Technology is on an accelerated pace and seems to have no intention of slowing down. With the influx of wearable technology like smart watches, fitness trackers, helmets with built-in GPS mapping, sleep monitors, virtual exercise coaches, smart clothing and even mood-altering devices, 2016 is in for a spin. You may not have an interest owning one or more of these wearables, but the same does not go for businesses. Wearable devices have the capability to introduce changes in the way your company does business.
Barely over the BYOD sensation, your company is now facing yet another trend: WYOD or wear your own device. Research body On Word Inc. has given a forecast that wearable technology will be worth $50 million in the next five years, with features like sensors, data processors and cloud applications. It cannot be helped; the tech-savvy workforce will bring these devices to work, which introduces a big risk of disrupting the business world.
Security Issues
As if bandwidth reasons are not enough to give IT a headache, wearables can also introduce potential security risks. Smart watches can be tethered to smart phone Internet connection, and can be used to download company documents with sensitive information. Google glass takes this a notch higher by having the capability to record whatever is in the wearer’s line of vision.
WYOD Preparation
These small, yet powerful devices may wreak havoc on the way you do business and a prepared plan to address these issues is advisable. And before the WYOD trend becomes large scale and becomes part of everyday work, you should prepare for it as soon as possible.
-
Security Policy. If you have adopted a BYOD policy, it is time to revisit your rules and regulations and tweak them to include WYOD. Define clearly who would be allowed to bring their wearable gadgets to work.
-
Data Infrastructure. Would your existing network be able to accommodate all the devices that are trying to connect to your server? Be ready to manage your data flow in order to avoid slowing down the network and having your operations suffer because of it.
-
Legal Implications. Carefully consider the law when it comes to adopting a WYOD policy. Are you covered? Do you have rules in place? How does the WYOD policy figure in the General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act?
-
Level of Support. The level of support employees need would grow as the number of wearable devices in the workplace increases. If you are going to adopt a WYOD policy, make sure that you can provide employees enough support so they can observe the correct protocols when connecting to your network.
Wearable devices can greatly enhance employee experience and business communications, which can lead to increased productivity in the workplace. However, the use of wearables does not come without a few concerns. Make sure to protect your business by hiring a company that would provide you the best methods of managing your mobile needs. AbeTech offers customizable MDM solutions that work for just about any enterprise. Call us at 1.888.682.3113 to learn more about how we can help you.
