Thoughts & Opinions

by

Eva Del Rio

A collection of columns

and articles about HR

and the workplace

What’s BYOD (Bring Your Own Device), and Why It’s Important

 Q:  I own a small company, and we currently issue work cell phones for most of our employees. Recently I’ve been hearing about companies letting employees use their own smartphones for work. Is this something worth considering?

A:  Yes, but with eyes wide open.

The Bring Your Own Device trend (BYOD) has been growing over several years and will continue to do so as more tablets and smart phones become part of employees’ daily life. It used to be that IT departments brought-in new technology to employees. Now it’s the other way around. Employees have become technology consumers and are driving how technology is used at work. So businesses should certainly consider BYOD but should be aware of the benefits and risks, so they can be addressed and diminished well before implementation

THE PROS

Increased employee satisfaction and productivity – People use their devices for a reason: they prefer them and feel comfortable using them. Consequently, they’re able to work more efficiently with fewer glitches and zero learning curve, resulting in happier, more productive employees.

Shift costs to users – Employers don’t have to supply devices, employees have purchased their own.

Cutting-edge technology -Employees are able to upgrade technology more quickly than the slow, bureaucratic upgrade process which may constrain most IT departments.

THE CONS

Security risks -Allowing employees to access the company network and data from their personal devices exposes businesses to threats such as viruses and hackers. Plus, what would you do if a phone was lost, stolen or compromised? Some companies require that employees install software which allows the phone to be wiped remotely, erasing all company data and personal data. Ouch! (I just got a chill up my spine).

Defining “acceptable use”. When employees own their devices, it’s much harder to outline how they can or can’t use them.

Data ownership. This is a biggie. Who owns the phone number and the contacts? If an employee leaves the company (voluntarily or not) they’re very likely to take their number.

That’s why, in order to mitigate risk, I recommend setting up security tools, restricting which data may be accessed, not allowing company data to be stored in personal devices and having a policy stating how data will be retrieved from devices upon termination.

Now you decide.

©Copyright Eva Del Rio

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