The corporate network is about to get a lot faster for iOS users thanks to a new partnership between Apple Inc. and Cisco Systems Inc. that will see traffic from iPhones and iPads receive priority treatment from the latter’s widely-deployed switches. It’s the latest of the mobile giant’s efforts to strengthen its hold over the workplace through alliances with established vendors.

Apple has previously teamed up with IBM Corp. for a one-stop-shop procurement service meant to make it easier for large organizations to introduce Macs into their traditionally Windows-dominated offices. That deal built on an earlier agreement to develop over 100 vertical-specific business apps for iOS meant to capitalize on Big Blue’s strong brand awareness among CIOs.

The partnership with Cisco is much the same, but on a much bigger scale. While IBM is driving the adoption of its apps one organization a time, the networking kingpin’s plan will take advantage of the widespread use of its equipment to cover a massive swath of the Apple’s corporate install base all at once.

Administrators at the majority of organizations with Cisco-powered infrastructure will thus gain the ability to prioritize iOS traffic business requirements. That way, data from business apps won’t have to wait for personal communications to clear the network before its reaching its destination, which could help streamline a lot of common activities for mobile workers.

Another major productivity boost will come from the other new feature that Cisco plans to roll out for Apple users: The ability to route calls through internal infrastructure instead of a busy public network. That kills two birds with one stone, improving the quality of communications while allowing organizations to track work-related correspondence in a way that hasn’t been possible before.

The combination of faster connectivity and fewer dropped calls should  provide a powerful incentive for the roughly 36 percent of corporate workers using Android devices switch over to iOS, especially now that there’s a new selection of IBM-developed business apps to choose from. But Apple is hardly the only one benefiting from the new partnership.

Cisco, in turn, gains the mobile giant’s backing for its collaboration software through a go-to-market agreement struck as part of the partnership, which represents an invaluable advantage over the competition. And then there’s the fact that organizations now have another solid reason to keep buying its equipment going forward.

Photo via Geralt