Dive Brief:
- Performing the cost vs. benefit balancing act is hardly new for organizations, but the manner and speed in which smart technology has transformed the workplace has introduced new issues for not just the IT department but also HR professionals, according to an article at HR.BLR.com.
- Author Israel Lifshitz, CEO at Nubo, says using a bring your own device program (BYOD) is important both now and in the future if your organization wants to attract a modern workforce and achieve more results with less time and resources.
- But lost or stolen devices become that much more possible -- and dangerous, if there is sensitive company data on them. The quality of your organization's BYOD program depends on the quality of your security process, how well it integrates with mobility needs, how well these processes are translated into practical policy, and how clearly those policies are communicated to BYOD employees, Lifshitz writes.
Dive Insight:
Setting up an effective policy for BYOD is mandatory. For example, make phone passcodes a rule. It’s much easier for employees and IT to do that rather than try and remember multiple passwords for each and every work-related app they have to open to do their job.
On the other hand, instilling invasive measures such as disabling the camera or screenshot capabilities of a user’s phone purely for security reasons will only alienate your employees and have them either look for ways around your policies or simply adopt BYOD less, Lifshitz writes.
Lifshitz adds that the safety of a company’s intellectual properties and trade secrets, as well as highly sensitive client data, should be viewed with the same lens as other HR initiatives, such as health and safety. He then offers some smart steps in making this happen, so both management and mobile employees are happy and company data is as secure as possible.
