BYOD – Benefits without the headaches

What is BYOD?

Bring Your Own Device, or BYOD, is an IT policy encouraging employees to use personal devices such as mobile phones and tablet PCs, rather than devices provided by the company, to access systems and enterprise data.

Benefits of BYOD

• Increased productivity and innovation Employees are comfortable using a personal device, reducing the usual learning curve, and also upgrade more frequently to the latest products.
• Improved employee satisfaction When choosing their own devices rather than those selected by the company, employees are more likely to select a model that suits their needs, also avoiding the need to carry multiple devices.
• Cost savings BYOD policies can result in cost savings by removing the need for companies to fund additional hardware, although it is important to factor in potential costs such as those for IT support.

Potential headaches

• Enterprise cost It is important to consider whether your company has the resources to successfully manage BYOD, both in terms of ensuring security as well as the provision of support.
• Enterprise security Some job functions require access to sensitive information or company servers, increasingly with the use of mobile devices. It is important that IT has complete control over devices in order to keep company data secure.
• Device compatibility It is inevitable that employees will select devices from a range of manufacturers, which may make it difficult to roll out specific policies where devices have differing settings and personalisation opportunities.

How to successfully implement BYOD

For any company wishing to implement BYOD, we would highly recommend minimising problems by the use of a Mobile Device Management (MDM) solution. Sophisticated solutions are available which work across multiple devices and allow policy distribution and device troubleshooting over-the-air, eliminating the need for physical IT intervention.

Solutions can be programmed to control or limit access to various mobile device functions or applications between various time periods or when in specific areas. This gives IT the level of support required to ensure policy adherence and company security, whilst allowing employees the freedom to use their personal device as normal outside work.

Mobile Device Management software features:

• Enterprise-grade security
• Multiple policies & group policies available
• Blacklist/whitelist specific numbers or number groups
• Geo-fenced policies for various locations
• Track or remote wipe lost/stolen devices
• Potential to limit application/feature use
• ‘Over-the-air’ policy distribution
• Simple management & support
• Flexible & scalable to company needs

Find out more

To find out more about BYOD Mobile Device Management and the benefits it could offer your business, please click here.