BYOD

4 REASONS YOU SHOULD CONSIDER BYOD

Before the days of smartphones and laptops, the idea of asking an employee to bring their own devices would be considered laughable. Can you imagine, employees hauling bulky desktops and towers to work each day? BYOD has made what was impossible, possible.

The evolution of technology has been rapid. At this point, BYOD is old news. However, the buzz surrounding it hasn’t quieted down. Its popularity is expected to grow. Companies aren’t asking if they need BOYD, but rather what is the best practice for implementation. It’s quickly taken its place as a part of our modern business culture.

That being said, some organizations are still hesitant to adopt a BYOD policy. Here are a few reasons why it’s beneficial.

 
Productivity
One of the most significant benefits of BYOD is the boost in productivity seen in all departments of an organization. Employees are using devices they are familiar with making it easier to take full advantage of device features. IT Technicians are using tools they already understand, requiring less training. Organizations can maximize revenue through productivity.

 
Cost
If you’re a business owner, you know the costs of technology can be substantial. Supplying an entire company with devices can add up quickly. BYOD programs shift costs to the individual user. Businesses have noticed as employees use their smartphones and tablets maintenance and service fees are drastically reduced. Additionally, employees who use their own devices are more likely to have the latest technology, meaning you don’t have to …

Pros & Cons of BYOD

The BYOD or Bring Your Own Device movement has gained a tremendous amount of traction and isn’t going away anytime soon. Many companies now allow employees to bring their own laptops, smartphones, tablets, and other productivity tools to their workplace and reap the benefits of familiarity.

While most employees tend to speak only positives about BYOD, not all employers share the same opinion because a haphazard BYOD policy can put a company in several tricky situations.

If you’ve thought about implementing BYOD at your office but haven’t been able to decide, consider the following pros and cons of BYOD.
Pros of BYOD
1. Comfort: The best thing about this program is that it allows the workers to use devices that they are already familiar with. Because the employees are already comfortable with their devices, they can focus more on work-related tasks instead of “settling in,” making increased efficiency one of the biggest pros of BYOD.

2. Flexibility: When you allow your employees to use their own device, they are better able to work remotely. Remote workers can join calls, meeting, and general collaborations from anywhere and at any time, without needing work-issued tools to access their documents and data.

3. Cost savings: Perhaps the most obvious benefit of BYOD for employers is the financial savings from not having to buy a device for each employee. Rather than issue a brand new smartphone with its own data plan to every hire, employers need only to ensure that new hire downloads the right applications to …

The Pros and Cons of BYOD

In a world where technology is constantly changing and evolving, it can be almost impossible to keep up with the latest shifts and trends, especially for large companies managing complicated systems. But, it’s much easier for individuals to stay on top of the latest trends, and they often do.This is why, more and more, employees like using their own devices at work rather than relying on technology that may be outdated or hard to use. This desire has fueled a trend called Bring Your Own Device (BYOD).

The BYOD to work movement is taking the enterprise by storm and doesn’t show any signs of slowing. This new movement is often more productive and cost-effective for companies, but not always. There are a lot of perks to the BYOD movement, but also a lot of risks.

Before you put a BYOD plan in place, explore some of the Pros and the Cons of BYOD in 2017.
Pros of BYOD
Some of the more obvious perks to a BYOD environmentcircle around employee satisfaction. Workers know their own devices, they like them, they want to use them. When they are allowed to use their own devices, rather than an outdated or unfamiliar device provided by their company, they are happier.

But the perks go beyond happy employees. They also tend to be more productive on their own devices. They can share information faster and easier, work faster, and when they have their devices on them all the time, they can work …

Getting the Most Out Of Your Remote Employees

Whether your firm is adding to its remote workforce, or just beginning the process of incorporating remote workers into the company, there are numerous things to consider.

Whether you’re evaluating an existing employee as a remote worker, or interviewing a potential new hire for remote work, an individual’s skills and his/her ability to self-manage are obviously a necessary item. It’s important to establish and maintain a trust level with each remote worker. But beyond that, there are a number of additional items to keep in mind:
Provide the Necessary Equipment
With a remote workforce, it’s important to maximize communication through the use of technology that is meaningful for your particular industry. This may include the installation of a cloud-based or hybrid phone system. Additionally, you may want to evaluate allowing the remote employees to operate within a “Bring Your Own Device” (BYOD) policy for their mobile devices.
Schedule Regular Meetings
Some organizations schedule weekly video conference calls across various geographic regions to accomodate the remote workforce. The participants include different levels of related management and remote workers. The exchange of information keeps everyone in the loop, discussing the strategies that are working for the business and those that are not. Any new techniques used or tested are shared and discussed.

Depending on the proximity between remote workers and management, occasional face-to-face meetings might also provide advantages in order to instill a sense of belonging within the organization.
Discuss Schedules
For many remote workers, one of the benefits of working remotely is a flexible schedule. …

The IT Director’s Role in BYOD Security

We used to think of IT Directors as an independent part of an organization, operating in their own little world and fixing problems as they arise. Today, they are a key component to the strategic development and decision-making of the business. In this more modern IT world, some of those strategic decisions include the company’s BYOD security policies.
Developing a Security Policy
Threats like viruses, unsecured devices and theft all put private corporate data at risk. In order to prevent the unauthorized access of this information, an IT Director should implement a security policy that is monitored and enforced throughout the organization. This policy should include:

Corporate Data Protection Policy: Employees should keep all company data separate from their personal data. Additionally, all business data should be encrypted so an unauthorized user cannot access the company data in a readable form.
Restrictions for the Use of Compromised Devices: Mobile devices that have been “jailbroken” or “rooted” should not be permitted for company use. Additionally, all approved devices should have a screen-locked password.
Mobile Security Management Best Practices: Using a security management suite like Mitel Sky prevents unauthorized users from gaining access your company data without enrolling first.
Offline Accessibility Controls: For companies with high levels of security, sensitive documents and applications should be blocked from mobile accessibility. These documents should only be available if the user is directly connected to the corporate network.

Generating Executive Buy-in for BYOD Systems
An IT Director looking for executive approval should identify the …