iPads, iPhones Hit Help Desks Hard

14.03.2012
What happens when your iPad goes on the fritz? Take it to an Apple Genius, of course. If it's an iPad used for work, though, you'll probably ring up the help desk first-and this means CIOs better be ready to support consumer products.

There's just one problem: While the help desk is being tasked to do more in the age of consumerization of IT, additional resources are not forthcoming.

At least this is a key finding in survey of nearly 500 IT leaders across healthcare, financial services, manufacturing, education and retail about their pain points of consumer gadgets in the enterprise. More than 65 percent reported no increase in support resources, despite nearly 70 percent experiencing a significant increase in demand for the help desk.

And we're not just talking about company-owned consumer gadgets, either. More than 40 percent of respondents reported that their companies allow employees to bring their own devices. It's an emerging trend called BYOD (bring your own device) that is .

Consumer gadgets can be anything from Apple iPads to Android smartphones to BlackBerry PlayBooks. The overwhelming majority-more than 85 percent-have seen an increase in the use of iPhones and iPads, according to PC Helps.

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