The new business trend - Bring your own devices to work
BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - BRING Your Own Device (BYOD) describes the recent trend of employees bringing personally-owned mobile devices to their place of work, and using those devices to carry out their daily tasks.
The concept of BYOD seems to be a growing trend in St. Kitts as more and more employees are seen using their personally owned devices for work purposes.
One government worker voiced that she would prefer to use her personal devices at work, and that is due to the fact that most organisations issue devices, such as computers, that are not up to date.
"I would rather use my own laptop and phone, even my own pen-drive, because the devices the companies issue are not up to date; they move extremely slow and they just tie up your day. I find I get a lot more work done when I use my own stuff, even if it means I have to buy them."
The new breed of powerful, user-friendly mobile devices and the widespread availability of Wi-Fi have altered work styles and lifestyles to such an extent that it is fast becoming practical for companies to give workers the freedom to bring their own devices such as laptops, tablets and smart phones to work.
It is the constant upgrade of these devices coupled with their enhanced quality and convenience that have driven to their adoption for work-related tasks.
But is this new venture one that should be embraced or would there be drawbacks for both the employee and the employer?
While the notion of allowing workers to use their own computing devices for work-related tasks is straightforward, who actually pays for that device is less clear.
Most individuals are concerned about the expenses that come with the maintenance of their devices. Some are of the view that once their devices are going to be used for work, the organisations should provide a stipend that would be put towards the servicing of the hardware.
"I refuse to use my own equipment for work. If the company was willing to pay for the wear and tear on everything it would not be a problem, but they usually don't. Be it technology, tools, or other equipment, if it is yours then they don't want to pay for it when it gets worn down and breaks, even if 80 percent of the wear and tear was work related," a young lady by the name of Jakisha explained.
"In terms of using your own smartphone, I would find it unfair because at the end of the day when the credit ends, would I be reimbursed for the work-related calls I made? When it comes to laptops and other equipment, I feel that if my job description requires me to use such equipment, then it is my employer's duty to provide me with them," said a website administrator.
On the business end, embracing the notion of BYOD could mean a major shift in cost with the employee, for the most part, handling the expenses that come with maintaining these devices.
One of the benefits to the employee is that their personal devices tend to be more cutting edge, as they upgrade their devices more frequently than most organisations do, so they have the luxury of working with the latest hardware and software.
The company would, of course, benefit from having access to the latest features and capabilities that these cutting edge devices have and this would be at no extra cost.
Productivity is another key objective in BYOD as the concept makes it easier for employees to work beyond office hours and it often ensures that workers are best equipped to fulfill their role.
By embracing BYOD, organisations not only lose control over the hardware but they also lose much control over when and how it is used. Also at the workplace, the employees may not use their personal device for work-related purposes alone, but rather to fulfill personal desires such as social networking - facebook, twitter etc.
On the other hand, some employees are concerned about privacy, stating that they do not want their employers monitoring their personal email or web browsing beyond the workplace.
Never the less, some organisations have already started to embrace this new trend!
SKNVibes spoke with an IT (Information Technology) Administrator for Delisle Walwyn, Ronald 'Louie' Williams who explained that the company is indeed embracing this new venture but has also put measures in place to protect both the company and employee.
"It is actually becoming a trend where employees are allowed in some business places to bring their smartphones and even their tablets but for security reasons it is important that IT administrators put much more security restrictions when certain approved devices have access to the network systems. So even at Delisle Walwyn, what we have done over the last couple of years is introduce 'acceptable use policies' and it comes under 'remote access policy" where it defines standards required to be able to connect to a particular network."
Williams went on to explain that the employee would have the same restrictions as they would if they were using a company-issued device.
He also explained that with BYOD the equipment has to be maintained by the employee but "depending on the particular policy that is in place it may become the company's responsibility to repair or replace those devices if there is damage done and the fault is on the company's end or even on the user's end during the time of work."
This publication also spoke to Head of the Government’s Department of Technology, Christopher Herbert, who stated that BYOD is a trend that he has been looking into for government use as a means of cutting cost.
He also explained that the biggest issue would be security as BYOD is not the best practice unless it is managed.
He continued: "From my research I have found that there is an excellent product that allows for the managing of BYOD policy. It s something that I am examining further and I have gone as far as finding a local vendor who could provide that security solution."
Herbert also explained that this product should eliminate the security risks involved in BYOD and that the government would be testing it for suitability on their part.
He further indicated that this solution would be encouraged especially for small and medium businesses to address and mitigate the security issues that tend to arise from BYOD.
Meanwhile there are those companies that cannot envision embracing such a trend.
SKNVibes consulted with their very own Chief Technical Officer, Stachio Williams. He elucidated that the company would not be accepting BYOD because while there may be benefits, in his opinion, the disadvantages far outweigh them.
"For those devices that are sanctioned for the type of work that an employee has to do, usually the employer would control those. They would provide them and install the necessary software that is necessary for getting the work done. In so doing the employer usually has a certain level of control and of security in terms of what information is being transmitted, stored, used and shared on these devices. They also have a certain level of control as to what is being done, whether the employee is being productive using these devices for work.
Williams said that where maintenance is concerned, the personal devices should be maintained by the employee because "the greater use of them would be for exactly that - personal".
Where mishaps are concerned, Williams explained every case would have to be assessed.
"It is for these kinds of reasons generally that I think the best route would be for the workplace to provide whatever devices are necessary. That way we could have total control of what is being used and there can be no discrepancies as to getting work done and there would be no damage, maintenance or security issues."
While there are those who agree with the BYOD undertaking, there are many more who have voiced that employers should continue to provide the necessary equipment for employers. It seems this new trend, although a growing one, may not be around for too long.
So, BYOD or no BYOD? What do you think?
