At first glance, there appears to be little difference between the concepts of “bring your own device” BYOD and “choose your own device” CYOD. Yet as you begin to marry the concepts of productivity and security together, it becomes apparent that certain guidelines have to be in place to keep efficiencies within the workplace.
In a BYOD environment, individuals already have their own personal devices. They’ve purchased them, use them, are comfortable with them, so it makes sense to allow them to incorporate work-related apps and programs to make getting down to business even easier. Still, keeping policies in place to keep every type of device safe is nearly impossible, and only around 44 percent of employees regularly think about their responsibility to protect corporate information on their personal devices.
To eliminate some of the variability, a CYOD policy may be a better option.
With CYOD, employees choose from a list of preapproved devices. This gives the IT department the opportunity to understand each system, select appropriate security products, and have administrator, firewall and network settings that can quickly be loaded on the device.
It is important to offer variety to ensure employee buy-in, selecting many of the top products already used in the general population.
Choose products and devices focused on responsiveness and productivity. Asking employees before the final selection is made can open up the playing field to concepts that are already in play. Then test products as an end user, making sure they work in a satisfactory way for both production and security.
Realize you may need several approaches to security to keep all information secure. Operating systems have different characteristics, different needs. Choosing popular products and designs can ensure you the largest selection of security measures that fit your needs, making integration and compliance that much easier.
Also, remember to assemble the right team to set up, implement and maintain the process from beginning to end. Anyone with a vested interest – from IT, to legal, to HR – should guide the most important requirements to ensure needs and desires meet expectations and reality.
If we can help you implement the process and make it smoother for your organization’s transition, give us a call.
