“Enterprise mobility” is a hot topic as we head into the final months of 2015. The mobile workforce increasingly emphasizes the need for companies to enable and manage employee mobility in order to meet security and productivity demands. But what does this mean for you?
Companies who set out to mobilize their enterprises on their own tend to miss important security factors that could potentially put sensitive data in jeopardy. On top of that, they tend to overlook needs and requirements specific to their company which could lead to the company’s inability to expand and improve with future add-ons.
Work habits shift rapidly when a workforce becomes mobile, and some employees use up to 3 devices a day to complete their tasks. The world of the mobile enterprise needs to be prepared for all situations, including security breaches, downtime, and future technologies. If you have plans or interest in increasing the mobility of your enterprise, then there are a lot of factors to take into consideration, and many questions you should ask.
Our resident Director of Managed Services, Patrick McGugan, specializes in helping companies select the right platform and setting up Mobile Device Management (MDM) programs. He compiled the top five questions you should be asking when taking your company mobile, though there are many, many more to consider. More importantly, he explained why they are the most pivotal to ask.
Which devices will need to be supported?
Depending on the operating systems and the age of the devices being managed, some Mobile Device Management or Enterprise Mobile Management solutions will be a better fit. Older operating systems are often unable to interface directly with the MDM or EMM software and must be managed in a closed environment or sandbox.
What specifically are you looking to manage?
It is vital to know what the expectations are in deploying Mobility Management. How much horsepower do you need? Many systems are feature-rich and offer sophisticated functionality, but if you don’t need/care about them, then you’ve paid for services that you’re not consuming.
There are many options in the market, so take the time to determine what features and functionality will provide the appropriate level of control for your organization. There are different service levels that you may choose to fit your needs.
How well defined are your current corporate cellphone policies?
A major factor in the success of Mobility Management is alignment in expectations between management and staff. If the users understand the goals of the program and the rules which they are expected to follow, programs will succeed. When the users don’t understand what the purpose is and what is being managed or monitored, they often resist or fight the program. If an organization gets enough of the right people fighting a change, change will not happen.
The goal of mobility management is to help organizations monitor and enforce corporate policies and limit exposure to damages. If the policies aren’t well defined then the users and the software program has no standard to measure against.
Do you want to manage it yourself or use a managed service?
This may not be as straightforward as it seems. When you manage the service yourself, there are a lot of moving parts. Defining and implementing policies within the application, creating user groups, end-user support, operating system updates, testing and troubleshooting are all part of the ongoing maintenance requirements. Many organizations choose to have a 3rd party manage all of the moving parts. It’s useful to determine what makes the most sense; to do it yourself or hire experts to work with you? The success or failure of your investment often hinges on this single decision point.
What compliance requirements does your organization have?
Are there specific industry compliance standards that your organization must meet? HIPPA, SSAE 16, or SOC 2? Does the mobility management system meet those requirements, or further your goals in meeting them? How is the data managed on the devices, how is data securely transported and encrypted within the systems? What are the anti-cybercrime features inherent within the system? Does it strengthen your current security position? Different management platforms perform different functions well. It’s vital that you find the right solution to meet the needs of your organization. Keep in mind, it may not be the same as your colleagues or the service that fit your last organization.
Well, there you have it. A ton of great information vital to your Mobile Device Management implementation and success.
Aside from these five questions that Patrick has deemed the most important, there are many other questions you could have and should be asking moving forward in your process. There are options out there to help you get from point A to point B and answer all those questions, but to truly be successful AND save money, working with Patrick and ARG is going to be best.
Patrick will not only help you make the best decision for your company in your Mobile Device Management venture, but you’ll also walk away from a meeting with the confidence to prove the security, flexibility, and potential of an ARG bolstered MDM plan. Better yet, by working with ARG you’ll know that you’ll have 24/7/365 support for all of your mobility needs.
Have more questions? Ready to get the ball rolling for your company? Let’s set up a time for you and Patrick to discover the status of your mobile security. Send an email to Patrick directly at pmcgugan@myarg.com or click on the button below.