The exponential growth of technology use in business has fundamentally blurred the boundary between our private and professional lives changing how, where and when work is done. Denis Stevens looks at how managing a mobile phone fleet can help the bottom line
Along with most managers of my generation, I remember mobile technology being expensive, cumbersome and unreliable. In contrast, younger staff members have grown up in a world where mobile phone ownership is an essential part of both day-to-day operations and personal communications and for many, considered a job ‘perk’.
Research by Stratatel Limited, an Australian company that provides online systems for the management of business mobiles, shows that for the average user, 21 percent of a monthly business mobile phone bill is spent on personal phone calls. The same study also found 25-40 percent of corporate monthly mobile telephone bills are for calls and SMS messaging between 6pm and 6am.
If your business is carrying the lion’s share of responsibility for mobile use, developing a well balanced ‘fair use policy’ can help.
Establishing a Fair Use Policy
Many employers are concerned that implementing a Fair Use policy for mobiles may smack of distrust for their employees but in reality, balancing employee needs and corporate restraints is an issue of good governance and creating equitable outcomes for all.
Most businesses already have policies in place about internet downloads and some will back this up with software preventing the downloading of pornography or online gambling applications onto PCs. Businesses must treat mobile phones in the same way, because the sophistication of these devices means they are pocket-sized computers with much of the same functionality as PCs.
Employers also need to consider the legal and commercial risks associated with inappropriate mobile phone use by employees, including unlawful discrimination claims, sexual harassment, loss of handsets that contain business data and breaches of occupational health and safety obligations, such as risks associated with using mobiles while driving.
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With these issues in mind, it is only fair that businesses have a clear policy regarding personal use of business mobile phones. These guidelines should cover what the business believes are acceptable call types and durations, and limitations on multimedia capabilities including the Internet and SMS.
To ensure adherence to the mobile phone policy, companies need to inform staff of disciplinary action that will be taken if they are found to be flouting company procedure. A further precaution is the appropriate monitoring of employee mobile use, disclosed openly to staff to avoid a culture of secrecy developing.
Effective Monitoring of the Mobile Fleet
Mobile phone handsets are business assets and should be managed in the same vein as vehicular fleets or other portable assets. Effectively tracking mobile phone usage can result in major savings and control of related spending. This can be achieved by using electronic monitoring and allows the organisation to track call patterns of employees, and identify early indicators of potential policy breaches.
The telecommunications market is constantly shifting and organisations can also save significant money by shopping around and shifting plans regularly. For organisations that lack the time and resources to monitor the market, there are now businesses dedicated to managing and monitoring mobile fleets to ease administrative burdens.
By using carrier-independent internet-based management and cost control systems to track corporate mobile fleets and monitor individual mobile use and expertise in the telecommunications industry, it is possible to determine which service provider will offer the best value for the company.
Apart from easing the administrative burden of maintaining policies across a mobile fleet, companies that implement systems of this kind can experience noticeable reductions in usage costs. When combined with a well-balanced and well-explained mobile phone policy, these offerings provide companies with powerful corporate governance, while still maintaining employee satisfaction. It’s about well-managed and correctly governed perks, and ensuring individuals who abuse their perks don’t ruin it for everyone.
Business can strengthen its bottom line, improve morale and safeguard against risk by having a fair and reasonable policy in place regarding the usage of business mobiles. By backing this up with a means of ensuring regular compliance to policy, the positives associated with business mobiles should greatly outweigh the negatives.
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Mobile Fleet Tips and Tricks
Mobile calls are a commodity. Think of calls as a commodity that you buy each month. Buy cost-effectively and check for wastage
Use technology where possible. Manually checking mobile bills each month can take up a lot of valuable staff time. Using the latest systems specifically designed to do the job can cut your monthly administration costs by up to 75 percent.
Get an independent picture. Don’t rely on carrier billing systems for your monthly checks, as they are not independent and therefore don’t offer clear visibility of potential savings.
Keep a leash on personal calls. Most businesses don’t mind employees making some personal calls – just make sure you keep control of this.
Watch administration costs. Research has shown that on average, the internal cost of administering a mobile phone is $200 per phone per year. Tighter management of these assets can achieve major cost savings and reduce admin time.
Assess risk. Uncontrolled use of a business mobile can present a risk to the business. Mobiles can store data, access the Internet and in the wrong hands can leak confidential business data – make sure information is protected.
Manage mobile internet. Most businesses control employees’ access to the internet through desktop computers. Make sure you have equivalent safeguards in place to allow you to manage internet access through mobiles.
Define work and down time. The business and its employees may regard the ‘always reachable’ syndrome differently. This is why having a clear written policy in place for mobile usage is so important.
Get prepared now. Mobile phone usage in business will eventually overtake fixed line telephony in business.
Denis Stevens is the managing director or Expense Reduction Analysts (www.expense-reduction.com.au), a cost management and procurement consultancy.
