Bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policies were some of the many things that changed when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. A study from Palo Alto Networks by ONR found 60% of companies expanded their BYOD policies to help employees manage the shift to remote work at the beginning of the pandemic. However, the convenience that the new BYOD policies provided often came at the cost of security. The study also found that employees at companies that expanded BYOD use were over eight times more likely to ignore, circumvent or disable security than those who restricted BYOD.
Many companies are looking at either full-time remote work or offering a hybrid model for the long term. In the past, the solution was often to restrict uses or implement more controls for how employees use their BYOD devices. However, placing more restrictions on employees often leads to them figuring out how to get around those rules.
How Employees Use Their Devices
In the past, BYOD policies focused on what companies did not allow employees to do on their devices. This approach overlooked how employees could use their devices to more efficiently and accurately perform work-related tasks. For a BYOD policy to be effective today, companies must address the security issues with a solution that works for both employees and the employer.
Leaders should start by fully understanding how employees currently use personal devices. In what other ways can they use devices to improve work/life balance and be more productive? Survey employees in a range of roles and departments to learn how different employees use their devices for work tasks. Questions to ask include:
What types of devices they use
How often th ..
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