WHITEPAPER A guide to enterprise Beyond expectation. www.azzurricommunications.co.uk
Introduction. As smartphones and tablets proliferate in the enterprise, IT leaders are under pressure to implement an enterprise Mobile Device Management (MDM) solution to enable their people to benefit from enhanced productivity and collaboration in a secure manner. Ultimately, organisations must manage and support corporate email and other applications on an array of personal and enterprise-issued mobile devices across multiple platforms. They face tough decisions when it comes to choosing and implementing an MDM solution. Yet while all MDM solutions aim to optimise the functionality and security of a mobile communications estate, the marketplace is cluttered with products that take varying approaches and promise different specific features. This high-level guide will offer practical advice on how you can go about defining and implementing the right solution for your organisation. Why consider an enterprise MDM solution? Your employees are increasingly working flexibly and away from the office: from home, in the field, on tablets or smartphones, in the cloud and via VPN. On personal devices as well as those provided by the organisation. Your people are energised by the possibilities and business leaders are excited by the extra productivity and collaboration. This leaves IT with the challenge of enabling people to effectively work, consume information, communicate and collaborate on the move - without compromising enterprise security or control. By deploying an MDM solution that is tailored to your business, you can achieve a range of operational benefits while minimising risk: Take control - ensure all mobile, smartphone and tablet devices are securely under the control of the IT department Save time update many devices in one go, without physical contact Reduce costs monitor your mobility usage day-by-day Improve productivity enhance the efficiency of mobile workers Enhanced levels of support faster fix times www.azzurricommunications.co.uk fi ndoutmore@azzu.co.uk 0844 324 0000 2
MDM - The IT challenge. It s vital to find the right solution to suit your organisation s requirements, IT policies, resources and geographic spread. With any large scale deployment of new technology there are challenges around cost, security, user policies, integration and ensuring the necessary resources are available to support and manage the devices. The widespread adoption of these devices will potentially drive up costs as IT departments adapt to supporting more diverse technology environments and multiple operating systems. Decades of experience supporting desktop and laptop computers have streamlined the support process, but managing an expanding base of mobile technology threatens to give rise to a host of new issues and user errors that support teams and help desks must tackle. Mobile devices contain sensitive information and enterprise data, and the potential security threats must be understood and mitigated. Data loss can result in anything from damage to the company brand to severe financial penalties. As business needs continue to stretch and vary and mobile devices continue to rapidly evolve, it is difficult to identify a clear set of MDM requirements to suit your organisation. Multiple options are available on the market and many vendors have similar features this lack of differentiation can be confusing and complicate investment decisions. It is important to understand your business requirements and the tools you will need to protect your mobile devices before making this important decision. MDM simply defined. Info. Enterprise Mobile Device Management software helps IT to secure, monitor, manage and support mobile devices deployed across enterprises. MDM tools typically install an agent to control the end user device. This agent then operates in the following manner: 1. Once installed, performs an evaluation of the device s state, installed software and configuration settings 2. Relays this information to a centralised server where it is matched against the desired settings for the specific device and user 3. Messages are then sent invisibly over-the-air to change the device according to the required/desired settings and to lock down features from user manipulation 4. Delivers regular contact between the device and the server to ensure the device is checked for compliance, and policies can be updated as and when necessary. www.azzurricommunications.co.uk fi ndoutmore@azzu.co.uk 0844 324 0000 3
Five steps to implementing the right MDM solution The rationale behind every deployment is different. When choosing an MDM solution, there are a number of different approaches: you may have already decided a device type and need a compatible solution; you may have a specific feature set that you require for your users; or alternatively a set of features you don t want to be available. In all cases, these five basic steps can help to minimise risk and ensure you choose the right solution for your organisation s needs: Step 1. Decide what devices are to be managed (personal and/or enterprise owned). IT administrators must be able to deploy, secure, monitor, manage and support both organisation and employee owned mobile devices easily and effectively, without compromising security. Support may be required for a wide range of tablets and smartphones from leading manufacturers like Apple, Google, Nokia, RIM, HTC, with support for mobile operating systems such as Apple ios, Android, Symbian and Blackberry. Focus on your diverse user roles and requirements when deciding what devices you select. Consider job roles and needs carefully to avoid inappropriate use of devices. For example, while Sales may be clamouring for tablets - they are better for content consumption, battery life and ease of use but tablets are less effective when it comes to complex content creation, such as pulling together tenders, proposals or presentations. Ideally your solution should be as technically agnostic as possible and not tie you into a particular device, operating system or access network. Make sure you select a future proof solution which can support multiple devices, multiple operating systems and be independent of the means by which your devices connect to the Internet or corporate network. You can easily run pilot trials of technologies such as multiplatform MDM tools, which can allow employees access to a mixture of personal and corporate applications, but maintain control over enterprise data. Step 2. Choose the most cost effective deployment model for your needs. There are many variations on the delivery model used by MDM solutions. These range from complete cloud based offerings that allow your organisation to acquire the capability without an upfront investment, right through to on-premise (or hosted) capital investment options. Cloud services offer the flexibility to scale up (or down) along with your needs and you simply pay a monthly subscription for each device under management, which includes maintenance and system upgrades. Cloud based or Software-as-a-Service solutions are suitable for organisations www.azzurricommunications.co.uk fi ndoutmore@azzu.co.uk 0844 324 0000 4
deploying mobility solutions across multiple locations or who are looking to minimise upfront investment costs. On premise services are where organisations purchase a perpetual software license per device and provide their own hardware, management and maintenance. On premise solutions are suitable for organisations that require customisation or integration with existing IT infrastructure and those with access to necessary levels of IT resource and hardware to support the solution. Step 3. Choose the right user experience. One of the key choices that affects the user experience is the type of agent installed to control the end user device. There are two main technical approaches to device management. A lightweight approach is when a small agent is installed on the device and used in conjunction with corporate email servers, preserving the device s native email client. The second is a heavyweight approach that totally replaces the device s native email client with a complete mobile management client that can only connect to the corporate mail server. The first approach offers familiarity and ease of use. The second approach is highly secure and provides complete separation of personal and corporate data and can enforce strong IT control on the device. For example, it can disable copy and paste between corporate and personal data and disable downloading of attachments. Step 4. Defi ne your security and enforcement policies. Consider your specific security requirements before selecting the appropriate MDM solution. There are a number of general security policies every enterprise should implement to keep its email and corporate information safe on mobile devices, and this should apply to both personal and enterprise devices: Require email session encryption Remote wipe devices if they are lost or stolen Selective wipe (e.g. only corporate data) or total non recoverable wipe Local data encryption memory cards etc. Protect devices with a password Force regular password changes Auto-lock devices after periods of inactivity Auto-wipe devices after failed unlock attempts Protect the configuration profile Continuously refresh policies Step 5. Defi ne your internal processes. Consider the specific policies and processes that you will implement for the five implementation and ongoing management phases. Key questions you must answer include: Deploying. How do you want to trigger enrolling the device via SMS, email, a self-provisioning portal, scanning a bar-code or URL? How are you going to authenticate users and devices against your master directory? www.azzurricommunications.co.uk fi ndoutmore@azzu.co.uk 0844 324 0000 5
Do you want to wirelessly provision white-listed applications through an enterprise catalogue? And at the same time remove black-listed applications? Securing. What policies do you want to enforce on eligible devices for: Detecting non-compliant or jail-broken devices? Enforcing separation of personal versus enterprise content? Restricting applications through white-lists and black-lists? Monitoring. What action should be taken when a policy violation is detected - send a warning and alert IT or immediately suspend access to enterprise servers? What user activity do you want to track for example downloads, voice, text and data usage against pre-defined thresholds? Managing. How do you manage remote wipe commands; on-demand, at a scheduled time or the next time a device checks in? Supporting. Will users be provided with a self service portal that allows them to manage their own device? Is remote control of a device for troubleshooting to be offered? Conclusion. Organisations of all sizes and across all industries are investigating deploying MDM solutions to secure and support a range of mobile devices and increasingly complex estates. However, the most successful deployments are conceived, planned and executed by experts taking into account the most appropriate solution for each individual business. This guide is designed to give you a head start when it comes to successfully scoping, deploying and managing the appropriate MDM solutions for your organisation. For more information on the issues raised here and how Azzurri can help, visit www.azzurricommunications.co.uk/what-wedo/mobility-and-flexible-working, call 0844 324 0000 or email findoutmore@azzu.co.uk. Azzurri s managed services are transforming the way you buy and use communication and information technology. Azzurri is the UK s leading independent provider of managed communications services. We help organisations transform ICT into a strategic asset to support growth, enhance agility and efficiency, boost collaboration and deliver competitive advantage. Our flexible, integrated communications services encompass IP and mobile telephony, converged networks, unified communications, contact centres and document solutions. www.azzurricommunications.co.uk fi ndoutmore@azzu.co.uk 0844 324 0000 6
www.azzurricommunications.co.uk fi ndoutmore@azzu.co.uk 0844 324 0000 7
Beyond expectation. www.azzurricommunications.co.uk fi ndoutmore@azzu.co.uk 0844 324 0000