Myth 1: Most Big Companies Aren't Adopting BYOD
As much as some IT departments would probably like this to be true, it's not. In fact, recent studies show that many big companies are adopting BYOD and that nine out of 10 companies said that their employees are using their own mobile devices at work. Also, 73 percent of those surveyed admitted that managing consumer technology and personal software cloud services is a top priority during their daily workload.
Myth 2: You Can Prevent BYOD in Your Company
As much as you'd like to stay stubborn and keep fighting against BYOD, chances are you're going to lose the battle. With carriers like BlackBerry offering some of the most sophisticated products and services that the BYOD revolution has to offer, it's a matter of time before all companies across the business world are taking advantage of it. If you want to keep up with the times and experience the benefits of new technologies, be prepared to adopt and embrace BYOD in the near future. The increased productivity and employee morale alone will be worth it.
Myth 3: Employees Waste Time With Personal Devices
This is one of the more popular myths when it comes to BYOD, which states that employees are likely spending all their time on personal mobile devices updating Facebook rather then using them to conduct business during work hours. According to studies, the overwhelming use of personal mobile devices and services in the workplace is for accessing enterprise-delivered applications like expense apps, ERP apps, and CRM apps.
Myth 4: BYOD is not Compatible With Android
While it's true that Android devices are more susceptible to attacks by adware, malware, and spyware, there are plenty of tools on the market to help you protect employee devices from external threats. Before caving in to the myth and failing to adopt a BYOD program because of it, take some time to read on the number of ways you can secure your employees' Android devices and help keep harmful viruses out of your network. There's no need to fear, because enterprise solutions are here.
Myth 5: Companies Don't Have Enough Resources to Deal With BYOD
This common myth suggests that companies don't have the time or money to deal with a BYOD program. While it looks good on paper to companies that resist BYOD no matter what you tell them, this myth simply isn't true. The general agreement among analysts is that about 80 percent of companies will make investments this year toward managing their consumer technologies, meaning about a quarter of IT budgets are being used specifically for BYOD.
Myth 6: Millennials are the Driving Force Behind the BYOD Trend
Another popular myth suggests that the growing popularity of BYOD is a result of companies courting young employees by letting them bring their personal mobile devices to work. However, data taken from multiple surveys contradicts this notion. Less than a third of the companies surveyed said their policies were created to attract younger workers. Contrarily, they stated it provides flexibility and increases productivity among employees across the board and regardless of age.
Myth 7: IT Departments Will Be Swamped
Stats reliably show that about 90 percent of security vulnerabilities are patchable, meaning that if the people working in the IT department are aware of updates and patches, they can simply use them to resolve problems. To save time and money, it's critical that IT employees stay up to date on their patches, even though most are now automatically deployed by the producers of the device in question.
Myth 8: Consumer Devices Have Built-In Safeguards
If personal mobile devices are left unmanaged, security breaches are bound to happen when allowing workers to bring their own devices. This is why it's important that companies stay proactive when safeguarding their data and preventing attack. One of the first things you should do is make sure that employees have the most up-to-date virus software installed on their devices. Also, make sure they have a remote wipe on their devices and enforce strong password protection.
If you work for a company that hasn't implemented a BYOD program yet - or if you're a CEO who's been seriously thinking about instituting one - make sure to take these myths into consideration. There's nothing worse than not taking advantage of a program just because you heard a false rumour about it.
Have you heard of any other BYOD myths? Leave a comment below and let us know.