Problem solve Get help with specific problems with your technologies, process and projects.

Bring your own device to work: Passing trend or the future of IT?

Will the much-talked-about bring your own device to work trend be a long-term concern for CIOs? Our Twitter followers weigh in during our tweet jam.

Emily McLaughlin
Content Development Strategist
Follow:

SearchCIO.com's second tweet jam Feb. 27 revealed that the bring your own device to work trend isn't likely to...

dissolve anytime soon but will be an ongoing security concern for IT leaders. And, as such, bring your own device (BYOD) policies will continue to be a priority.

The first question @searchcio posed to Twitter followers in this month's Twitter discussion was:

Most tweet jam participants agreed that bring your own device to work trends are a concern for organizations, but that developing super-strict policies for personal devices might not be the best way to strategize around security. Tweet jammers initiated conversations around common BYOD anxieties, including the question of whether to ask employees to surrender preferred mobile devices in exchange for a scaled-down number of devices that organizations are willing to pay for and support:

As the conversation deepened, a new question was raised: "How does ownership play a role in security for this BYOD mobility trend?" Several tweet jammers said that any security plan worth its salt is only as good as the users -- i.e., the company's employees. But what role should ownership of the device play in establishing a mobile policy around bring your own device to work?

The ownership discussion continued, taking a turn down a different path. Not every tweet jam participant agreed that device ownership should define BYOD policies, suggesting "data ownership" would be a better focus:

Device preferences and device ownership were not the only topics for discussion in the BYOD segment of our tweet jam. Some participants did note that the bring your own device to work buzzword is part of the larger mobile trend and simply needs to be part of a larger mobility management program:

But many are still specifically concerned with BYOD policy-making:

There is a lot left to say about bring your own device to work trends and policy prioritization. Visit Twitter for a full run-down of February's tweet jam discussion and sound off with your thoughts in the comments section below.

Stay tuned for additional recaps from SearchCIO.com's February tweet jam about mobility, and follow @searchCIO on Twitter to be notified about upcoming Twitter conversations.

This was last published in March 2013

Dig Deeper on Leadership and strategic planning

Join the conversation

8 comments

Send me notifications when other members comment.

Register

By submitting you agree to receive email from TechTarget and its partners. If you reside outside of the United States, you consent to having your personal data transferred to and processed in the United States. Privacy

Please create a username to comment.

Your turn: Are BYOD policies a major concern for CIOs or a fizzling priority?
Cancel
BYOT will continue to be a priority for businesses. Developing and implementing a complete mobile strategy is key to ensuring BYOT success.
Cancel
BYOD momentum is gathering. Consumerisation demands it - and ever growing cost concerns ensure most have to take it seriously.
Cancel
It is a major concern, but maybe also an opportunity to start thinking differently about security. We do not allow BOYD unless a user completed a security course relevant to such devices. Then analyse and plan.
Cancel
Direction is coming from board level - pretty hard to ignore
Cancel
I feel that the demarcation of not only ownership but responsibility/liability ought to be delineated clearly in BYOD policy. Regarding devices, it's reasonable to have baseline requirements, esp. security measures. For instance, I just heard that Samsung actually has an app/mechanism that allows for a "dual-personality" phone. I think that tech mfrs are sensing a market opportunity that warrants close observation in the near future. In the face of changing technology, it may be prudent to present a short term policy in the context of a long-term BYOD vision.
Cancel
CIO's need to be concerned about BYOD to insure that they are keeping up with all of the devices being used, the new data formats that need to be managed and posiibly the most important aspect, keeping their data safe.
Cancel
sure they are a major concern as the people who keep pushing it are also the ones notorious for not following normal security procedures....just saying
Cancel

-ADS BY GOOGLE

SearchCompliance

SearchHealthIT

SearchCloudComputing

SearchMobileComputing

SearchDataCenter

Close