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Market

Not All Tablets Are Fit for

Pulse

Enterprise Use

WHILE CONSUMER-GRADE TABLETS CURRENTLY DOMINATE THE ENTERPRISE,
IT ORGANIZATIONS ARE QUESTIONING THEIR LONG-TERM VIABILITY AS A
PROFESSIONAL COMPUTING TOOL, CITING LIMITATIONS AROUND
FUNCTIONALITY, DURABILITY, AND RELIABILITY.

The tablet, after years of false starts, is finally being taken

seriously as a professional computing tool. But as user

adoption surges, IT organizations face the reality that

popular consumer-grade models are increasingly

hamstrung by limited functionality and are not robust

enough to withstand rigorous enterprise use.

Tablets are gaining ground in the enterprise for a number

of reasons. Drawn in by the lightweight form factor and the

promise of “work any where” mobility, a growing number

of users are finding value in a tool that lets them do more

and carry less. At the same time, organizations are highly

receptive to replacing paper-based processes, increasing

collaboration among employees, and delivering additional

functionality and information via custom apps as a way to

improve customer service or streamline operations.

According to a recent IDG Market Pulse survey of

InfoWorld readers with 1,000 or more employees, 81%

of respondents are incorporating tablets into their

computing infrastructure as a means of empowering

employee mobility, while 68% cite increased employee

ACCORDING TO A RECENT IDG MARKET
PULSE SURVEY OF INFOWORLD READERS
WITH 1,000 OR MORE EMPLOYEES, 81%
OF RESPONDENTS ARE INCORPORATING
TABLETS INTO THEIR COMPUTING
INFRASTRUCTURE AS A MEANS OF
EMPOWERING EMPLOYEE MOBILITY, WHILE
68% CITE INCREASED EMPLOYEE PRODUC­TIVITY AS THEIR PRIMARY MOTIVATOR.

productivity as their primary motivator. Other reasons for

widespread deployment of tablets include facilitating better

and faster decision making through near-real-time access

to information (53%), bolstering employee satisfaction (44%),

and fostering the ability to gather and record information in

the field (43%).

Tablets have become more commonplace in the work-

place in part because of the exposure business users

have had to the technology via their own personal use.

With consumer adoption of mobile devices on the rise,

users have become accustomed to the convenience of

watching video or accessing email on the go, fueling their

expectations for a comparable mobile experience in their

professional lives.

The desire to have a single device bridge the personal

and professional worlds is also having an impact on the

corporate computing infrastructure. The phenomenon

known as Bring Your Own Device, or BYOD, where users

deploy their own tablets and smartphones on the job, is

becoming more prevalent in the workplace. As a result,

companies find themselves deploying and supporting

the more familiar consumer-grade tablets as opposed

to enterprise-class tablets, which are considered highly

durable and expandable, support more robust security and

management capabilities, and are purpose-built to operate

in a variety of environments, including out in the field or on

the manufacturing floor.

2 NOT ALL TABLETS ARE FIT FOR ENTERPRISE USE

Top IT Issues/Concerns Related to Supporting Tablets

Security concerns

Integration with existing IT

Mobile device management issues

IT staff time required to support

Inability to configure/customize

device for specific business needs

Difficulty in servicing device

High replacement rate due to the

High failure rate due to unreliable OS

In fact, the IDG Market Pulse research shows that more

than half of the companies surveyed are issuing consumer-

grade tablets from Apple and Sony to business users,

compared with only 26% outfitting employees with enter-

prise-grade devices like those from Dell and Panasonic.

Consumer-grade tablets also tend to be the initial device

of choice when a BYOD option is in place—a scenario

now supported by 57% of survey respondents, regardless

of whether there is a reimbursement plan for the devices

or a policy that dictates individuals purchase the equipment

on their own.

infrastructure

and manage tablets

fragility of the devices

40%

29%

22%

11%

SOURCE: IDG RESEARCH SERVICES, AUGUST 2013

CONSUMER TABLETS HIT A WALL

Now that organizations are a couple of years into this

newly laid tablet infrastructure, they are starting to bump

up against challenges around deployment and support,

particularly with the influx of consumer-grade offerings. On

average, one-third of the survey respondents report that

there are company users solely reliant on tablets as their

primary computing device for professional duties. And while

nearly half of the survey respondents expect those numbers

to climb over the next year, the limited functionality of

consumer-grade tablets is hindering more widespread

adoption of the platform as a universal PC replacement.

Chief among the user complaints about consumer tablets

are their lack of a keyboard and mouse, their inability to

Market

Pulse

perform key functions like editing a

document and viewing certain file

types, and their relatively short battery

70%

64%

60%

53%

like built-in firewalls and virus protection, in addition to

version control capabilities for managing software updates.

These capabilities, along with additional management

functions, are critical for IT to ensure the consistency and

security of the corporate network when integrating tablet

devices into the enterprise fold.

Next on IT’s list of pain points related to tablet deploy-

ment is integration with the organization’s existing IT

infrastructure, cited by 64% of respondents, followed by

issues related to mobile device management (60%) and

the staff time required to support and manage the influx

of tablets (53%).

General unease surrounding tablet support also appears

to be more prevalent in companies supporting consumer-

grade tablets. In those firms, nearly one-quarter of survey

IN ADDITION TO THE CHALLENGES
SURROUNDING THE CARE AND MAINTENANCE
OF COMPANY-ISSUED CONSUMER TABLETS,
IT ORGANIZATIONS ARE ALSO STRUGGLING
UNDER THE WEIGHT OF MAINTAINING
DEVICES BROUGHT INTO THE ENTERPRISE
VIA BYOD PROGRAMS.

life—all significant obstacles standing

in the way of business users cutting

the cord on traditional PCs and making

a full transition to a tablet-centric

computing platform.

Compounding user hesitation

is pushback from IT organizations,

which are raising concerns as they

run into challenges related to the

ongoing maintenance and support of

tablets—specifically, the consumer-

grade models. Not surprisingly, the top

concern related to supporting tablets

has to do with security—an issue

cited by 70% of respondents. Most

consumer-grade tablets lack features