Last week we summarized a Forrester report on the rise of bring-your-own-device (BYOD) programs in the corporate world. While BYOD does offer benefits to the enterprise – and is being pushed to the fore by employees seeking greater device options – actually implementing a BYOD policy presents some challenges.
That’s the conclusion offered by Forrester in a separate report (which, like the one we covered last week, is available as a free download from our resources page). The increase in personal device use is so rapid, the analyst firm says, that many companies would do well to outsource some device management functions.
Yet, as is often the case when technology advances faster than organizational change, enterprises are struggling to move quickly enough to keep up.
Cost and complexity, in particular, are at issue. No longer are companies negotiating for the purchase of thousands of devices at once – increasingly, paying for individual users’ phones and cell plans is becoming the norm. Plus, mobile BYOD increases the burden “on already shorthanded IT organizations, along with [adding] user support and help desk costs,” Forrester writes.
While there isn’t a silver bullet in the BYOD implementation process, Forrester does suggest outsourcing certain managerial functions to a third party – a systems integrator, network operator or mobile device management software company.
For more of the analyst firm’s insights, download The Global BYOD Management Services Ecosystem today!
Featured photo courtesy of Maik Meid via photopin cc.
Originally published Jan 28, 2014, updated May 27, 2021
