I BYOD. Do You?

Like so many of my colleagues and friends, I practice BYOD (bring your own device). Do you? If you carry your own mobile device to work (whether it’s a smartphone, tablet, Mac or PC; you get the idea), then we have something in common – you, me and millions of other Americans in the workplace. So what’s the big deal about BYOD?

Research shows that 50 percent of people believe desk phones will be replaced by mobile devices in three to five years – that is, completely replaced by the year 2017. Plus, did you know 50 percent of employees use their mobile phones while sitting at their desk (right next to their desk phones)? While that sounds rather silly, I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve responded to work emails and made business calls using my mobile while sitting at my desk. It’s not a conscious choice, either – we just live in a mobile world.

BYOD does come with its own unique set of challenges, especially for IT decision makers and company administrators. For the former, one of the most prominent issues is security. Today, 68 percent of IT decision makers view BYOD as a security risk. If an employee leaves a company, there’s a good chance that company data goes, too, on the person’s mobile device. Plus, there is significant risk when customer relationships are being managed from employees’ personal numbers, as opposed to business phone numbers.

Yet, despite the challenges, more and more companies continue to adopt BYOD policies. Quite simply, the benefits outweigh the drawbacks.

What are those benefits?

• Employees get to choose the device they want/are most comfortable using, eliminating the learning curve that comes with adapting to new equipment.
• BYOD reduces budget needs for IT equipment.
• Increased productivity. Research shows most employees use their mobile devices to do work on personal time.

The last bullet point is certainly true for me: I find myself checking work email in the evenings, when running errands and even on vacation. And while I certainly don’t encourage everyone to do the same, it’s a simple fact that work is hard to ignore when it’s on your personal phone.

As the leader in cloud-based business phone solutions, RingCentral enables BYOD without the downside, making it easy to add and manage users across multiple locations – especially remote employees. RingCentral Office, which offers full-featured apps for iOS and Android, allows companies to manage their communications from anywhere, at any time. And employees who leave can simply delete the RingCentral app from their phones, cutting all ties to their former employer’s communications system.

Learn more about RingCentral Office here. For more facts on BYOD, check out this whitepaper from analyst firm Frost & Sullivan (PDF).

Originally published Nov 20, 2013, updated Dec 30, 2022