The advent of ubiquitous mobile technology and increased levels of use of devices in business is often a challenge for company decision-makers. This has fuelled the growth and development of mobile device management (MDM) as a way for businesses to regulate mobile device usage in the workplace, in a way that is fair, productive and secure. It is an approach that is well understood by leaders in the ICT managed services arena.
One such leader, Integr8, has applied its expertise of the rapidly evolving mobile technology space to develop and entrench an MDM strategy that ticks all the boxes.
Integr8 is the preferred supplier to numerous local and international clients. Its partner-base includes the likes of Citrix, Microsoft, VMware, Cisco, and other high profile industry stalwarts.
The company's services strategy revolves around its innovative technology hub or Nerve Centre. Tied to this resource are carefully constructed services-orientated offerings and solutions that help clients to manage their technology and related trends.
"There are numerous approaches decision-makers can take in terms of mobile management and employees. It relates to how a business views bring your own device and why they should give credence to the impact this trend has on operations. Primarily, managers understand that they have to facilitate access to mobile devices on a corporate network in order to benefit from the productivity this forum allows. However, at the same time, there is a growing awareness of the security implications of mobile devices in the workplace and access control in terms of data," explains Lance Fanaroff, joint CEO of Integr8.
"When speaking of solutions to drive MDM, it is important to bear in mind that technology should help to secure, monitor, manage and support mobile devices," says Fanaroff.
"It is essentially about keeping control over data and configurations settings on the network, in order to protect the integrity of the business' information and control costs," he adds.
He refers to several pertinent statistics, sourced and distributed by recognised global research houses, that, together, paint a very interesting picture of the influence mobility has in commerce. Research has been sourced from the likes of Gartner, Checkpoint, Ovum, IBM, Entersays, Vertic, Motorola & Harris Poll and Magic Software.
Among the most significant of these are that 78% of companies say there are more than twice as many personal devices connecting to corporate networks now than what was the case two years ago; more than 10 billion personal mobile devices are expected to be in use by 2020; 80% of BYOD activity is going unmanaged; and 1.2 billion smartphones and tablets are predicted to be sold in 2014.
According to Fanaroff, the approach to BYOD by a business can vary, but the requirement for effective MDM is becoming more and more prevalent every day - that is if a company wants to acquire and retain effective control without losing the benefits.
"MDM solutions add value. It is important for decision-makers to understand what offerings are out there, what they require for the business, what level of access control and security needs to be implemented and why. By doing this, they will know precisely what to look out for in a service provider or supplier," he concludes.
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