Think your small business doesn’t need MDM? Think again

If you’re running your own small business, then the chances are you’ve got a lot on your plate and plenty of plates you need to keep spinning. In the hectic world of growing a small or medium-sized enterprise, mobile device security may not be anywhere near the top of your priority list.

Or, you may have considered whether you need some form of mobile device management (MDM) and decided that your company is too small or that your limited fleet of mobile phones doesn’t justify the investment.

If that’s the case, it may be that the benefit to your business of having a robust MDM solution isn’t clear or hasn’t been properly explained to you.

Streamlining Operations: The Role of Mobile Device Management for Small Businesses

As a general rule of thumb, if you have company mobile phones that are assigned to employees, you probably need to have some form of mobile device management to protect not just you and your business, but also your customers and suppliers.

Working out what is right for your enterprise and seeing how MDM can add value doesn’t need to be time-consuming, expensive, or complicated – it just requires a small investment of time to objectively identify the operational and human risks your business faces.

But first, it’s important to understand what MDM is and why it’s so valuable in managing your device fleet.

What is mobile device management?

In the simplest terms, MDM is the application of a number of security protocols that both unite your company devices under a single network and keep the hardware, software, and content stored on those devices protected.

Usually, MDM is performed through remote automated systems that ensure the phones can’t be used for prohibited activity (restricting access to social media platforms and certain obvious types of online content are common examples), are secure, and can be disabled in the event of loss or theft, and are regularly updated with the latest software.

We’ll get into some of that detail in a minute, but in short, MDM tends to keep your device fleet secure and operating at its best – which in turn extends the device lifecycle.

Why is mobile device management important to small businesses?

A common myth around MDM is that larger businesses have a more pressing need for remote device management.

But in fact, the more ‘everyone pitching in together’ nature of small businesses means the pressure on employees and their devices to work efficiently is even greater due to increased – and often shared – responsibility.

Small businesses are often more likely to employ younger people who, with less experience, are more inclined to make mistakes – especially when the ethos of many smaller companies is for people to cover one another’s work, even when they don’t necessarily have the appropriate knowledge or tools.

What does MDM look like in practice?

All businesses are time-poor, small enterprises especially so, and if you’re smart, you’ll be upgrading or replacing the majority of your device fleet at the same time.

Do you really have the time or resources in-house to ensure that all your devices have the same apps, the most up-to-date operating software and that the right restrictions have been applied to web browsing and app download options – all before you hand the device over to the employee?

And then, once the employee has the phone, are you really happy to leave it to them to apply software upgrades when prompted (we all know how tempting it is to defer time-consuming updates, right?).

Are you sure that when it comes to handling client, customer, and supplier details or other sensitive data your people understand how to process data in a way that’s compliant with current GDPR and privacy laws, or that commercially sensitive information will be kept secure?

We all want to be able to trust our employees implicitly, and most of us are lucky in that this trust is usually rewarded. But sometimes it’s not even a question of trust – it’s a question of how much responsibility it is reasonable to expect of someone.

MDM takes all this pressure away from you and from the individual. Updates and changes can be remotely applied with bulk automation, ensuring your devices are always secure and operating at their optimal peak.

Here are just some of the benefits of MDM:

• Password protection and other security features
• Remote control and access options
• Cloud-based automation
• Control over system updates
• Centralised app delivery
• Device inventory with serial and/or IMEI numbers
• Logging and reporting

At Your Comms Group, we make setting up your mobile network of company devices as easy as possible, integrating it with your device plans, and ensuring that the network meets the specific operational needs of your small or medium-sized business.

If you’d like to know more about MDM and talk through whether it’s the right solution for your business, come and talk to a member of our expert, friendly team – they’ll be more than happy to help guide you, with no obligation to buy.