Mobile Workforce Report Q3 2011: Page 1: Introduction | Page 2: The Always-On Workforce | Page 3: To Connect or Disconnect? | Page 4: Device and Connectivity Trends | Page 5: Conclusion
Of the 91 percent of survey respondents that had smartphones, 83 percent would define them as "business smartphones". For 59 percent, their employers paid their entire business smartphone bill. An additional 11 percent received partial reimbursements from their employers for their business smartphone usage.
Figure 25: Who pays for your business smartphone service plan?
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A key part of workshifting is being able to integrate work and life on these mobile devices. The majority of mobile employees (76 percent) used their smartphone for some work and some personal–38 percent mostly for work, 29 percent equal work and personal, and 8 percent mostly personal. But only 3 percent used their devices exclusively for personal reasons.
Figure 26: How do you use your smartphone
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This quarter, we saw tablet adoption continue to grow from 34 percent of mobile workers in May of 2011, to 41 percent today. It came as no surprise that the iPad 2 is grabbing all of the attention and marketshare in the tablet arena. 54 percent of respondents either already had or were considering the purchase of an iPad 2 within the next six months. All other tablet device vendors (Blackberry, Motorola, Samsung, HP, Dell, and several others) were fighting furiously for the remaining 18 percent of the market. As you can see in the following graph, it’s an uphill battle. It will take some amazing new device functionality and aggressive marketing to grab the attention of the loyal iPad devotees. But the number-one law of leadership from the 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing still stands–it is always better to be first than to be better.
Figure 27: Do you currently have or intend to receive or purchase any of the following tablets in the next six months?
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Tablets are now being used for a combination of work and personal reasons. 83 percent used their tablets for work at least some of the time and over half (53 percent) used them for work at least half of the time. But even though these tablets are being used for work—let’s face it, they are a lot of fun and a great way to connect with friends. Today’s mobile workers agree. Only 4 percent used their tablets exclusively for work.
Figure 28: Do you view your tablet device as primarily a work or a personal device?
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Consider adding tablets to your list of approved devices. Although the devices first gained popularity in the personal use market, they are now important productivity tools for business use as well.
Make sure you pre-load the tablets with all necessary data security and productivity apps before issuance. The IT department can conduct these downloads much more efficiently than most employees.
Mobile Workforce Report Q3 2011: Page 1: Introduction | Page 2: The Always-On Workforce | Page 3: To Connect or Disconnect? | Page 4: Device and Connectivity Trends | Page 5: Conclusion
