Here's the problem with companies that allow employees to BYOD -- 'bring your own devices'

Updated

The practice of using personal devices for business purposes, formally known as bring your own device (BYOD), has become increasingly popular, and businesses are struggling to keep pace. The large majority of employees in the US, UK, and Spain want to keep their personal and business tasks and communications separate, according to new data provided to BI Intelligence by telecom-web convergence company tyntec. Despite the high degree to which employees use mobile devices outside of the office, few businesses have satisfactory, if any, official BYOD policies. Here are some problematic areas highlighted by the data:

  • Nonreimbursed expenses are a big concern for employees who opt to BYOD. Less than half of all employees in the surveyed markets receive reimbursement for work-related use of their personal phones.

  • Most employees spend a significant amount of time completing work-related tasks on mobile devices outside of working hours. In the US, 37% of employees spend more than 10 nonoffice hours completing work-related tasks on mobile. That share stands at 19% in the UK and 38% in Spain.

  • Companies that have BYOD policies, and employees who complete work-related tasks on personal mobile devices without official BYOD policies, are unlikely to have or encourage the use of business apps. Just 5% of US employees using their personal devices for mobile work tasks use business apps. This likely reflects a dearth of work-related apps created by companies with BYOD policies.

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bii byod device preference
bii byod device preference

Notably, while more than half of US consumers use their personal phones for work in some capacities, just 34% of these employees work for companies that have BYOD policies in place. At the same time, 74% of US employees would ideally choose to have two separate phones for work and personal use, or one phone with two separate numbers. This highlights the gap between how employers are approaching BYOD work environments and what employees need in them.

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