More Companies Supporting 'Bring Your Own Device' Programs

The popularity of smartphones and tablets is prompting more employees to want to bring their own devices to work, driving more IT departments to officially support BYOD policies.

Among the 400 companies polled by mobile security provider Good Technology (News - Alert) in October for a new study, 72 percent already formally support BYOD programs, higher than the 60 percent recorded in a January 2011 survey.

Another 19 percent said they’re either planning to or thinking of supporting such a policy in the next six to 12 months. And only 10 percent said they have no plans to support a BYOD program.

One key reason for supporting such policies is the cost savings.

Half of the companies with BYOD programs require their employee to foot the whole bill, while 45 percent give their workers a stipend or allow them to expense the costs of a mobile device plan. Given that the average cost of such a plan adds up to $80 a month, the companies whose employees pay the entire bill have seen a healthy drop in expenses.

But even those who pay their workers a stipend are saving some money. Most companies offering a stipend said they give employees $61 or more a month, while some kick in between $41 and $50 a month. Likewise, most of those who allow their employees to expense the cost of their mobile plans offer reimbursements of $61 or more a month, with some providing $41 to $60 each month.

Those who’ve eschewed BYOD plans cite HR and legal policies or security concerns as the reasons. However, Good notes that many of its other customers have been able to work past these concerns, potentially paving the way for more companies to jump on the BYOD bandwagon. Further, although 73 percent of those businesses supporting BYOD said they had to modify their existing security policies, 23 percent were able to incorporate BYOD without any changes to their current policies.

Drilling down further, 80 percent of those who support BYOD have more than 2,000 employees, 60, percent have more than 5,000, and 35 percent have more than 10,000. Companies in the finance/insurance and healthcare fields are most likely to support BYOD while those in the retail/wholesale and government sectors are least likely to support it at this point.

Finally, as Good points, the holiday season is likely to have seen more smartphones and tablets given out as gifts to business professionals from family and friends. As such, IT admins can expect more employees eager to use such devices on the job. If your business doesn’t already support a BYOD program, it may only be a matter of time before it has to consider such a policy, both to satisfy its workers and potentially to reduce costs.