The defining principle of working in technology is its relentless pace of change and innovation, even in places where you may not expect it. Today, technologies are improving so quickly, in so many ways, that companies have an unprecedented opportunity to build more efficient processes, foster deeper collaboration and transform the way they work overall.

At Cisco, we're focused on helping companies future-proof their business, so they can take advantage of all that innovation through six key imperatives: Security from the ground up, network automation, cloud optimization, deep analytics, dynamic collaboration and teamwork, and programs to ensure that we humans can keep up with it all.

This week at Cisco Live! in Melbourne, we come together with customers and partners to dive into these different aspects of technology and how they enable the future of business.

For example, take our recent work with Apple. Mobility is dramatically changing the way work gets done today. But to truly transform the enterprise through mobility, it requires native apps running seamlessly on great devices over modern, sophisticated corporate networks.

Apple and Cisco agreed to work together to create the best possible app and voice experience for iOS devices on corporate networks. We took advantage of new features in iOS 10 and tapped into the latest networking software and hardware from Cisco to increase reliability, connectivity, and deliver a great mobile user experience for apps, calling, and collaboration.

https://youtu.be/QAeWxOms1d4

The solution is elegant in its simplicity: With just a quick software upgrade, organizations can greatly improve the effectiveness of their mobile business processes and collaboration tools, like Cisco Spark, that connect everyone and everything together.

Recently, a U.K.-based Cisco IT team took advantage of it. In Cisco offices around the world, wireless LAN is one of the most important pieces of infrastructure, because our employees truly rely on mobile technologies. Wi-Fi is indispensable to their work.

We're not unique here, of course. Reliable wireless LAN networking is foundational for enabling innovation, driving new business processes, as well as team collaboration and productivity in organizations all over the world. It's only gaining in importance, as companies discover the power of dynamic teamwork - bringing together experts and talent from varied locations to solve challenges and execute projects.

Our U.K. team upgraded its Cisco Wireless LAN controller software to AireOS 8.3 that includes the first networking innovation from the Apple and Cisco strategic partnership. AireOS 8.3 MR1, our latest version, released just last week, extends these unique networking capabilities across the entire Aironet access point portfolio and to all Aironet wireless controller platforms, including Mobility Express. This broad support enables customers of all sizes to benefit from the new capabilities.

To quantify any change from the upgrade, the team conducted a series of tests in their office using the Cisco Spark app. The test was a basic video call between an employee roaming the office floor with an iPhone 7 running iOS 10 connected to the local Wi-Fi network and another employee running the Cisco Spark app on a MacBook.

They repeated the test 20 times a day for several days before and after the software upgrade, and their findings showed a big improvement in the connection quality. The upgrade reduced major interruptions by 83 percent - and complete disconnections were eliminated entirely. And again, taking advantage of these improvements was just a software upgrade away.

To get an idea of how powerful it can be in bringing the actual human experience to the forefront, take a look at the video above, which we're showing this week in Melbourne.

This has been the promise of technology all along: to assist humans in everyday tasks, simplify, automate, and collaborate, whether it's across a conference room table or the Pacific Ocean.

We're looking forward to seeing many of our customers in Melbourne this week, but if you can't make it, check out the video above for a teaser, and then dive into our Apple and Cisco enterprise page to discover more about what we're up to.

The page offers a wealth of resources.  Plus, talk to your Cisco or Partner sales rep to set up a demo or an assessment of how we can help you fast track your mobile business - and take advantage of tomorrow's innovations today. Our time is now.