By Mike Anderson
The issue of BYOD (bring-your-own-device) is on the radar of nearly every enterprise. IT was historically the leader in identifying, selecting and deploying the best technology for the business, but that time has passed. Today users are tech-savvy, and they are the ones getting the newest technologies first.
There is no stopping the employees from bringing their own devices to work, connecting them to networks and accessing data. Since users are selecting their own tools that help them to be more productive and effective, why would business want to keep employees from using them? The key is taking a stance of enablement combined with effective business rules and policy for each different class of user.
BYOD: Bring your own Workplace
BYOD is at the forefront of the new way of working, and is really about bring your own workplace. Since the consumer devices being acquired by individuals have not been designed from the top down to securely fit into the enterprise computing architecture, IT will be faced with an assortment of issues.
Different classes of tools are rapidly evolving to help manage the different aspects of the mobile and BYOD phenomena, including app stores, mobile device management and mobile application management. Each of the approaches has a valuable fit for certain business needs and circumstances.
Beyond what can be addressed in the short term, enterprises will need to recognize the value of mobile and BYOD and establish an integrated and holistic approach to enterprise mobile management. Well beyond managing devices business priorities will include:
- Authenticate and manage user identity
- Control the devices
- Manage the apps
- Protect enterprise data
- Monitor the network
- Optimize performance of the systems
- Administer inventories and expenses
- Oversee a workplace with users as the perimeter
BYOD: Don’t forget about MDM and MAM
Along the way, MDM, MAM and BYOD initiatives will take shape and evolve. Enterprises, and IT organizations, will adapt to a new approach, and users will be increasingly be bringing their own workplace. There is a lot of confusion about where MDM and MAM go in the future. Aragon Research is predicting that the two categories converge over the next three years. See our new Strategic Report for a deep dive. It will help you figure out your overall BYOD strategy.