Ford and Cisco: Taking hybrid work on the road

In collaboration with Joel Barbier

To remain competitive, and to attract and retain employees, a growing number of companies have adopted a hybrid work model: designing the work experience around and for workers, wherever they are.

This means enabling employees to work equally effectively at the office, at home, and — when you’re an automotive company — on the road.

Ford Motor Company has enlisted Cisco’s help to do just this — bring the hybrid work experience to drivers and other vehicle occupants. The companies are collaborating to provide next-generation customer experiences in Ford’s latest battery electric vehicles (BEVs), including the Mach-E Mustang automobile and F-150 Lightning truck.

The joint initiative includes integration of Cisco Webex into new Ford BEVs. In fact, the immersive, highly collaborative mobile-office experience may turn Ford BEVs into the best possible place to hold a meeting. And, just as you wouldn’t ride in a BEV without your seatbelt fastened, Cisco has protected Webex with our full security stack, including Cisco ThousandEyes, Umbrella, Duo, and Meraki software.

The partnership is the product of close collaboration between Ford, the Cisco account team, Cisco engineering business entities, and Customer Zero.

“Allowing people to remain productive by using Webex in cars will unlock literally millions of hours for customers,” said Ford Motor Company President and CEO Jim Farley.

Cisco Webex enables Ford to take mobile-office meetings to the next level

Ford’s integration of Cisco Webex into its new BEVs makes it the first auto manufacturer to run native Cisco software-as-a-service in vehicles. While using Webex, drivers can take full advantage of the generous 15-inch display and high-end sound system featured in the Mach-E Mustang and F-150 Lightning BEVs, which provide an entirely unique, “always-on” hybrid work experience.

To avoid the possibility of distracted driving, all Webex meeting functions are accessed hands-free via voice commands while the car is in motion. Once the Ford BEV is parked, however, drivers can enjoy the full Webex video collaboration experience.

This initiative also extends the Cisco network into Ford’s new BEVs – essentially providing a lifeline from each vehicle back to Cisco. One feature – Webex Calling – assigns a unique phone number to each vehicle, enabling connectivity from virtually anywhere, while also allowing Ford to contact the driver if necessary. Webex will provide optimal audio performance by leveraging the vehicle’s modem and antenna – and through handy features such as cabin noise cancellation.

Cisco security software makes each Ford BEV a secure “mobile device on wheels”

To become and remain viable, hybrid work solutions must ensure highly secure connectivity from any location – including electric vehicles. For this reason, Ford will be incorporating Cisco’s full security stack in its Mach-E Mustang and F-150 Lightning vehicles. This package will include the following security components:

• Cisco ThousandEyes: Offers proactive network visibility/troubleshooting and reliable customer/vehicle network connectivity
• Umbrella: Provides DNS query protection; visibility into – and prevention against – ransomware attacks; and threat intelligence
• Duo: Performs multifactor authentication, enables Hybrid Work Zero Trust (any vehicle, any company), and ensures a device security posture
• Meraki: Adjusts access and enforces security policy based on compliance, while also authenticating each user’s identity based on SM installation status with Duo

… And there’s much more to come, with Cisco acting as “Customer Zero”

As part of their partnership, Ford and Cisco are instituting a fleet program that will help make Cisco employees more productive on the road, while also reducing their carbon footprint. As a result, Cisco will offer BEVs for its internal vehicle fleets starting in 2023. What’s more, 4,000 Cisco EMEA employees will have the option to receive a BEV as their company vehicle – making Cisco a sizable Ford customer and providing an active laboratory for testing the companies’ joint solutions. (And our EMEA employees aren’t complaining, either).

The Ford-Cisco partnership will ultimately include the following additional ingredients designed to strengthen any company’s mobile collaboration capabilities:

• Using Webex as the UI/UX for engaging with roadside infrastructure. This function has the potential to dramatically increase safety by enabling Webex to convey alerts about road conditions, traffic, pedestrians, roadside work zones, and more.
• Leveraging the Webex Predict AI platform to enable interactions with the people who have the biggest impact on success.
• Bidirectional vehicle-to-vehicle charging, allowing BEVs to distribute their charge to other nearby vehicles. In addition, vehicles will be charged by connecting a special plate on the bottom of the car to inductive coils in the asphalt of a parking lot.

“In my 40-year career, I’ve never had the chance to improve products and invent new capabilities for customers after we launch the product,” explained Ford President and CEO Jim Farley. “Moving to a digital product and having software be the big differentiator is going to completely change the game for Ford.”

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