I’ve been recently assigned by my boss here at Matrix42 to lead our MDM (Mobile Device Management) marketing initiative, so I’ve been eating, sleeping and breathing MDM for the past several weeks, and as I was driving on Utah’s Interstate 15 on my way to our cool Salt Lake City office (well it’s actually in Lehi, Utah) this morning, a few thoughts came to my mind.  

Bringing your own device (“BYOD”) – or perhaps “BYOT” (bring your own technology) – to your workplace addresses many security challenges, but businesses now need to look at ways to turn this issue into a business opportunity by implementing a holistic device management solution. According to a recent survey I saw in InformationWeek, 97% of employers are now allowing employees to access corporate data on their own devices. And according to the enterprise IT pros we surveyed at Citrix Synergy last month, only 28 percent of their companies have no plans to support BYOD. This of course can create some serious security challenges and breaches, and managing multiple operating systems and dozens of mobile devices across physical, virtual and cloud environments is also an important consideration. 

As companies look for a holistic solution, I advise them to think about the following four value drivers:

• First, how is this MDM (Bring Your Own Device) solution going to help me reduce costs within my organization?
• Second, how can we reduce risk? How will this solution standardize security across all devices and meet compliance standards? 
• Third, will this solution efficiently manage all of my applications across my device fleet? 
• And fourth, will this solution offer me an automated central management console with the ability to monitor devices 24/7?  

Businesses and IT departments are constantly looking for ways to increase end-user productivity. Of course, for the IT department, it’s all about being efficient and reducing IT costs. Now is time to look at ways on how “BYOD” can turn into a business opportunity for your company. How cool would it be for the IT department to have one automated tool to manage all devices (desktops, notebooks, handhelds, smartphones, iPads, iPhones, etc.) across physical, virtual and cloud environments? I call this “delivering the dynamic workplace.” Stay tuned – it’s coming.

Image credit: Patrick Corrigan, "Obama's iPad Giveaway." Jan 29, 2010.