose.
A TRUSTED PARTNER
In turn, our colleagues can focus on adding more value at key moments. We inspire customers through events such as our Tech4Business days, where we promote discussion and share insights on key topics, such as artificial intelligence (AI) and smart buildings (see Technological solutions for society (new window)). We also provide inspirational content via our increasingly popular V-Hub platform, which attracted around 24,000 visitors during 2023. Moreover, we invest in the accreditation and certification of our people to ensure we can act as a sparring partner when required, using our expertise to help customers identify what they and their business really want. By listening carefully to their strategic goals, we can work with them and our suppliers to design and implement the solutions they need to realise their ambitions.
Vodafone Business is unique in being the only international brand in the Netherlands that provides a comparable array of telecom, IT and security services for businesses. We leverage our global network of partners, other Vodafone Business entities and suppliers for the benefit of our customers, who appreciate the access Vodafone Business provides to the world-leading solutions they need in today’s competitive business environment. This customer recognition was reflected in our strong Vodafone Business NPS result in 2023, which increased by six points versus 2022. Vodafone has been named a leader in managed IoT connectivity for the tenth time in a row by Gartner (new window).
CYBER RESILIENCE
Digital security is non-negotiable for businesses today, but it can be a daunting challenge, especially as national and European regulations develop. The Dutch government, for instance, is calling for 90% of basic services to be digitally available by 2030 and for 80% of SMEs to adopt cloud and AI services by the same year.
Within this landscape, VodafoneZiggo helps our business customers progress safely, whether they are enabling mobile payments or transferring medical records. By ensuring their cybersecurity performance is where it needs to be, our support helps customers not only to mitigate security and compliance risks, but also to capture the opportunities of digitalisation. We invest heavily in protecting our network as well as our customers’ networks. Furthermore, we provide a broad range of security products, using the NIST Cybersecurity Framework as our reference.
In 2023, we integrated our secure hybrid-working solutions into all our customer value propositions. We also supported customers confronting the challenges of data security in relation to generative AI technology, including by rolling out solutions to block access to certain AI tools in the workplace. For more information on how we manage this topic, see Data security and privacy for our customers and employees (new window).
THE FUTURE OF WORK
As a large organisation employing thousands of people while navigating the digital and sustainability transitions, we know the challenges our business customers are facing when it comes to meeting the expectations of consumers, (potential) employees and legislative authorities. Our Smarter Working package is therefore designed to support customers of all shapes and sizes in their efforts to be a responsible business in the modern world.
Smarter Working is an end-to-end, customisable suite of solutions targeted at helping business customers manage their people and resources more smartly and sustainably. From the cloud, accessibility software and home-working solutions to smart lights and thermostats in office buildings, these products and services help make our customers’ businesses fit for the future.
FIT FOR THE FUTURE
Annually we conduct a Fit for the Future survey to investigate companies’ openness, readiness and flexibility in relation to the modern workplace and emerging technologies.
CONNECTING YOUR BUSINESS
Vodafone Business is proud to be recognised by Gartner as a global leader in Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity, services and solutions. We enable worldwide IoT for our business customers through our SIM cards, our low-latency 5G network and the 5G Hub Eindhoven (see Technological solutions for society (new window)). Vodafone connects more than 182 million IoT devices worldwide.
By harnessing IoT, we help our customers improve the efficiency of their operations, develop new solutions and ultimately achieve better outcomes. One powerful example of our IoT in action is in hospitals, where we use this technology to securely track valuable assets – such as diagnostic machines or wheelchairs – thereby preventing the loss of essential and expensive equipment.
BUSINESS INNOVATION
Our business customers are constantly using our networks to power innovative solutions for their customers in turn – from robots that remove weeds from crops, thereby reducing the need for pesticides, to water-quality assessments and predictive maintenance for dikes. At VodafoneZiggo, we believe in providing not only the innovative tools but also the inspiration they need to bring their vision to life.
In November, for example, we organised a Shared Shop in Amsterdam, bringing together three online retailers with consumers in a physical shop with the help of augmented reality (AR) technology. Visitors were able to scan an in-store QR code and access a virtual layer on their smartphone, through which they could browse and purchase the products on offer. Our customers were able to enhance the end-consumer experience thanks to interactive digital engagement (see Blended shopping: a unique experience (new window)).
Increasingly, we are joining forces with partners to promote conversation and innovation around trending topics in the business environment. In 2023, for instance, we held a joint event with partners, focusing on how businesses can leverage digital solutions to improve the customer experience with contact centres. Our goal with events like this is to open customers’ eyes to new possibilities, to inspire them to explore technological solutions and to position Vodafone Business not just as a solutions provider but as a trusted expert and partner on their innovation journey.
SUPPORT FOR SMEs
In 2023, VodafoneZiggo was awarded the title of SME partner of the year by Cisco, reflecting our commitment to making digitalisation simpler and more beneficial for SMEs. Our goal in 2024 is to continue integrating our SME-focused solutions into an attractive new value proposition that makes these customers’ operations smarter, more secure and more seamless than ever. We are also collaborating with the entrepreneurs’ association MKB-Nederland, using its insights to inform the development of our SME package while also giving us a voice in important national conversations around the digitalisation of business.
Technological solutions for society
From climate change and social inequality to the housing shortage and the rapid emergence of new technologies, our society is facing a complex and fast-developing matrix of challenges. At VodafoneZiggo, we believe our network and expertise can help tackle them: not only by connecting individuals to everyday digital tools and experiences, but also by enabling safe and innovative solutions that make life better, now and for the generations to come.
PROGRESS FOR ALL
In close partnership with entrepreneurs, companies, students, policymakers and knowledge institutions, we use the power of cutting-edge technology – including 5G, AR, virtual reality (VR) and AI – to help build a more sustainable and inclusive world. We believe that public–private cooperation is essential to solving the problems we face as a society, and that we have a responsibility to play our part.
Our efforts are centred on three non-profit open innovation hubs, all based in economically and technologically strategic locations in the Netherlands. Through our participation in these hubs, we can combine our technology expertise with the wide-ranging capabilities of our partners. In turn, this amplifies our positive societal impact across the realms of connectivity, entertainment and sustainability – and helps us fulfil our purpose of delivering enjoyment and progress with every connection.
Public–private cooperation is essential to solving the problems we face as a society.
5G HUB EINDHOVEN
In 2023, we continued to investigate and develop the 5G applications of the future at our site in Eindhoven, which we set up in 2020 in partnership with Brainport Development, the High Tech Campus and Ericsson. VodafoneZiggo aims to capture the opportunities of 5G when the time comes – especially in relation to our strategic focus areas of Best Business Solutions and Secure & Seamless Connectivity.
One important development in 2023 was the appointment of a full-time VodafoneZiggo manager at the 5G Hub, marking a step up in our dedication to the work we carry out there. This new manager is supported by a cross-functional team of VodafoneZiggo colleagues who devote some of their working week to particular projects or solutions.
In 2023, these projects included a new partnership with Eviden, bringing together its ground-breaking computer vision platform with our 5G capabilities. Computer vision has significant potential in numerous safety applications, from counting the number of people in a crowd or identifying abandoned luggage to checking whether construction workers are wearing their hard hats on site. Using the power of 5G and edge-cloud computing means this analysis can take place in near-real time, as we and Eviden have successfully demonstrated at the 5G Hub.
We also organised a Tech4Business event at the Hub to engage with businesses about the digital transformation and what it means for the future of work. This inspiration and networking opportunity featured expert speakers from within and beyond VodafoneZiggo and attracted dozens of business representatives.
The media innovation hub and ziggo sport joined forces to explore the future of television.
MEDIA INNOVATION HUB HILVERSUM
Together with a wide range of partners – including Beeld & Geluid, NCP, the municipality of Hilversum, Metaverse Werkplaats, Studio XNL and Media Perspectives – we celebrated the official opening of the Media Innovation Hub in October 2023. This site is a core part of the Endless Entertainment pillar of our strategy, focusing on new applications for entertainment, media and gaming, particularly when it comes to the transition from traditional journalism, radio and TV to more immersive experiences.
As media consumption continues to both increase and transform – through, for instance, the metaverse and Web 3.0 – the Hub and Ziggo Sport joined forces in 2023 to explore the future of television. Using a 360° VR headset, we were able to sit (virtually) with the presenting team at the Formula 1 Race Café event (see Ziggo Sport (new window)). Together with talented and creative students, our Hub experts will continue researching new ways of consuming media, supporting our goal of bringing greater connection and enjoyment to our collective entertainment experience.
GREEN INNOVATION HUB ALMERE
The Netherlands needs one million new houses over the next decade – and a significant number of them will be built in Almere. At the Green Innovation Hub in this growing city, we collaborate with regional and local governmental organisations as well as private companies that specialise in everything from construction and energy to food, mobility and inclusion. In this way, we aim to help develop residential areas – such as Almere Pampus, which will be a home to around 60,000 people – that will act as a prototype for the cities of the future: socially inclusive and environmentally sustainable.
VodafoneZiggo’s technological capabilities and Best Business Solutions enhance our partners’ ability to leverage their own areas of expertise. Our joint innovations are helping to shape a greener tomorrow, in line with our strategic priority of enabling Progress for Everyone.
In 2023, we launched a Minecraft Challenge at the Hub, giving young people the opportunity to virtually design their favourite living environment of the future. Among the many impressive entries was the idea to capture used (‘grey’) water and harness it to generate energy for the local area. We aim to hold another contest in 2024 to identify market solutions that could bring this sustainability innovation to life for the residents of Almere Pampus and other urban development areas.
TALENT FOR THE FUTURE
As well as being incubators for innovative technological solutions that can help address some of society’s biggest challenges, our hubs also play an important role in directly supporting young talent and start-up and scale-up businesses.
In 2023, for example, several VodafoneZiggo trainees tackled projects at the three hubs. We also partnered with academic institutions including TU Delft and TU Eindhoven, inviting students to visit the sites, learn about exciting technologies and discover potential career paths. In 2024, we will kick off the second edition of the Green Innovation Hub Challenge, through which the Hub supports SMEs with business models, engineering and more in order to help them grow their market position.
Inspiring and developing emerging talents and entrepreneurs is fundamental to our hub approach: scaling up ideas and transforming them into tangible results for our business customers and other stakeholders. VodafoneZiggo is committed to building new and existing partnerships across industries and sectors in the years ahead, using our strengths to accelerate progress at the three hubs and grow our positive impact on society at large.
An important role in supporting young talent, start-up and scale-up businesses.
