67 pc of IT professionals see enhanced productivity from BYOD

DALLAS, USA: CompuCom, a leading technology infrastructure services company, today announced the results of its recent website poll revealing that 67 per cent of IT professionals strongly agree (37 per cent) or agree (30 per cent) that Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policies enhance their productivity in the workplace.

The poll collected 294 responses from IT professionals across multiple industries from September 15 through October 15, 2013.

According to CompuCom CTO Sam Gross, "A major concern about the explosive growth of BYOD has been whether the use of personal devices in the workplace would actually increase productivity or become a distraction. This poll data suggests the former: two-thirds of IT professionals, including C-level executives, agree that it boosts productivity.

"BYOD programs are simple in concept but quickly run into headwinds when it comes to figuring out usage policies, security, data access, app delivery and cost to implement and manage," added Gross. "Well thought-out programs, compliant with business and IT polices within a strong governance model, are just as important as selecting a tool and turning on a capability. BYOD is not ‘BYO Easy' but it is fast becoming a fact of life in the workplace, proving its value as more than a nice-to-have for employees."

Respondents to CompuCom's poll were asked, "Do you feel that a ‘Bring Your Own Device' policy enhances your productivity?" The results:

Strongly Agree: 37 per cent

Agree: 30 per cent

Disagree: 16 per cent

Strongly Disagree: 7 per cent

Personal Devices are not allowed: 10 per cent

Total votes: 294

Gross notes that 23 percent of respondents say they are not seeing improved results, and for 10 percent, personal devices are not allowed. "From our conversations with clients, those that improved employee productivity through BYOD spent a great deal of upfront time developing policies and strategies. For those companies that aren't there yet, the poll results suggest that resolving the issues can result in a pay-off in productivity that justifies the business case."

Gross cited recent data underpinning the explosive growth of BYOD: According to Forrester, growth of anytime, anywhere workers in the US and Europe grew from 15 percent to 29 percent between 2011-2012; projected market growth for mobile devices is now $6 billion and headed to $55 billion by 2015; and mobile spending is expected to reach 83 percent of total on devices by 2017.

CompuCom CMO Jonathan James said, "Companies are finding that BYOD benefits extend beyond employee productivity, important as that is. By providing new ways to engage, BYOD helps companies deliver a better experience for customers and partners, making it a distinct competitive advantage. Finding the balance between the user experience and corporate protection is still the greatest challenge for many organizations, but the pace of growth and the increasing perception of benefits suggest that BYOD done well is worth the risks."