According to Webopedia, BYOD (Bring your own device ) refers to employees who bring their own computing devices – such as smartphones, laptops and PDAs – to the workplace for use and connectivity on the corporate network.
Employees want to have the ability to work anywhere using their own device. Work flexibility is one of the key elements required in order to recruit good talent and increase employee retention.
Companies are reporting a reduction in employee turnover because BYOD and work shifting are able to bring more employee satisfaction, compared to any other motivational strategies that companies have traditionally implemented.
Employees prefer close workplace proximity and people generally choose their work based on commuting time and convenience, so working from home or anywhere else other than the office can lead to a tremendous boost in satisfaction.
A particularly good way to protect your company’s data is to implement a virtual environment within the device. Employees can work and access all relevant data, but no data is ever actually saved within the device; both applications and data are cloud based, with the device simply serving as a portal.
According to a recent study in Gartner: “By 2017, half of bosses will require workers to supply their own device for work purposes, while 38 per cent believe they will stop supplying devices to staff by 2016.”
Natalie Williams, Marketing Coordinator, WebSan Solutions Inc., a Canadian Certified Microsoft Partner