The Challenge of BYOD: Managing more with less

By slpowers on March 20, 2013 • ( 0 )

Ten years ago, the typical IT department was responsible for an organization’s desktops and servers, their routers and switches, and for security at the network’s edge. Most companies got by with a ratio of 1.1 or 1.2 devices under IT management for every employee.

The advent of VoIP solutions meant telephones soon joined the list. Video conferencing capabilities brought new bandwidth intensive accountabilities. Industry trends promoting a mobile workforce means many of the machines now under IT department care are no longer physically accessible, and may not even be owned by the company. Digital cameras and access control solutions have brought physical security into the mix. And widespread Bring-Your-Own-Device policies have allowed smart phones and tablets to double and even triple the device management challenge, not to mention adding new layers of security risk.

Thanks to BYOD, the ratio of devices-under-management to employees is now pushing 4-to-1, with no end in sight. (An IT manager of my acquaintance likes to say if it has an on/off button, it will find its way to his desk.)

Oh, yeah, I almost forgot: Head count within the typical IT department went down throughout the decade.

So how do you do it? How do you manage so many more devices with fewer people? Or, rather, how do you do it without burning out?

Paradise by the Dashboard Light

It would be so much easier if executives allowed their IT departments to invest in state-of-the-art monitoring and diagnostic technologies. This would compel IT departments to become more proactive, rather than always reacting to the crisis du jour. It would enable them to recognize problems before those problems impact network performance or the user experience. It would save them hours of diagnostic efforts and materially shorten the Time-to-Resolution of most problems in their environment. And a shorter TTR means satisfied end users, happier bosses, and more time to focus on larger projects.

Unfortunately, executives are not predisposed to say yes to spending hundreds or even tens of thousands in “toys” for the IT department.

Thanks to SLPowers’ award-winning Guaranteed Networks, they don’t have to.

We have a program in which our clients’ IT departments can hitch a ride on our comprehensive platform of diagnostic, monitoring, and helpdesk software. For a modest and predictable monthly charge, we empower them to use our tools, dashboards, and ticketing systems (yeah, our “toys”) to make their tasks more manageable.

Stop flirting with burnout. Ask us about Guaranteed Networks Preventive Maintenance today.