2017 will be the adoption tipping point for Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policies according to a recent Gartner report. In just three years from now we’ll see more employees accessing corporate networks using their own personal smartphones than via enterprise provided devices. Currently, companies are supplying over 70% of all devices used within the enterprise, but the report found that 50% of respondents anticipate introducing BYOD within the next three years, and the number of enterprise owned devices will drop to just 40% by 2020.
That’s an awful lot of phones sitting outside of the enterprise that need to be managed. Not surprisingly respondents named Mobile Device Management (MDM) solutions as the top area (87%) for investment. That was above infrastructure, file sharing/syncing and virtual desktops – all important elements in delivering Manage Your Own Device (MYOD).
Of all of the trends that Gartner identified, perhaps the most surprising is that the majority of companies are not in fact offering true BYOD policies. In most cases the IT department is specifying a short list of devices that are allowed on the network. Known as Choose Your Own Device (CYOD), this approach to devices provides companies with far more control, savings and security than BYOD can.
In fact we don’t think that it’s a surprising finding at all, as it’s a trend we’re seeing mirrored by our own customers. While many begin conversations with us about developing BYO or even MYO policies, we soon see a shift in focus towards CYOD once the implications of ‘any device’ are understood.
It makes perfect sense: CYOD can be a better option for companies that need to retain control over the network and how it’s accessed. With that control, comes simpler management and support provided by MDM solutions that can map, track, access and control devices on the network, which of course means better security and regulatory compliance. And CYOD brings (almost) as good user and application experience as BYOD provides.
User choice is vitally important but so is control and management – that’s why we think CYOD provides users and organisations with the best of both worlds.
