BYOD Strategies: What does BYOD mean to you? If you are not aware, this means “bring your own device” and it is something more and more employers are considering. This could have an impact on both Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) in the future.
Gartner is predicting by 2017 that half of employers will require employees to supply their own device for work purposes.
What would this mean to the future of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY)?
One thing is this: employees are going to have their choice of which smartphone they rely on. For this reason, corporate accounts, such as those that BlackBerry has relied upon so heavily in the past, will not mean nearly as much.
In a global survey of CIOs by Gartner, Inc.’s Executive Programs, data shows that “38 percent of companies expect to stop providing devices to workers by 2016.”
While this may not sound like a big deal from the outside looking in, others realize just how big of a game changer this really is.
David Willis, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner, explained the change like this:
“BYOD strategies are the most radical change to the economics and the culture of client computing in business in decades. The benefits of BYOD include creating new mobile workforce opportunities, increasing employee satisfaction, and reducing or avoiding costs.”
With BYOD becoming more and more common, employees will have the ability to select their own device, including those from Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY), for use at the office.
The research goes on to show that while this is a common change across companies of all sizes, it is the midsize and large organizations – $500 million to $5 billion in revenue, with 2,500 to 5,000 employees) – that are really looking to mix things up.
Of course, BYOD makes it easier for smaller companies with less money to invest in technology to take advantage of what this offers. In other words, they can request employees to use their own smartphone as opposed to supplying them with one.
Willis went on to add the following:
“We’re finally reaching the point where IT officially recognizes what has always been going on: People use their business device for nonwork purposes.”
As this trend continues, it may change the approach of companies such as Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY).
Both Apple and BlackBerry have a strong corporate presence. This will continue into the future, to 2017 and beyond, but the approach may be a bit different.
As times change, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) may be forced to increase direct appeal to consumers as opposed to selling to the corporation itself.
UPDATE–12:50pm EDT
Longboard Asset Management also released a presentation comparing Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) with tech giant Apple. Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
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