Great Debate: Bring your own device

It's a smart and easy transition

Ken Hess: Almost everyone owns an advanced phone and a laptop, netbook or tablet, so why not allow employees to use those devices in corporate work environments? Bring your own device is a new strategy being used by or considered by corporate IT departments. It allows employees to use devices with which they're comfortable and at a lower overall expense to the employee's company. It's an intelligent change in the corporate landscape to lower the costs associated with acquiring, deploying and maintaining devices, to reduce the number of required support personnel, and to decrease the possibility of  single vendor lock-in.

The transition from home user device to corporate user device is an easy one through the use of VPNs, corporate-sponsored anti-virus software and agent-based security compliance. User devices and corporate data will remain secure and stable. And, setting up a user's device a simple matter by using "client pull" automated setup scripts.

It's a management nightmare

Heather Clancy: There is one really good reason not to let employees use their own smartphone, notebook or tablet at work: It is a management nightmare.

For starters, there are inherent security and regulatory compliance risks. Even if you mandate certain products or technologies people can bring and use, it will be next to impossible to make sure everyone keeps their machines updated with the proper OS and application patches. Unless you have control. 

Don’t expect to save money, either. Many businesses supporting BYOD expect employees to buy and support devices on their own dime. But infrastructure and security policies need to be rock-solid behind that. This takes investment and new IT management policies. Is your organization ready?

Be honest: Do you want someone telling you what you can and cannot do with your personal technology? BYOD seems like a great idea for productivity, until you try manage it.