MDM For Organization : How To Choose The Right Mobile Device Management Software

As a business, one of the most important things to be concerned about is how to secure your company's data. A survey released by Kensington Communications shows that a laptop is stolen every 53 seconds while 70 million smartphones are lost every year. According to the report, 52% of devices are stolen from the workplace, 80% of data is lost when a laptop is stolen and the total cost of a lost laptop can easily exceed the $1,000 price of a new device.

As if keeping devices protected on a network isn't enough, employees and business owners need to remain aware that not just laptops and smartphones are at risk of being stolen or lost. Your company's mail server (or mail account) is too. With the rising threat from email leads to security concerns for businesses who are falling behind in protecting their data from cybercriminals— it's vital to strengthen your security measures with an MDM software that supports vulnerability assessment, vulnerability management, and log management.

But first, what is MDM software? In this article, we will discuss what MDM software is, why it is important and how to choose an MDM software.

WHAT IS AN MDM SOFTWARE?

The extent to which employees are using companies' devices continues to rise steeply. New trends in mobile usage lead to new considerations for device management. Employees have multiple devices running on different operating systems and mobile service providers. This has led to the widespread use of Mobile Device Management (MDM) software.

Mobile Device Management (MDM) is software that enables IT administrators to secure, control, and enforce policies on smartphones, tablets, and other devices being used in the workplace. MDM protects your company's network from security breaches while implementing devices that improve the workflow of your employees.

With the increase in security and data breaches, MDM software is essential to any business. Mobile device management (MDM) software allows IT departments to optimize security, functionality, and the user experience for employees using mobile devices in the workplace. MDM is often integrated with an on-premises or cloud-based mobility management system.

The point of MDM software is not only to help enterprises control how their employees use the company's IT equipment but to also protect their enterprise's data by preventing data leaks. This can be done in several different ways through MDM software such as downloading applications onto the device, configuring security policies and enforcing encryption, etc.

WHY MDM IS IMPORTANT

IT and security administrators are now responsible for the provisioning, managing, and securing of mobile devices within their respective corporate environments. This is because all organization work devices access critical business data, they can threaten security if hacked, stolen, or lost.

The increasing consumerization of IT has led to more employees using their personal devices and this raises the need to monitor and manage them. While BYOD (bring your own device) has some benefits like reducing equipment costs and freeing up time for IT (as employees will manage their own devices), it can introduce security risks if the devices are not adequately monitored.

According to a Microsoft study, four out of five workers use a personal device at work, regardless of whether or not their employers allow them to do so. These are unsanctioned technology and is often referred to as shadow IT. Shadow IT can introduce serious security risks to your organization through data leaks, potential compliance violations, and more.

Given that devices are easily stolen or lost, you do not want your valuable corporate data being viewed by external people. If you are keen on protecting your organization's data, it helps to have an MDM software that can remotely lock, wipe and locate devices used in your workplace. Regardless of the size of your organization, mobile device management is a cost-effective way to improve productivity and security.

Here are some advantages of MDM software.

1. Control of all corporate mobile devices

When you're using a variety of devices and operating systems, it can be difficult to develop unified device management processes. With MDM, your organization can see all the information on devices and gain valuable insight into your managed devices, as the software extracts information from them. Knowing the types of devices in use and their security level, you can manage many information securities risks. MDM also gives you control over the use of these devices, as well as their entire life cycle. You will be able to configure them remotely, replace them on time and handle their updates. And if an employee leaves the company, you can disable access to all business information on the phone.

2. Lower Costs and Increased Productivity and Efficiency

With MDM, you can centrally manage multiple devices from a single location. MDM allows you to manage all aspects of device management proficiently, saving you time and money. MDM also allows for automation, which helps save you time when managing several devices. When this is done correctly, human errors are decreased and the devices can be set up in as little as thirty minutes.

3. Meeting Compliance Regulations

It’s extremely important to follow IT guidelines and standards, but it can be hard to ensure that all devices comply when there are so many devices to track. With MDM, compliance initiatives could be managed from one unified console, giving your organization greater protection while staying within legal requirements.

4. Device and Data Security

A managed device ensures that mobile devices are protected from cyber threats. Unlike PCs, which normally have malicious software protection pre-installed, mobile phones and tablets are more susceptible to cyber-attacks. MDM provides an efficient way to secure data on all devices. Device and data security can be substantially improved by utilizing several restriction options and configurations.

5. Easily Managed from Anywhere

With MDM, you can manage devices from anywhere. MDM not only gives you control of your devices, but also lets you manage them remotely and ensure they are installed with the software you need. It provides you with the ability to remotely protect your devices from loss or theft. MDM is a good way to take control of your devices no matter where you are!

Employers can prevent their employees from using certain apps and enforce passcodes to protect organizational information. In the case of a shared device used both in free time and at work, users could use passcodes to prevent unapproved access and to secure business data.

A strict mobile device management policy is the best way to safeguard your organization's resources.

HOW MDM WORKS

One common question about MDM is: “Is MDM a piece of software?” The short answer is "yes and no." MDM is a mobile device management solution that uses software to keep mobile devices secure while protecting an organization's valuable data. Organizations practice MDM by applying solutions, including software, processes, and security policies onto mobile devices and for their use.

Beyond managing device inventory and provisioning, Mobile Device Management (MDM) solutions protect applications, data, and content on mobile devices. Therefore, MDM is comparable to mobile security but emphasizes device-centric solutions. So, while, MDM has evolved to a device-centric stance, mobile security and unified endpoint management focus on users.

With an MDM solution, your employees will receive a dedicated work device, such as a laptop or smartphone, equipped with the software to connect them securely to the organization's data and email for optimal data security.

MDM software can monitor the behaviors and activities of a company's devices, as well as gather business-critical data. And, with more sophisticated MDM solutions, the collected data can be analyzed using machine learning and AI.

These tools ensure that organizational devices are safe from malware and other cyber threats. For example, a company might assign a new laptop or smartphone to a staff member or consultant, pre-programmed with the appropriate data profile, VPN, and other necessary software and applications. In this scenario, MDM offers the most control to employers. MDM tools can track, monitor, troubleshoot, and even wipe device data in the event of theft, loss, or a detected breach.

HOW TO CHOOSE A GOOD MDM SOLUTION

Before you start looking for a good MDM software solution, your organization will need to decide what its MDM policy will be. The MDM policy answers questions about how organizations will manage and govern their mobile devices. To configure and publish their policies and processes, organization will need to ask questions like:

• Do devices need passcode protection?
• Should cameras be disabled by default?
• Is WI-FI connectivity important?
• What customization options will the device provide?
• Do certain devices need to be geo-fenced?

Once you have figured that out, you also have to decide on what type of model would suit your organization's needs. Regardless of if it is a cloud-based or on-premises model, a good mobile device management software solution allows an organization to manage endpoints, users, and all the things in between. A good mobile device management software solution will:

• Save time
• Improve efficiency
• Increase production
• Increase security
• Ease of overall mobile management system

Here are three tips to consider when selecting an MDM solution:

Automated reports

Ensure the reporting tool combines all enrolled devices and associated information into easy-to-follow reports. Updates should be posted automatically and without the need for manual input.

Automatic updates

Cloud MDM providers should offer instant accessibility with no hardware to buy, install or maintain. Cloud providers also should provide automatic software updates with new features at a company’s disposal.

Easy search

Searching for anything and everything is vital to using a cloud-based solution. Your organization should have access to its devices, integrations, reports, apps, and secure documents without any problems.

These features will help you determine which solution's strengths align with your organization's needs. Once you've reviewed the options, selecting the best fit for your business is a matter of deciding which is the most cost-effective based on your needs.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Now that you're aware of how MDM works, you can make an informed decision as to whether it's the right choice for your organization. As long as you can work with the limitations and ensure that your enrollment agents are well-trained, it's a viable option for many organizations. And as you have seen, there are many MDM solutions available on the market today. It can be quite a headache trying to figure out the best MDM solution for your business – particularly because it's not the same for all businesses.

With GroWrk, you don't have to go through the hassle of searching for the best MDM solution for your organization. GroWrk will enroll systems into Apple Business Manager and/or the designated MDM Solution (MobileIron in our case), save you time and money on additional MDM services, and make deployments faster and more efficient. Get a free demo here.