Managing Corporate Devices Efficiently

Working in a company nowadays involves more remote workers, more BYOD devices, and a need for managing more corporate devices as well. The workload and management for IT teams have increased dramatically in 2020.

Even before the COVID-19  pandemic, more than 7 million employees were working remotely. As of June 2020, 42% of all employees working from home full-time. That makes it difficult to walk down the hall and update a computer or even access it if the IT team is working remotely.

Employing more devices gives workers greater mobility. But it also increases the complexity of the IT infrastructure. Different devices might mean different operating systems or different versions of the same operating systems. BYOD devices, such as smartphones, laptops, and home desktops may contain personal data which creates more security concerns. Data breaches, information leakage, and lost or stolen devices are now even greater possibilities than before.

It is nearly impossible to apply consistent company policies and maintain the entire fleet of devices without Mobile Device Management (MDM). MDM has now become an essential tool for the efficient management of device fleets.

The Essential Benefits of MDM for Managing Corporate Devices

The biggest benefit of MDM is a centralized and remote platform for managing devices.  MDM software gives IT teams the tools to manage every device and apply (and enforce) standards and policies. It provides a consistent approach to security and ensures users comply with company regulations.

Software Consistency

An MDM platform can handle apps, operating systems, settings, and updates. This makes sure every device in the fleet is running the versions the IT team wants. You can deploy patches instantly across every device as soon as you discover a vulnerability.

Most MDMs can support multiple operating systems, which gives users greater flexibility.

Productivity

For IT teams, Mobile Device Management can improve productivity significantly. Instead of having to get your hands physically on each device, you can do work remotely. The IT team can send multiple requests to the endpoint server, such as updates, without having to manually update each device individually. Other benefits include:

• Remote provisioning
• Application distribution and management
• Application configuration
• Set organization-wide policies
• Batch tasks and simultaneous workflows

Everything needed for managing devices is available in one central platform.

Remote Help

It can also be a time-saver for IT teams and users when it comes to troubleshooting user issues. If there’s a problem, the IT team can render assistance remotely by taking over the device to diagnose and resolve problems quickly. They can provide help regardless of where the device is as long as it has Internet connectivity.

It allows IT teams to rapidly diagnose memory, CPU, hardware, or software issues remotely, or walk users through solutions. They can even accomplish this when the user is unavailable.

Enhanced Visibility

MDM also provides enhanced visibility for support teams. You can check on the status of any device at any time or set up triggers when specific conditions occur.

• Real-time visibility of device inventory
• Device reporting (OS, battery health, etc.)
• Asset management

Consistent Policy Application

MDM also provides a central way to enforce consistent policies across devices. When IT administrators decide how users will operate their devices, MDM provides a way to ensure that it is done that way. This can mitigate the impact of the number cause of security breaches:  human error.

• Standardize company policies
• Restrict applications by user
• Enforce security protocols, such as two-factor authentication

These policies are especially important for companies that have to comply with regulations, such as GDPR, HIPPA, SOC 2, or PCI DSS. Enforcing consistent policies across all devices ensures compliance even on personal devices.

Enhanced Security

MDM software allows IT teams to partition personal data that may reside on a personal device. You can encrypt company data so that even if a hacker finds a way through the partition, they won’t be able to access the data.

If someone loses a device, an MDM allows you to lock the device in the meantime until you manage to recover it. Also, if you don’t manage to locate the device, or if it is stolen, you have the option of wiping the data from it. In the event that someone leaves the company, IT can remotely remove corporate data without affecting personal data on the device. And geolocation tools can track devices and trigger alerts if the devices are outside the prescribed areas.

Because you can update the devices remotely, you can ensure that every device is updated and running the latest versions of operating systems, software, and anti-virus protection.

• Enforce data encryption
• Manage device settings and configurations
• Remotely lock or wipe devices if lost or stolen

Kiosk Mode

MDM software can switch devices to an encapsulated environment. This limits what users can do to functionalities that the company has pre-approved and authorized. MDM software also allows you to enable or disable external ports, cameras, or other hardware functions.

• Encapsulated environment and pre-configured policies
• Customized desktop environments
• Enable or disable apps, internet, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, etc.

This allows IT teams to limit software installations or changes to device settings.

In-Depth Reporting

You can create and use detailed reports to assess optimal usage across the organization. This allows IT teams and other managers to make better fact-based decisions. You’ll be able to:

• Track device and web usage
• Measure adoption of company resources
• Create reports manually, automatically, or using triggers and filters

Customization and Flexibility

MDM allows for customization not only to company-specific items and global settings but for individual settings depending on need. For example, certain employees can have access to apps that others don’t. You can set group or individual security levels for authorization.

You can integrate the right Mobile Device Management software for your unique business or educational needs into your existing flow. Restful APIs can make back-end server-side integration easy. This lets you develop your own apps and allows MDM reporting to flow into your applications.

Radix MDM/EMM for Managing Devices

Radix Mobile Device Management/Enterprise Mobility Management (MDM/EMM) app easily manages all major operating systems and devices. Running on AWS to reduce latency and create end-to-end encryption, Radix MDM/EMM provides a comprehensive device management layer in addition to securing your fleet.

The cloud-based platform provides a global view of the entire fleet while allowing IT teams to drill down to individual devices, users, and applications. You will be able to manage even the most mission-critical and complex IT infrastructures through a central interface.

Contact Radix Technologies today for a free trial of the Radix MDM/EMM.