One Size Fits All with the Right Device Management Solution

By Nadav Avni, Chief Marketing Officer at Radix Technologies

For any workforce to maintain high-performance levels, the integration of several digital mobile tools has become a necessity. This may instantly bring to mind the array of laptops, tablets, and smartphones distributed within your company. There are, however, a multitude of other critical smart device applications performing an extensive range of tasks from communication and security to logistics management, warehousing, and retail.

Although smart tech devices are not new to the corporate world, the COVID-19 pandemic spurred on increased integration of digital tools across various business sectors. With pandemic restrictions forcing companies to reduce face-to-face interactions, digital means of communicating from remote locations needed to be employed. More self-service devices were introduced in retail including no-touch scan-to-pay systems and booths.

Warehouses, factories, and supply chain operations are increasingly benefiting from high-tech smart devices to monitor manufacturing, inventory, and deliveries with additional features such as route mapping, bar code scanners, temperature, and pressure control. Health devices track patient data in clinical trials, civil engineers use smart devices for structural visualization, and day-to-day self-service kiosks at airports, grocery stores, and banks have become the norm.

Over the years, businesses from all industries have had to improve flexibility and security across digital functions to improve efficiency and keep up with consumer and industry demands. Corporate-owned, single-use (COSU) devices are enabling organizations to transform their business operations with improved accuracy and enhanced user control.

Although the range of devices varies greatly in appearance from mobile phones and tablets to self-service kiosks, their underlying operational components are similar to those of a smartphone. They all feature a high-level operating system, third-party applications, and wireless data connectivity. This means that device management across various locations or settings can be simplified and does not have to be a manual, device-specific task.

Employing the correct device management solutions not only maintains uniformity and improves security, but it improves functionality, saves time, and reduces costs.

Device-Agnostic Systems is the Future of EDM/MDM

Device-agnostic systems support all types of devices or operating systems, and are essential to the future of mobile device management (MDM) and enterprise device management (EDM).

When considering devices such as ATMs, voting machines, and ticket or registration kiosks, dozens, if not hundreds of devices require management by a single company. COSU device management requires the tracking of lost or stolen devices, malware, data breaches, as well as updates and ensuring the maintenance of each device’s adequacy and integrity.

The increased prominence of BYOD in business settings and dealing with a variety of phone, tablet, laptop, and other business devices that work with different operating systems (OS) further compounds device management challenges. Between internal office devices, external public kiosks, remote worker devices, and those used by traveling representatives or area managers, it seems almost impossible to keep track of corporate devices, never mind the sensitive data that each device collects and uses during operation.

Other than ensuring devices work as they are meant to, securing customer information that has been entrusted to your business is an immense responsibility. Delays in device and security management can have serious consequences.

When choosing a device management system, ensuring that it recognizes various devices—regardless of their operating systems—should be a high priority. Device-agnostic solutions allow technicians or device managers to work on all devices. They ensure that software solutions recognize and offer compatibility with the most popular OS without requiring individual, manual management. This means faster problem solving, remote problem resolution, and timely security-threat prevention.

Oversee Entire Fleets of Devices with COSU Device Management Solutions

Securely managing devices at a large scale across various locations can involve an insurmountable amount of effort, time, project management tracking, and essentially money—when done manually. When employing mobile device management connected through a cloud, enterprises gain more efficient real-time access remotely. COSU device management solutions allow technicians to connect from their desks, at a single point, to all devices in the fleet to perform updates, maintenance, security, and monitoring tasks.

When COSU devices are implemented for data-centric objectives such as surveys, registration, or ticketing, data can be sent directly to analytics platforms or customer databases instantly. This also requires protection against unauthorized access or device use which administrators can manage remotely.

Since digital devices are the backbone of many operational functions, uniformity and standardized brand functionality are vital. If a customer uses your brand kiosk at one location, they expect the functionality and transaction processes to be the same at another location. Being able to manage updates and standardization simultaneously and consistently throughout ensures a user-friendly experience.

In addition, machine downtime, regardless of the device type, generally means downtime for your business and that translates into revenue loss, poor image, and sometimes even loss of customers in the long run. With device-agnostic solutions, downtime can be reduced to a minimum and issues can be addressed instantaneously.

Choosing Your Device Management Solution

Corporate settings integrate a wide variety of device types, operating systems, and components between various departments and locations. Devices need to continue performing for your business to continue functioning. Each device type may have unique security threats and management requirements which highly complicates device management.

The right device management solution should deliver a well-designed unified endpoint management solution that covers company smartphones and tablets as well as COSU devices. It should offer administrators the management tools to enhance privacy and application security, theft protection, remote support, and compliance as well as improve the user experience for employees and external users in the case of kiosks.

With just a few skilled personnel, simplifying device management across the board is a necessity to ensure that your operations run smoothly and securely.