The Worker's Side of the BYOD Equation

As more and more employees insist on being able to use their preferred hardware over the corporate standard, BYOD policies in the workplace become unavoidable. This is a picture of BYOD being regarded as something that is beneficial for workers, while employers are beset by security concerns and support costs. Employers simply go along with the BYOD program, hoping that it will enhance productivity. However, the real story is far more involved.

BYOD passes on new costs and accountabilities to workers when some of them may not have been raring to go with a BYOD program in the first place.

Expenses

Many companies presently offer subsidies for their employees' mobile devices and data plans. And with Corporate Owned, Personally Enabled (COPE) policies, a company can leverage the bulk discounts that a large business organization can get from carriers and retailers.

However, this trending may not last. Organizations that do not institute COPE-type policies let their employees handle the out-of-pocket expenses for hardware and associated online costs.

There is no clear data about how much workers are paying for BYOD. But the results of a Cisco Internet Business Solutions Group (IBSG) survey showed how much workers were willing to pay. The Cisco study discovered that almost half of the respondents favor BYOD over being provided with corporate devices. They were also willing to shoulder the associated costs. The polled global workers were willing to spend an average of $965 for their own devices, plus $734 per year for the mobile voice and data plans.

ReadWrite's Brian Proffitt observes that those are significant amounts. Companies may even find it tempting to shift the financial burden from the corporate coffers to their employees' wallets. And that's only for smartphones. Laptops or desktops cost even more.

There is also the matter of software costs. These expenses may not be too common due to software's notoriety for bringing in malware. An organization will understandably want to keep a tight lid on the types of applications used for corporate data and will opt to shoulder them. As for apps for personal use, they are most likely going to be shouldered by employees.

In addition, the cost of insurance premiums for mobile devices can be an issue. Trace Media Marketing founder Chris Dawkins said, "There's no need to insure a computer if we don't own it. With devices that we provide, especially portable devices, insurance can be an issue."

Dawkins also shared instances when insuring mobile devices came in handy. He said, "The one time that I provided a mobile phone to an employee, it was left on a train during the first month of use and needed to be replaced. Another replacement was needed when the employee dropped and broke the new phone."

Privacy Issues

The legality of handling corporate data in a worker's personal device is a potential gray area. Corporate-owned devices are subject to restrictions; machines intended for work should not touch on any of the worker's personal stuff. Although this does not apply to BYOD, company policies can still go into how BYOD devices are used in the workplace.

Emails are not subject to personal privacy laws in many jurisdictions. Thus, employers are free to monitor the email correspondences of their employees-a policy intended for corporate-owned devices. But since corporate data and software may be involved in BYOD, then employers can certainly demand to have the right to look at employees' emails on personal devices being used for work.

Also, monitoring access to files and internet usage can be legally justified by business organizations. Anything from ensuring that no confidentiality rules are violated to preventing the introduction of malware can be used by employers as grounds for overseeing data on their employees' devices.

It is a common practice for some companies to not only perform remote monitoring but also remote data wiping. TransPerfect IT director George Buelna said, "On employee termination or company separation, a remote wipe is executed on personal iPhone and Android devices. This wipes address books, photos, music and the memory card."

There is also data lock down. Buelna explained that in the case of TransPerfect and other employers, pass codes on personal devices were required.

What Do Workers Think?

ReadWrite's Brian Proffitt writes that the BYOD demand in the workplace is not completely clear. Some surveys point to the weakened economy as a driving factor behind BYOD as workers are more eager to make sacrifices just to keep their jobs. Then there's Gartner predicting that by 2017, half of employers may require BYOD.

Some people are all for BYOD. ShoreTel senior manager of search Michael Freeman remarked, "In the end, the flexibility is worth the increased encroachment of work on personal time."

FwdHealth communications director Max Rava said, "In my past two places of employment I have worked under a BYOD policy. I have found that this is a sound policy because it makes remote commuting much easier in the event of illness, personal emergencies and corporate crisis." Rava explained that when he was sick, he was able to effectively work at home for three months because of the BYOD policy.

Profitt concludes, "Such anecdotes are commonplace in BYOD discussion, and will continue to fuel the movement to own and operate your own device for work. But before diving in, workers should be very aware of what they're getting into in terms of time, money and control of data." (KOM) Link