Instead of trying to pitch and sell mobile device management (MDM), perhaps managed services providers (MSPs) should simply spend more time listening to incoming customer requests and queries. The reason: Fully 70 percent of MSPs say their customers are asking about MDM, but nearly 20 percent of MSPs say they don’t have an MDM solution in place to meet the inbound customer inquiries.
Those stats surfaced today during our Channel Expert Hour webcast, which focused on MDM business and sales strategies. Admittedly, the attendee survey was not scientific and the results could be inflated since all attendees had a built-in interest in MDM.
Still, the figures suggest MSPs need to adjust their business processes and sales models to address customers’ growing use of tablets and smartphones. The biggest issue on the webcast, hardly surprising, involved pricing. Multiple options are surfacing.
Per User or Per Device Pricing?
Rick Vines (pictured, left), president of Axcell Technologies, says he’s using the Cake sales mindset — popularized by TruMethods. The idea is all-in “per user” or “per customer” pricing that covers all traditional and emerging devices without specifically describing how much MDM costs. Hypothetically, managing a user per month could cost $100 for all-in services (including MDM) without a specific line item for the MDM fee.
In contrast, Connecting Point Technologies VP Sam Bloedow (right) is embracing per-device pricing. In some cases, smartphone management costs half as much as traditional PC management. In other cases, tablet management can cost as much as traditional PC management — particularly if the service involves mission-critical tablets that essentially replace PCs as primary computing devices.
Gerald Beaulieu (left), director of product marketing at Kaseya, cautioned MSPs not to set a specific flat-rate price for all MDM engagements. While low-margin retailers may have very sensitive price points for MDM, compliance-focused customers like attorneys and health care practitioners will likely open their wallets wider for MDM services that protect sensitive data and keep employees productive.
An archive of the webcast — which Kaseya sponsored — will be available on our Channel Expert Hour webcast registration page from about January 18 through about April 18, 2012.
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Posted In: Managed Services | Mobile Device Management
Tags: Apple iOS Management | Axcell Technologies | Connecting Point Technologies | Gerald Beaulieu | Google Android Management | Kaseya | mobile device management | Rick Vines | Sam Bloedow | Smartphone Management Information | Tablet Management Information | TruMethods
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The stats are surely staggering, but certainly on target. Just as there is a lot of buzz around Cloud, there is also a lot of buzz around BYOD (Bring Your Own Device), the Consumerization of IT and MDM. Mobile Device Management is certainly an issue that needs to be addressed by all solution providers. But, can you manage those mobile devices if you don’t know they are on your network? The reason I ask is because you have to know the mobile device exists before you can put your MDM agent on it. This is great if you’re deploying a bunch of corporate owned devices to your employees. You procure them, your provision them, and you hand them out to your staff.
What if it’s a personal device? What if Dr. Joe wants to bring his personal iPad onto the medical center’s network and the IT department has never seen it, and doesn’t know Dr. Joe is on site? How can IT provision that device safely and securely if IT doesn’t know it exists?
The answer is that you need more than an MDM agent to securely manage this BYOD phenomenon (Yes, Gartner calls BYOD a Phenomenon). First, you need to know what’s accessing your network in real time. This takes you to another category of security product called Network Access Control (NAC). NAC gives you the ability to see 100% of the devices that are trying to access your network in real time regardless of OS or protocol (wired or wireless). NAC extends the capabilities of your RMM platform to allow you to see everything in real time and provision everything automatically – even head less devices like IP Cameras, Ultrasound Machines, etc.
Once you know the device exists, you can use your NAC tool to first bring the device into compliance – make sure the proper apps are installed, patch the OS, ensure AV is up to date, etc. Then NAC will automatically provision your MDM agent and your RMM agent, and whatever other software you want.
The point I am trying to make is that an MDM agent is not the single answer alone. MDM allows you to administer the mobile device – ensure password policies, remote wipe if lost or stolen, etc. The MDM platform cannot discover new or unknown mobile devices that are on the network. MDM cannot distinguish between corporate owned and personal devices. MDM cannot manage where that devices and user go on the network. And MDM cannot ensure a secure network environment. What MDM can do is complete a total security solution for you in your battle to contain the BYOD phenomenon.
Amy Luby
VP & General Manager Bradford.cloud
Bradford Networks
Amy,
Hope all is well at Bradford Networks. The NAC stuff has certainly caught our attention as 2012 begins to unfold. I concede: I didn’t know much about the NAC market until you and I spoke at IT Nation. I look forward to hearing more.
-jp