Personal devices for business
The concept of BYOD (Bring-Your-Own-Device) in business isn’t a trend; it’s the way of operating in the business world of the future. Individuals enjoy using technology that they are familiar with and hence personal smartphones, laptops and tablets find their way into the workplace for business purposes. These mobile devices, with easy access to Wi-Fi and cloud services, mean that we are able to access data and conduct business from almost anywhere and at any time. Such a notion would have been unheard of a decade ago.
Small business and BYOD
Needless to say, most small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) have welcomed BYOD with open arms. The immediate benefits are clear-cut:
- your SMB will witness increased levels of productivity since employees are using technology that they know and are comfortable with
- company performance will be enhanced with significantly improved services to clients or customers
- higher levels of client satisfaction and retention
- significant reduction in IT hardware expenditure
These BYOD advantages look great at first sight but caution needs to be exercised when implementing and managing a mobile device practice in your business. If your SMB already has BYOD in place, then have you carried out sufficient pre-emptive planning to manage potential security risks associated with BYOD, particularly those related to your data?
BYOD Assessment
Whether you are new to BYOD or it is already inculcated into your company culture, it would be wise to assess if your IT infrastructure, including networks and data, is well prepared for the use of an assortment of mobile technologies.
Together with your in-house IT team, you should establish that both onsite IT systems and those residing in the cloud, are BYOD ready. With that done, you will need to put in place a rigorous set of guidelines or a BYOD policy. The policy should be definitive, clearly stipulating conditions for the use of sensitive data by remote or telecommuting employees.
BYOD questions to answer
Your BYOD assessment and policy should enable you to easily answer these questions:
- Which devices are permissible for use in your SMB? Remember that your IT team or Managed Services Provider (MSP) will be unable to cater for an enormous range of technologies and applications, especially those which are outmoded or that have compatibility issues with your network.
- Who will you assign to manage BYOD in your company and what management solutions will you apply?
- Will you use a BYOD management tool to collect device information and monitor usage so that employees are compliant with your BYOD policy?
- Which technology costs are employees responsible for? Which costs are the responsibility of the company? These costs should encompass the outlay for the device, internet plans, software, accessories and device maintenance.
- What forms of data encryption will be applied to company data that is accessed and stored on personal devices? You should also determine the data privileges available to employees such as read, write, update and delete.
- How will sensitive data be deleted or recovered in the event of a device being lost or stolen? Your BYOD policy must address this need, including how to manage devices of ex-employees. Together with your IT lead or MSP, you should ascertain if your SMB can legally wipe an entire device or only company data and applications.
Managed Services and BYOD
If you have a dedicated IT team, you’re lucky. Most SMBs don’t rely on the expertise and experience of their local MSP. Besides their fundamental role in providing 24/7 monitoring and maintenance of your IT infrastructure and cloud systems, the MSP can be invaluable for proactive BYOD management.
Some of your employees using personal devices may lack the technical know-how of deploying company applications and performing rudimentary maintenance. Your MSP can leverage the latest Mobile Device Management (MDM) tools to ensure that BYOD machines are secure and correctly configured to access your network. The MDM tools ensure that IT infrastructure and business applications are monitored, secured and optimised.
Lost or compromised data always implies legal risk. When adopting BYOD, you need to be aware that sensitive client data can be exposed should a personal device be lost or stolen. Your employees may also have personal online habits that put your IT infrastructure at risk: viruses, malware, phishing or hacking can lead to data theft. Working with your MSP you will be able to mitigate the risks associated with data loss from BYOD. The MSP will have a robust MDM solution so employee devices are managed and monitored to maximise data integrity and security.
Be smart with BYOD
BYOD means that your company has the tech mobility usually reserved for the likes of corporates such as IBM and Apple. Also, you acquire that mobility with a minimal investment. However, with greater mobility comes increased risk of data compromise. As a smart owner of an SMB, you are ready to enlist the services of a trusted MSP would gladly take on the challenges of MDM and provide continuous support and guidance for all your IT needs.
