No doubt your employees already have their own mobile phones and most likely these are smartphones. Research clearly indicates that use of a smartphone for work can significantly increase productivity with one study showing an uplift of 34% (Frost & Sullivan, 2016). Another study found that 75% of people said their smartphones made them more productive (Google, 2017) and nearly 80% of IT Executives said that employees cannot do their job effectively without a mobile phone with three-quarters saying mobile devices are essential to workflows (Oxford Economics, 2018).
Smartphones can enable convenient and on-the-move use of company specific software and third-party apps, along with providing access to emails, calls and messages. These pocket computers are also credited with improving employee collaboration. So, it is a reasonable question to ask if your business can benefit from these productivity benefits without having to invest in company provided technology for your staff. This is what is known as a BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) approach.
Although the introduction GDPR in 2018 tightened the rules, it is currently not prohibited to implement a BYOD policy and ask staff to use personal phones for work. However, there are clear boundaries that are easily crossed if you are not familiar with the rules. One potential breach is allowing an employee’s personal details (which includes their phone number) getting into the hands of third parties. The other real risk is customer and third-party business data being stored on devices outside of your managed computer system or network. Therefore, while it is not inevitable that asking staff to use their personal phones for work purposes would result in breaches of GDPR, it is certainly a very real possibility with potential fines of up to £17.5m (LEGALVISION, 2023).
So even asking an employee to make a business call on their own phone could constitute a breach. Aside from the risk of a fine there is also a risk to the employee if their personal number should fall into the wrong hands with the potential for harassment or even stalking; It’s possible now to send messages containing malicious code for a GPS location-data tracking bug. Of course, you could ask employees to block their number when calling, but many of us are unlikely to answer calls from blocked numbers, so this method may undermine the productivity increase you were hoping to achieve.
With the increasingly common use of 2FA (Two Factor Authentication) to enable access to secure sites and apps storing sensitive and critical data, mobile phones are a valuable tool. And in this case even employees who are not required to constantly make outbound calls, a personal phone is a point of significant vulnerability. Should the device be lost or stolen, these critical enterprise apps could be accessed by criminals or bad actors using 2FA on the device, with the risk of fraud, theft, and again heavy fines.
Where companies do implement a BYOD Policy, best practice is to employ software tools known as MDM (Mobile Device Management) or EMM (Enterprise Mobility
Management) solutions to create “partitions” and manage work related functions on employees’ own devices. While this is better than having no solution to separating the work and personal, it is far from ideal and not as secure as completely separate company-provided devices, ideally with these devices also managed with MDM/EMM solutions (ICO (Information Commissioner’s Office), 2024). The best software of this type will also include the ability to manage desktops and laptops as well as mobiles and tablets, offering security and screening for malware and the ability to deploy updates, apps, and content to devices remotely. In the case of loss or theft devices can also be remotely shut down, locked, or wiped to protect data.
Not only does providing staff with phones for work give a business (and employee) the greatest security, but it also provides value as an employee perk, potentially aiding with the recruitment and retention of staff.
The thought of investing in smartphones for employees might be daunting, especially when the headlines often focus on the latest flagship models from Apple or Samsung. These can cost well in-excess of £1,000 and there’s little in the way of discounts available due to the very tight margins of consumer electronics. And while they might be a must have for some, many people and employees especially don’t need such high-end devices to benefit their work. In fact, it is quite possible to equip staff with perfectly good smartphones at a fraction of the price, either with brand-new entry level devices priced at £100-£150 or alternatively high-quality, fully refurbished devices that often cost a third less than the equivalent new phone but still offer a warranty and the experience of a brand-new device.
Another option for equipping your staff with phones is to buy them along with talk and data contracts from one of the network providers. The devices in these cases are often described as “included” or “free” with the contract but of course the cost of the phones is factored in and spread across the period of the contract. You will generally pay at least full retail price for brand new phones, but also not have the option for the cost savings of refurbished. And of course, you are also tied into a contract with that network for a year, or even longer. While the initial capital outlay when paying up-front for phones is going to be greater, you will be able to opt for those that are unlocked to use on any network giving much greater flexibility in choice of carriers and for example, when staff are travelling for work abroad, access to local providers that avoid the high costs of roaming charges.
To summarise then, in answer to the question “should you ask employees to use personal phones for work?” It is hard to recommend and something to consider very carefully before opening oneself up to significant risks and large fines. Hopefully this article has helped provide some context around the question and either allowed you to make a more informed decision, or at least inspired you to do more research for yourself on the best solutions for your business. Ultimately, as the ICO advise, having staff use their own phones for work purposes should be a last resort and only something to be implemented by the very smallest of businesses.
For further advice on mobile phones for your business, please contact us!
© Xander Sandwell, Business Development Manager, J7 Enterprise Ltd. 23rd February 2024
Frost & Sullivan, 2016
Google, 2017
Oxford Economics, 2018
Information Commissioners Office, 2024