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Wireless pioneer says Apple’s iPhone is bad for business

Published Jun 7th, 2013 1:25PM EDT
iPhone Enterprise Analysis

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The bring your own device (BYOD) enterprise trend is getting a lot of attention right now. A looser policy that allows employees to choose their own smartphones and tablets might work for some companies, but a number of businesses with more strict security needs now seem to be exploring BYOD policies despite the fact that they might come with unnecessary complications and expenses. According to wireless industry pioneer and Sepharim Group founder Bob Egan, much of the problem stems from Apple’s iPhone.

“BYOD falls between two opposing needs: the freedom of the employee to use their devices for business and personal purposes without the fear of having their privacy invaded and the importance of an organization’s need to audit mobile data to further productivity and optimize their mobile work program,” Egan told Chief Mobility Officer in a recent interview. “However, in this first wave of mobile ubiquity in the enterprise, we’re finding ourselves ruled by the will of the individual. Employees prefer to choose their own devices based on personal preference rather than the overall needs of the company — and much of this has been caused by the wild popularity of the iPhone.”

Egan, who was a member of the team that created the IEEE 802.11 WLAN standard and is a former Gartner VP, went on to explain why the iPhone is bad for business.

“Mobile workforces have exploded with Apple devices; they’re cute, they have a lot of applications,” Egan said. “While many companies are drawn in by the ‘eye-candy,’ others are still looking for more serious enterprise solutions — which isn’t Apple.”

He continued, stating that companies that use iOS devices have serious obstacles when it comes to gathering important data that could be key to improving their mobile programs. “While Apple devices make inputing information easy, getting information back is a lot harder especially when you begin to consider information audit trails and regulatory compliance matters,” Egan noted.

Zach Epstein
Zach Epstein Executive Editor

Zach Epstein has been the Executive Editor at BGR for more than 10 years. He manages BGR’s editorial team and ensures that best practices are adhered to. He also oversees the Ecommerce team and directs the daily flow of all content. Zach first joined BGR in 2007 as a Staff Writer covering business, technology, and entertainment.

His work has been quoted by countless top news organizations, and he was recently named one of the world's top 10 “power mobile influencers” by Forbes. Prior to BGR, Zach worked as an executive in marketing and business development with two private telcos.