BYOD! Is Cisco’s Idea of Bring Your Own Device Really Working for Business?

BYOD stands for Bring Your Own Device, and they’re not just talking about a friendly get-together, but an actual business policy that states workers ought to bring their own iPad, iPhone, PDA or laptop.  More companies are jumping on the bandwagon, and workers have no problem obliging since they are familiar and comfortable with their own Smartphone. 

The claim is that these companies can increase productivity among employees as well as contribute to their own satisfaction by supporting BYOD.  (Workers no longer have to learn a new company system)  Of course with new opportunities for growth also comes significant challenges.  Not everyone is on board…why some companies are still banning employees from taking their Smartphones and tablets to work, since they are considered a distraction and a security risk.  Some companies even “block” these systems. 

According to an IBSG Horizon Study, the Cisco Company states that a whopping 76% of organizations (600 surveyed businesses in the United States) were in favor of the BYOD, particularly for IT departments.  About 95% of the surveyed companies stated that employees are allowed to bring their own devices to work.  Furthermore, statistics reveal that by 2014, connected devices per worker will reach 3.3, a notable increase.  So we’re not just bringing units to work…we’re bringing more than one!

Cisco has supported the BYOD concept, even going so far as to launch a new Smart Solutions kit that helps businesses learn how to take advantage of this increased mobility—and also avoid the most common mistakes associated with such a policy.  Cisco says that BYOD is going to be part of its so-called “Cisco Unified Workplace” portfolio, which is a specially created environment allowing workers all the information they need to work more efficiently.  Cisco’s Senior Vice President Padmasree Warrior told the press that the “intelligence network” would help workers to “work anywhere, anytime and [the way] they want.”

The Way Business is Heading

One thing’s for sure.  Whether or not big business approves of BYOD, everyone knows what it is—and has a strong opinion on it.  About 98% of all respondents said they were aware of the option for BYOD and about 68% said worker jobs (particularly knowledge-oriented workers) can be done using desktop virtualization.  A centralized network of information may be precisely what workers and companies need to feel comfortable.  It’s a win-win situation that is starting to look very attractive to pragmatic thinkers.

As for the prejudice against BYOD and bringing “phones to work” only time will tell if the climate changes.  We do know that Bring Your Own Device concept is making a lot of noise in big business and the popularity of mobile devices is pressing the issue.  If we don’t use all of this great technology, are we not squandering resources AND micromanaging workers’ free time?

What do you think?  Are we going to see a widespread BYOD vision fulfilled in the near future?

Smartphone Integration Makes Being Late to Work Less of a Hassle

Times are certainly changing in the world of business, and smartphone integration is certainly one of the key reasons for this. More and more companies are making use of Smartphone PBX and other technologies that mean being late to work isn’t quite the offense that it once was. With the cloud and smartphone integration, many employees are actually busy at work long before they even get to the office. Working remotely, before work and after work, is becoming the way that many do business.

In fact, a large percentage of bosses – 73% according to a survey from Mozy – are less stringent when it comes to the clock. Many of those employees are using smartphone integration to work even when they are not on the clock, so it doesn’t make sense to be upset when someone is a few minutes late to work. Of course, most of the employees don’t realize that the bosses are more lax on the lateness today than they would have been before smartphone integration.

With tools such as a Smartphone PBX, employees are finding that it is possible to have a work schedule that is a bit more flexible. The smartphone integration can make it much easier for people who might have other things that they need to do outside of the office. Companies, such as Broadsoft, are looking to create and help to integrate the best possible mobile solutions for smartphone integration.

Interesting Facts for the Mozy Survey:

Most bosses in North America will be fine with employees coming in up to 37 minutes late, while those in the UK are okay with employees who are up to 24 minutes late. The survey also found that bosses in the United States seem to be more lenient when it comes to longer lunches and taking care of personal business. Even with smartphone PBX`s though, and even though the employee might be using smartphone integration, it is best not to push one’s luck! Try to make it a habit to be on time.

With a smartphone PBX`s, it is possible to work from just about anywhere, and that’s why more employers are even starting to let some employees work from home. With cloud computing, networking, and a smartphone PBX, it is possible to complete just about any task from the comfort of home.

For more information on Smartphone PBX`s, please visit our hosted PBX section of our website:

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Is this really the next iPhone?

Over the past few days, the latest round of purported pictures of Apple's forthcoming iPhone 5 have hit the web. And I can't be the only potential customer who is deflated by what they see. In fact, I'll go far enough to say that, if the iPhone 5 looks like the pictures that have recently appeared, Apple may be screwed.

Why?

Because, the "iPhone 5" looks pretty much like the iPhone 4S. Which looked exactly like the iPhone 4, a phone that is now two years old.

In the meantime, Samsung and other manufacturers have come out with phones that make people's jaws drop, such as the Galaxy S3, which has a (relatively) humongous screen. Although the Apple faithful may start hyperventilating about things like the movement or elimination of a button, most phone buyers couldn't care less. Now that most phones do the same things and work pretty much the same way, the most obvious (and, arguably, important) difference between them is the screen.

In short, the Galaxy feels like a next-generation phone. The iPhone, meanwhile, looks small and old. And the pictures that purport to be of the iPhone 5 show a phone that is pretty much the same small, old phone.

(Yes, they've moved the camera an inch. And it's longer. And it has a metal back. Whoop-de-do.)

(And, yes, apparently the screen is a little taller. Somehow that isn't the same. Check out the size difference in the photo below between the current iPhone and the Galaxy: A bit taller won't cut it.)

To be sure, regardless of what the iPhone 5 ends up looking like, the Apple faithful will scarf up tens of millions of them. They'll line up around the block and sleep outside the stores. They'll rave about the amazing slickness and geniosity and sophistication of Apple, especially as compared to the plebeian "bigness" of Samsung (the Galaxy will no doubt be dismissed as the McMansion of phones).

But, secretly, a lot of those faithful will be disappointed.

And, more importantly, so will tens of millions of other customers and potential customers.

As they should be.

Because it will make it clear that one observation that many Apple skeptics make is dead-on correct--namely that each new generation of the iPhone offers less and less improvement over the prior generation, and, thus, gives customers less reason to upgrade. This, combined with carriers increasingly making moves to discourage customers from upgrading frequently (see AT&T's stealthy changes, which may have helped hurt Apple's iPhone sales in the June quarter), will stretch out the upgrade cycles. And that will mean fewer sales--and less growth--for Apple.

Which screen would you rather spend 18 hours a day using?

Apple's competitors, meanwhile, are on a tear.

In the past year, as Apple moved back its iPhone release schedule and then released a phone that seemed like only a modest refresh of the prior version, Apple's competitors have been gaining ground. Samsung sold 52 million smartphones in Q2, twice as many as Apple, and is now the clear worldwide smartphone leader. Samsung's Galaxy S3, which some reviewers say is better than the iPhone, has sold very well in its first couple of months on the market.

Despite the amazing success of the iPad (which will soon face serious, low-priced competition of its own), the iPhone is still by far and away Apple's most important product. The iPhone generates about half of Apple's revenue, and, likely, a lot more than half of Apple's profits.

If Apple's stock is to power its way to the the $1,000 that most analysts and investors now expect, the iPhone has to keep going gangbusters. And releasing a phone that looks pretty much like the same old iPhone--with a screen that now seems small--probably won't get the job done.

So here's hoping those pictures aren't actually of the iPhone 5.

(Source:  Business Insider )

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