The restrictions instituted to protect us during the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in businesses transitioning an unprecedented number of their employees to work remotely. As we get better control and protection against the spread of COVID-19, businesses are exploring how to bring employees back to the workplace, return to normal operations, and make up for lost productivity. For several businesses, this will mean their employees need to travel, conduct off-site meetings in person, visit client locations, etc. and otherwise perform work while on the move and away from an office. Given the loss of productivity during the pandemic, it is even more important for businesses that their employees can make the best use of their working hours as they engage in their normal business activities outside of their office space.
Mobile devices (cell phones, tablets, laptops, etc.) are the primary tools your business can give its employees to remain productive outside the office. However, mobile devices are also more vulnerable than desktops and servers locked away at an office or a data-center. For example, mobile devices are more likely to be stolen from employees or misplaced resulting in potential loss of critical data or proprietary information falling into the wrong hands1. Additionally, employees often use public Wi-Fi with their mobile devices to work leaving their personal information and company data susceptible to interception by cyber-criminals2. Thus, mobile devices and the data on them pose a potentially significant risk to your business.
Therefore, consider implementing a Mobile Device Management (MDM) solution. In short, an MDM solution is a combination of best-practices, procedures, and software tools that are tailored to your business with the following goals:
- Enable a legitimate employee with authorized access to a specific device to easily use that device in all situations where they are away from the office (home, coffee-shop, client-sites, etc.),
- Ensure that all business data on the device is secure and only accessible to authorized employees, Implement safeguards to locate lost or stolen devices,
- Remotely reset and wipe data from a lost or stolen device if it cannot be located, or if there is any risk of the data on that device being accessed by unauthorized individuals, and
- Ensure that the software on all employee devices is up to date so they are not vulnerable to cyber-attacks and malware.
A good MDM solution is one that is tailored to your business to properly manage the tradeoffs between risks, cost, and ease of use for your employees and for the business.
MDM can be implemented on devices NOT owned by your business as well. The bring-your-own-device (BYOD) movement is gaining popularity both because of the convenience to the employee, in not having to carry multiple devices, and to the business, in not having to purchase devices. If you decide that employees can use their own devices for work, an MDM solution can ensure that the company data is kept separate from the employee’s personal data thus protecting both the interests of the company and the privacy of the employee.
As the country opens back up and employees return to the workplace, consider implementing an MDM solution to give your employees the tools for maximum productivity. If you would like to know more about how to implement an MDM solution for your business, contact us.
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