Mobility is consuming significant IT resources
For all of mobility’s perceived and realized benefits, the survey also demonstrates that it is also creating challenges for IT as they try to balance it with other critical focus areas. In fact, nearly half of the organizations who responded to the survey said they see mobile computing as “somewhat to extremely challenging.” As a consequence, mobility in general is requiring significant effort to manage. In fact, an average of 31 percent of the IT staffs at the organizations surveyed are involved in some way with mobile computing.
And just what is it that is demanding so much of their time and resources? They reported their top priorities to be security, backup and dealing with lost or stolen devices.
When the survey asked where mobility ranks in terms of IT risk as compared to other contemporary technology trends, it was cited as one of the top three risk areas by 41 percent of respondents — more than any other trend or initiative, including virtualization, Web 2.0 and even public cloud computing. IT’s top mobile-related concerns include device loss, data leakage, unauthorized access to corporate resources and malware infection.
In this brave new world of enterprise mobility, organizations are grappling with some very real challenges. However, mobility also offers tremendous opportunities for organizations of all sizes. Businesses should be exploring how they can take advantage of this trend and develop a phased approach to build an ecosystem that supports their plan.
The simple truth is that employees will use mobile devices for business one way or another but, by getting out ahead of the curve, companies can make sure that use is on their terms. This all comes down to companies thinking strategically, enforcing appropriate policies and managing and securing devices and data efficiently and comprehensively.
Brian Duckering is a senior manager, Enterprise Mobility at Symantec. Brian is responsible for product marketing of Symantec’s mobility initiatives, covering everything from mobile management and security to protecting the networks that mobile devices rely on. He has over 20 years of industry experience as an engineer, product manager, marketing manager and technology evangelist, developing and bringing to market innovative technologies for enterprises and small businesses.
At Symantec, he promotes the idea of an information-centric view and anytime, anywhere productivity. Brian is an oft-requested speaker internationally on a wide range of topics, technologies and trends, from virtualization to mobility. He has held executive level positions at both business- and consumer-facing companies and has multiple degrees in engineering and technology management.