The Wide World of Consumer IT: A Crash Course for Executives

Authors: Jeanne G. Harris, Iris Junglas and Brian Long

The quickly changing world of consumer IT is bringing new worries to businesses, but also opportunities to those that understand them. Androids, iPads and iPhones, along with applications such as Facebook, Twitter and Google Apps are words on many employees’ lips because; nowadays many people now use them, other consumer devices and applications extensively for work.

Employees say that many consumer apps are easier to use, quicker to implement, and do more to help them innovate - all for less money than traditional enterprise IT. But, IT departments aren't completely comfortable with what looks like a risky technological free-for-all.

This article presents a guide to the consumer technologies that are starting to infiltrate the enterprise - and what executives need to know to stay ahead of the curve.

Related Article: Can Enterprise IT Survive the Meteor of Consumer Technology?

A survey by Accenture’s Institute for High Performance global survey found that more than 20 percent of employees use personal consumer devices and applications at work on a regular basis. Employees say that many consumer apps are easier to use, quicker to implement, and do more to help them innovate - all for less money than traditional enterprise IT.

Employees are now making decisions that were once left to IT managers and other executives with IT oversight responsibilities. And that shift is bringing with it new and vexing questions.

But, IT departments aren't completely comfortable with what looks like a risky technological free-for-all. Largely because of concerns about data security, reliability and performance.

The first step towards successfully exploiting consumer IT is to understanding what the technologies are and what they do. Executives can’t get matters under control if they don’t understand what they are dealing with, and consumer IT goes well beyond smart phones, tablets and social media.

As much as IT departments with this, any new technology - both hardware and software- could present a security threat to the organisation. Providing guidelines that are transparent and accessible to everyone not only ensures that data security is enforced throughout the organisation, but also that employees feel accountable for what they do.

Companies should treat the emergence of new consumer technologies as an opportunity to rethink those aspects of enterprise infrastructure that are legacy-ridden.

Consumerisation will be one of the biggest tests - and opportunities - for executives with technology responsibilities.

With a new, tech-savvy generation entering the workforce, resisting consumerisation won't be an option. The trick will be finding ways to use consumer IT both to make the organization more attractive to future workers and to make the company itself more competitive in the marketplace.

Companies should do whatever they can to get ahead of this trend.