Industry Research
G00212597
CIO Attitudes Toward Consumerization of
Mobile Devices and Applications
Published: 25 May 2011
Analyst(s): Nick Jones
We surveyed CIOs and senior executives attending Gartner's CIO forums in
the U.S. and Europe to gauge their opinions about future mobile device
strategies, and the impact of consumerization on the way in which
smartphones and tablets are provided and managed. The trends we identify
in this research will be of interest to network operators, mobile device
manufacturers, and executives responsible for providing and managing
mobile devices.
Key Findings
■
Mobile device and platform diversity will increase. Most CIOs expect a future of substantial
diversity, and many plan to introduce new devices and management models, such as
employee-owned IT.
■
When considering new styles of device ownership and management, executives in Western
Europe are significantly more cautious than their North American peers.
■
Enthusiasm for new device types, such as the iPad, has run far ahead of security. Only a
minority of CIOs are convinced their current mobile security would satisfy an auditor.
■
CIOs do not see tablet devices as replacements for laptops in the short term.
Recommendations
■
Consider job roles and needs carefully before deploying tablets to avoid the inappropriate use
of devices. Consider tablets for applications that require content consumption and ease of use,
rather than complex content creation.
■
Pilot new device management models, such as employee-owned IT, but develop security
policies and controls before deploying devices.
■
Pilot technologies such as multiplatform mobile device management (MDM), which can allow
employees access to app stores on devices that are used for a mixture of personal and
corporate applications, but can maintain control over corporate data.
What You Need to Know
CIOs in Europe and the U.S. expect substantial increases in device diversity, and are exploring new
management and funding models, such as employee-owned devices. However, significant
management and security challenges remain unsolved, and European CIOs are more cautious in
their approach to consumerization than their U.S. counterparts.
Strategic Planning Assumption(s)
Through 2016, at least 25% of employees in the U.S. and Western Europe will not be permitted to
use their own mobile devices for work because of the sensitivity of data they access.
Analysis
Gartner surveyed CIOs and senior IT executives attending our U.S. and European CIO forums in
March and April 2011. These surveys were conducted during a series of workshops on managing
mobile devices and surviving consumerization.
Survey Process
The U.S. conference attendees were predominantly from North America, while European conference
attendees were from Western Europe, with around half of those based in the U.K. We caution
readers that this is not a random sample: Respondents were self-selected, in that they opted to
attend a Gartner conference and to participate in a workshop on mobile devices and
consumerization. However, we believe that these results are a good barometer of the attitudes of
CIOs and senior IT executives in Gartner's client base, which tends to represent larger
organizations.
In the U.S., we received between 78 and 81 responses to each question; in the corresponding
European event, we received between 70 and 76 responses to each question. Percentages are
rounded to the nearest digit, so they may not always add up to 100. Histograms record the number
of individuals responding to a question. Because the sample sizes are slightly different in the U.S.
and Europe, care should be taken when comparing the results.
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Survey Results and Analysis
How many different smartphone and tablet platforms do you expect to be used for business
purposes by your employees in 2012?
Figure 1 shows histograms of responses from the U.S. and Europe; the horizontal axis shows the
number of platforms and the vertical axis shows the number of respondents expecting to support
that number of platforms. The average number of expected platforms in the next two years was 3.5
in the U.S. and 3.7 in Europe; however, the distribution has a long tail, so many CIOs expect a
complex future. A minority of organizations believed they'd be able to hold the line, allowing only
one or two platforms. Discussions with workshop attendees in this situation suggest that they are
mostly in industries that are regulated or constrained in some way (e.g., financial services,
healthcare or defense). Organizations expecting greater diversity tend to have a more diverse and
less controllable range of employees (e.g., higher education).
Figure 1. Mobile Device Diversity
U.S.
Number of
Respondents
35
30
30
25
25
20
20
15
15
10
10
5
5
0
0
1
2
3
4
Europe
Number of
Respondents
35
5
6
More
than 6
1
2
3
4
5
6
More
than 6
Source: Gartner (May 2011)
In two years time, approximately what percentage of the mobile devices (laptops, tablets and
cell phones) used in your organization will be owned by employees?
The histograms in Figure 2 show that respondents in the U.S. were more aggressive in their
expectations for employee-owned devices than European respondents. The average expectation for
employee ownership in two years was 38% among U.S. respondents, but only 20% in Europe. We
believe several factors contribute to this difference, including:
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■
The more complex and diverse reimbursement and taxation issues facing European
multinationals
■
Roaming data costs
■
European data privacy regulations
■
Significant differences in employee expectations and conditions of employment across Europe
(see Note 1)
Figure 2. Employee-Owned Devices
Number of
Respondents
35
U.S.
Number of
Respondents
50
Europe
45
30
40
25
35
30
20
25
15
20
10
15
10
5
5
0
0
Less
21 to 40 41 to 60 61 to 80
than 20
More
than 81
Less
21 to 40 41 to 60 61 to 80
than 20
More
than 81
Source: Gartner (May 2011)
In the workshop discussions, we noted that, in general, U.S. organizations tend to be ahead of
European businesses in exploiting the opportunities enabled by consumerization.
If a shift of this magnitude toward employee-owned devices takes place in the U.S., it will have
major implications for many technology and service vendors. For example, there will be
opportunities for telcos to provide new types of contracts and support for employee-owned
devices, and device manufacturers selling to corporations must make their products more attractive
to consumers and find new direct sales channels.
Given your view of technology trends, in five years, what percentage of your staff will not be
eligible to use employee-owned mobile devices or laptops, because they are still dealing with
information that is too sensitive to be allowed on equipment you don't own?
The histograms in Figure 3 show that, in the longer term, Europeans seem likely to remain
significantly more conservative than Americans in this area. U.S. respondents expected that, on
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average, only 24% of employees would not be eligible for employee device ownership in five years,
whereas the European respondents expected that 35% of employees wouldn't be eligible. We
believe that much of this difference is caused by factors such as the complexity of multinational
regulations and taxation, as well as the significantly more-stringent data privacy regulations in
Europe, which will restrict some information to devices that the enterprise can control (and can
prove that it controls).
Figure 3. Staff Not Eligible for Employee Device Ownership in Five Years
Number of
Respondents
60
U.S.
Number of
Respondents
40
Europe
35
50
30
40
25
20
30
15
20
10
10
5
0
0
Less
21 to 40 41 to 60 61 to 80
than 20
More
than 81
Less
21 to 40 41 to 60 61 to 80
than 20
More
than 81
Source: Gartner (May 2011)
Do you have a strategy to move toward thinner client architectures so that you can support
different types of endpoint devices more easily?
In the survey, 74% of U.S. respondents and 67% of European respondents reported that they were
moving to thinner architectures. Thin clients offer substantial total cost of ownership (TCO)
advantages for mobile applications; in addition, as HTML5 evolves, more-sophisticated applications
will be delivered without the need for native code. However, we believe that thinner architectures
may not fully deliver on their potential, because of HTML5 fragmentation and, in some regions, the
risk of poor network performance caused by lack of cellular capacity, at least until Long Term
Evolution (LTE) arrives. Corporate interest in thinner architectures appears to have accelerated in
2011; a smaller European survey conducted in 2H10 showed only about half of organizations
exploring this option.
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Do you believe that the security currently applied to mobile devices, such as smartphones
and tablets, used in your organization is adequate and would satisfy an auditor?
U.S. and European respondents were very consistent in their assessment of security; only 27% to
28% believed their mobile security would satisfy an auditor, 41% to 42% believed it wouldn't and
the remainder were not sure (see Figure 4). This response stresses just how far enthusiasm for new
devices has run ahead of control over those devices. The consistency between U.S. and European
responses is surprising, given that, in these workshop sessions, Europeans generally seemed less
advanced than their U.S. peers in exploring new devices and ownership models. We believe this is
good news for a variety of security and device management vendors that can address a clear
corporate need.
Figure 4. Mobile Security
Number of
Respondents
45
U.S.
Number of
Respondents
45
40
40
35
35
30
30
25
25
20
20
15
15
10
10
5
5
0
Europe
0
Yes, security is
adequate to
pass an audit.
Maybe; the
No, security is
adequacy of not adequate to
security is not pass an audit.
known.
Yes, security is
adequate to
pass an audit.
Maybe; the
No, security is
adequacy of not adequate to
security is not pass an audit.
known.
Source: Gartner (May 2011)
In two years, approximately what percentage of your employees will be using tablet devices,
instead of laptops?
Expectations of tablet usage were very consistent across the U.S. and Europe, as illustrated in the
histograms in Figure 5. U.S. organizations expected that, on average, 23% of employees would use
tablets, instead of laptops, during the next two years, and Europeans estimated 20%. A small
number of CIOs had much more aggressive expectations, with 12 U.S. respondents and nine
European respondents expecting that more than 40% of employees might replace laptops with
tablets during the next two years.
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Figure 5. Use of Tablets, Instead of Laptops, During the Next Two Years
Number of
Respondents
50
U.S.
Number of
Respondents
60
Europe
45
50
40
35
40
30
30
25
20
20
15
10
10
5
0
0
Less
21 to 40 41 to 60 61 to 80
than 20
More
than 81
Less
21 to 40 41 to 60 61 to 80
than 20
More
than 81
Source: Gartner (May 2011)
These results support Gartner's view that, in the medium term, tablets will remain functionally
inferior to laptops, and not appropriate for the full range of corporate applications. The consistency
between U.S. and European attitudes in this area is a consequence of the fact that the viability of
tablets is determined by job roles, not technology or regulations, and there is considerable
commonality in the needs of similar roles in both regions. Discussions with workshop participants
suggested that roles that would benefit from tablets include sales, business development, senior
executives, marketing staff and staff carrying out simple data collection tasks (thus serving as a
clipboard replacement).
If CIOs act as they predict, a shift of 20% in corporate device purchases from laptops to tablets
would imply substantial growth in the tablet market during the next two years.
Do you make your users sign any form of declaration or policy document if they use
personally owned mobile devices to access corporate information or corporate e-mail? If so,
how effective do you think such paper policies are in controlling user behavior?
Approximately 50% of the respondents in the U.S. and Europe used some form of policy document,
although few respondents thought they were effective in controlling behavior. However, they may
be useful as an educational tool, or necessary for legal reasons, to establish that an employee is
aware of company policy or has agreed to allow his or her employer to perform tasks such as
wiping a personal device (see Note 2). A surprisingly large proportion of respondents (31% in the
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U.S. and 22% in Europe) appear to allow corporate e-mail and other information on personal
devices, but don't even require their users to sign any form of declaration or policy.
Figure 6. Use of Policy Documents
U.S.
Europe
Policy documents are
mostly ineffective.
Policy documents are
mostly ineffective.
Policy documents have
some value.
Policy documents have
some value.
Policy documents are
very effective.
Policy documents are
very effective.
We don't make users sign
policy documents.
We don't make users sign
policy documents.
We don't allow access to
corporate e-mail or
documents on employeeowned devices.
We don't allow access to
corporate e-mail or
documents on employeeowned devices.
0
10
20
30
40
Number of Respondents
0
10
20
30
40
Number of Respondents
Source: Gartner (May 2011)
What's your view on the risks of allowing employees to download apps from public app
stores to install on mobile devices that are used wholly or partly for business purposes?
(Please select the response that's closest to your opinion.)
Figure 7 illustrates that app stores are a problematic area for organizations. On the one hand,
allowing employees access to apps increases staff satisfaction and innovation by enabling
employees to customize their working practices and find new tools to support their work. Apps are
also one of the main reasons that individuals want smartphones and tablets, so they cannot be
banned on a device that is used for personal purposes. On the other hand, the risks of apps include
data incompatibility, and the potential for viruses and trojans. Europeans were significantly more
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cautious than U.S. respondents, with 3% banning apps. A significant proportion of respondents
permit apps, but are concerned by the risks. This suggests opportunities for technologies that can
either control apps or isolate corporate data from the risks of rogue apps (see Note 3).
Figure 7. Use of App Stores
U.S.
Europe
We don't allow
downloading of apps from
stores.
We don't allow
downloading of apps from
stores.
We allow app
downloading, but retain
the right to control or veto
apps if required.
We allow app
downloading, but retain
the right to control or veto
apps if required.
We allow app
downloading, but are
concerned by the risks.
We allow app
downloading, but are
concerned by the risks.
We allow app
downloading and are not
concerned by the risks.
We allow app
downloading and are not
concerned by the risks.
Other
Other
0
10 20 30 40 50
Number of Respondents
0
10
20
30
40
Number of Respondents
Source: Gartner (May 2011)
Recommended Reading
Some documents may not be available as part of your current Gartner subscription.
"Findings: Consumerization Is Affecting Enterprise Mobility Strategies"
"Mobile Device Management 2010: A Crowd of Vendors Pursue Consumer Devices in the
Enterprise"
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"Mobile Architectures, 2009 Through 2012: A Trend Toward Thin"
"Magic Quadrant for Mobile Device Management Software"
"Checklist for an Employee-Owned Notebook or PC Program"
"Creating New Policies for Employee-Owned PCs and Notebooks"
"How to Choose the Right Enterprise Tablet for Your Employees"
Note 1 European Challenges
Discussions in the European CIO workshops highlighted the fact that multinational European
organizations face greater challenges than their U.S. counterparts in adopting strategies such as
employee-owned devices, because of the variations in working practices and cellular contracts
around Europe. For example, in Germany, new working practices would typically have to be agreed
on by workers councils. Also, many European executives travel internationally, and the high cost of
international data roaming (especially on consumer cellular contracts) complicates reimbursement
plans, thus making simple stipend models impractical.
Note 2 Wiping Personal Devices
In our experience, most organizations permitting the use of employee-owned devices obtain a
waiver from the employees permitting them to be wiped in certain circumstances, such as when a
device has been lost or stolen. However, a small number of workshop attendees had been advised
that this might be risky, because of the potential value of the personal information on the devices.
Therefore, we advise organizations to consult their lawyers when creating policies for controlling
corporate data on personal devices.
Note 3 Controlling Applications
Some MDM tools can control applications on mobile devices (for example, by enforcing blacklists
or whitelists). An alternative approach is to use technologies that wrap corporate data in a
controlled environment that is inaccessible to external apps (for example, so-called "sandboxed"
mobile e-mail solutions).
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