Employees bringing their own gadgets, from smartphones to tablet computers, into the companies they work for and expecting them to function seamlessly with corporate technology systems is proving to be a significant and growing challenge for IT departments.

Warren Johnson, account technology specialist at Microsoft, says IT departments are struggling to figure out how to accommodate the growing range of devices and online ecosystems that employees expect will interoperate with company-managed systems. In many cases it’s creating a security headache for IT directors, he says.

It’s becoming a tricky balancing act for many companies as they try to figure out how to benefit from this “consumerisation of IT”, while at the same time ensuring their systems aren’t compromised and the IT department doesn’t become overloaded because it’s supporting a multitude of nonsanctioned devices and ecosystems.

The challenge for many IT departments is it’s often the CEO that is demanding his iPad or other new-fangled device interoperates seamlessly with the corporate backend systems, meaning they don’t have the choice of simply barring their use. “The executives want the funky stuff. Four years ago they were saying you have to secure and manage everything because it’s too costly for us. Now they’re saying bypass it for me because I want my funky laptop.”

by Tech Central