The increasing trend of working from home and mobile work has added more pressure on organizations. Early investors in the processes and tools could ensure support with the minimal physical handling of mobile devices. Scalefusion explains how adopting mobile device lifecycle management solutions help organizations gain more control over mobile devices, lower operational costs and increase employee productivity.
How the Mobile Device Lifecycle Works
Devices, like people, have life cycles. The lifecycle part of a product is broken down into five stages–enrollment, provisioning, deployment, management, and retirement.
Stage 1 – Enrollment
Companies usually provide every employee with a standard device on the day they join the organization. They have to deal with a variety of phones, tablets, and PCs across multiple operating systems (Android, iOS/iPadOS, macOS, and Windows). Before companies can issue a device, especially corporate-owned devices, the first stage is to set it up for device enrollment.
Device enrollment enables employees to access the company’s internal resources–apps, Wi-Fi, and email–from their mobile devices. During the enrollment process, the company’s device management policies are applied. Policies ensure the employee’s device and company’s data are secured from unauthorized access.
Stage 2 – Provisioning
Provisioning is the process of setting up a mobile device and making it available for users for their specific use. The method connects the device to the organization. It establishes device ownership, personal or company-owned, and profile mode.
For example, companies usually provide employees with a mobile device on their first day at work. Then, whether in the office or at home, the employee receives the device, unboxes it, plugs it into the power, and logs in with their user credentials. In a few moments, the device is wholly provisioned with settings and applications with the necessary level of access.
Stage 3 – Deployment
Once a mobile device is provisioned, deployment entails getting the device in the employee’s hands. Companies can hand them over in person at work or ship them to remote locations.
Stage 4 – Management
Device management is a crucial stage after completing the onboarding process. The rising adoption of remote work has compelled organizations to provide an updated and secure environment for end-user computing. With an easy-to-use MDM platform, like Scalefusion, IT departments can manage all of a company’s devices.
Device management goes beyond managing device inventory, MDM solutions protect the onboarded device’s applications, data, and content. It enables the ongoing productivity of a workforce. For instance, IT administrators can remotely access users’ devices to fix hardware or software issues.
Stage 5 – Retirement
When a mobile device is lost, stolen, or simply out of commission, it’s time to retire it. Resetting the device, removing it from management, and wiping the corporate data are a few ways to retire a device.
Benefits of Mobile Device Lifecycle Management
Improved User Productivity
Devices that malfunction leads to downtime and directly impair employee productivity, making management the critical stage of device lifecycle management. MDM tools that feature remote control capability can significantly reduce device troubleshooting time. Regular monitoring allows IT admins to discover device issues, resulting in preventive maintenance.
Reduced IT Workload
An IDC survey reveals that 50 percent of managers suspend too much time procuring and managing devices; 63 percent of IT professionals say resources drained by device management could be used on other strategic IT projects such as security. A device lifecycle management program eliminates the complexities of managing multiple vendors with holistic MDM tools.
The Role of MDM in Mobile Device Lifecycle Management
After enterprises procure the hardware devices, they must address the applications, content, rules, and security of the mobile devices. This is where device management solutions come in. Mobile Device Lifecycle Management should not be viewed as “that’s IT’s problem” when it affects business operations. The following points may help organizations identify and match business needs with MDM objectives.
Business Objectives
| Strategic | Operational |
|---|---|
| Free up IT teams to focus on critical priorities | Simplify device provisioning |
| Ensure data security | Reduce device downtime |
| Make long-term cost savings and resource efficiencies | Meet compliance targets |
| Attract, enable and retain a talent pool with a flexible mobile working culture | Offer ongoing support to remote employees |
| Implement mobile device strategy in the required time |
MDM Partner Requirement Checklist
When it comes to choosing a Mobile device management partner for managing mobility needs, there’s no set formula. Organizations have a significant investment in providing the best devices for their employees, setting them as per users’ needs, and quickly replacing lost and stolen devices.
An MDM solution provider should support these assets by fulfilling compliance needs, security policies, and managing performance throughout the lifetime of each onboarded device. Here is a brief but effective checklist for IT managers and business leaders to identify potential device management partners.
Compliance. Organizations face financial penalties for being non-compliant. The MDM tool should be able to configure devices as per the company’s IT and security policy. It should ensure all devices are secure and only approved applications and websites are applied
Resources. The quality of after-sales support can separate the right partners from the wrong ones. If they claim to provide exemplary aftercare and support, ask for customer reference
ROI. The right partner should be able to offer flexible pricing models that suit your business needs and be able to forecast long-term savings. Scalefusion gives customers the option to preconfigure the batch size of their licenses. This option helps determine a budget and purchase licenses when needed.
Wrapping Up
IT leaders can no longer afford to bound their teams with day-to-day administrative work. They need to play a more strategic role in managing devices. By partnering with an end-to-end solution provider with robust MDM capabilities, they can focus on strategic initiatives.
