A major concern around implementing a bring your own device (BYOD) program revolves around security – data loss, theft, and virus issues. Yet supporting BYOD in the workplace from the cloud is not only doable but a choice that can enhance mobility and ensure BYOD security as well.
More and more businesses are allowing employees to BYOD. In a 2016 TechPro Research report, BYOD was in use at 59% of organizations with another 13% planning to allow it. BYOD was most common in the manufacturing and education sectors, with more small companies (50 or fewer employees) allowing it when compared to larger organizations.
In a BYOD workplace, people are able to use their own device to work how they want to. This can mean a PC-based company has people bringing in Apple laptops, or those employees who are in many meetings or on the road preferring a tablet device.
We recently addressed several benefits of being a BYOD workplace. These included:
Note: Using personal devices for work activities saves employees 58 minutes each day, providing a 34% increase in productivity. — Samsung
Yet a primary concern when it comes to a BYOD workplace is DaaS Security. The risks include:
Yet with employee education and smart mobile management policies, your business can retain security while giving your employees the greater satisfaction of choosing what devices they use at work.
The BYOD security movement enables mobility, but also requires businesses to develop policies to protect critical data and resolve security concerns. For IT, BYOD workplaces represent a big jump in the number of devices to secure and make sure are compliant. Many cloud services can be easily configured to accommodate BYOD programs.
With Desktop as a Service (DaaS) for instance, users can easily access their work desktops on any device, even an iPad. DaaS offers a consistent user experience, regardless of device format or brand, and standardizes deployment, security, and support to deliver a secure strategy for BYOD and geographically dispersed workforces.
Remote Monitoring & Management (RMM) and Mobile Device Management (MDM) is another handy tool for IT staff confronted with employees bringing in many individual devices. With RMM, IT staff can manage configurations and patches while still accessing performance reporting regardless of the location and type of end-user environment.
MDM similarly allows your IT team to secure, configure, locate, or even erase any mobile device used for business. MDM extends the company’s security policies to all devices from a centralized cloud environment. This enables the business to protect what matters most even in the event of device loss or theft.
With cloud services supporting your BYOD workplace, you can enjoy many key benefits:
Additionally, with cloud-based solutions, it’s easier to scale up and evolve with technology. When businesses are relying on a local storage system, for instance, they may run into the problem of data left behind when an old device is replaced. Yet, with the cloud, it’s easy to transition and update with ongoing access to the pre-existing operational and compliance data.
Finally, IT pros relying on cloud-based support of the BYOD workplace can benefit from more efficient management of the wide range of devices as managing, monitoring, and securing are all centralized.
Turn to a cloud service provider with respected infrastructure and management capabilities. Evolve IP is one of several vendors highlighted in Gartner’s 2021 Market Guide for Desktop as a Service. Let Evolve IP help you make sure your BYOD workplace is easily enabled and managed, and your data is secure.