What is BYOD (Bring Your Own Device)? 11 Pros & Cons

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What does BYOD stand for?

“Bring your own device” to work. It’s when employees use their personally owned devices, like phones and laptops, for work purposes. This includes using them to access work-related systems and data.

Pros:

  • Financial savings for the company
  • Quicker and easier for employees to use their own devices
  • Employees take more care of their own devices
  • More convenient for employees to manage fewer devices
  • Opportunity for employees to upgrade tech themselves

Cons:

  • Hidden costs
  • Security risks
  • Challenges for the IT team
  • Privacy concerns
  • Work-life balance issues
  • Some employees may not be able to afford it

Advantages of BYOD:

It saves companies money

According to Cisco, U.S. companies can save between $350 to $3150 per employee per year if they implement a BYOD program. Part of this saving comes from shifting the costs of buying smartphones, laptops, tablets, and data plans onto the employee.

Employees often already have their own tech. Pew Research Center surveyed 1502 U.S. adults in 2021 and found that 85% own a smartphone.

It saves employees time and effort

There’s no learning curve for employees to figure out how to use their personal devices. This makes it easier for them to get on with their work, increasing productivity. Company devices may have different operating systems, apps, and layouts that employees aren’t used to. This slows down productivity initially. Before the employee can do their work, they must learn how to use the new equipment, either on their own or through company training.

Employees take greater care of their own devices

Beyond Identity surveyed over 1000 employees in 2021 and found “over 1 in 4 employees using work-issued devices say they’ve damaged company tech before.”

It’s more emotional for employees to lose or damage their own device and replace it, rather than break a company device. This could encourage them to take greater care of the equipment.

It can be more convenient for employees to manage fewer devices

It’s more convenient for employees to carry 1 phone to work, rather than a personal and business phone. It’s also easier to charge, care for, and respond on fewer devices.

Employees may also like having everything in one place, rather than constantly switching between work and personal devices.

Employees can use more up-to-date technology

There’s no need to wait for the IT department to finally upgrade the company’s equipment. Employees can buy the latest tech themselves. This gives them choice when it comes to brand preference, device features, and quality.

Disadvantages of BYOD:

It can have hidden costs

For example,

  • the costs to implement MDM (“mobile device management”) and security features,
  • reimbursements and stipends,
  • increased help desk effort to support different devices and operating systems,
  • the loss of volume-based discounts from device and service providers.

Security concerns

Personal devices may lack firewall and anti-virus software, PIN locks, and device encryption.

Some options to increase security include:

  • Desktop virtualization. This allows employees to access their corporate desktop without changing their device in any other way. This keeps the data in the data center, where it’s theoretically safer.
  • Mobile device management to secure devices that get lost or stolen.
  • App wrapping.
  • Set limits on what employees can do with data by setting limits on files.

Challenges for your IT team

Your IT team may struggle to support different devices and operating systems, increasing help desk efforts. They may also be unhappy about the loss of visibility and control over the company’s technology.

Privacy concerns for employees

Employees may be concerned about being watched on their personal devices through MDM software (“mobile device management”). You’ll need to clearly define what the company will have access to on personal devices, what you’ll do with that information, and what information will need to be deleted when the employee leaves the company.

Work-life balance issues

Employees working on their personal devices may struggle to “switch-off” from work, leading to more stress and unpaid overtime. Beyond Identity found that 81% of employees would prefer separate devices for work and personal use. It allows them to clearly separate between their work and personal lives.

Employees may not be able to absorb the costs

Some employees may not have the budget to buy the necessary equipment. They may also dislike not receiving compensation for the costs of buying and maintaining their devices. Beyond Identity surveyed 1000 employees and found that 62% said their employers did not provide a personal device upkeep stipend.

Sources:

(Referenced in March 2022)

  • https://www.beyondidentity.com/blog/byod-exploring-evolution-work-device-practices-survey
  • https://blogs.cisco.com/news/new-analysis-comprehensive-byod-implementation-increases-productivity-decreases-costs
  • http://searchconsumerization.techtarget.com/news/2240180205/BYOD-security-concerns-Perception-vs-reality