By Jonathan Steele
September 28, 2023
Many companies require their employees to use their personal assets – cellphones, laptops, broadband, vehicles – for business purposes. Compensating employees fairly for this use is an attractive benefit, but not easy to navigate in-house. To ensure the best system possible for both admin and employees, companies can outsource their asset reimbursement needs. So, what should companies look for when they’re choosing a “Bring Your Own” (BYO) provider?
According to a survey by Bitglass, 82% of all organizations promote the use of personal assets for business. With a large percentage of organizations asking employees to use their own assets, there’s an obvious need for rethinking old processes. It’s time to streamline and adopt more efficient tools. A few of the many benefits to partnering with a BYO provider are optimizing spend, gaining organizational efficiency, attracting talent and mitigating risk.
Some employers pay back their mobile workers for the use of their personal assets with fixed stipends. This method can result in headaches – ineffective policies, under or over-payments and challenging record keeping. BYO programs simplify the complexities presented in other reimbursement methods. By onboarding with a BYO provider like Motus, companies can feel reassured that they are optimizing their spend and not overpaying employees due to lack of visibility. Administrators have a broad range of oversight into how a reimbursement is calculated, making accurate and reliable payments the standard.
Once the foundations are set in the BYO program, administrators gain more engagement and clarity into why each employee is receiving a given compensation. This increase in oversight also eliminates the need for tracking down expense reports or device usage specifics, which means cutting down on tedious paperwork.
Attracting and retaining top talent in a competitive industry is becoming increasingly difficult. When hiring remote employees, it’s important to offer a candidate the option to use the technology that they’re already comfortable with instead of restricting them to company-provided devices or settings. Administrators don’t need to send out a bunch of technology that they need to keep track of. Rather, employees can opt for their personal devices with the knowledge and security that they will be given a fair reimbursement. The flexibility to prioritize the preferences of employees is a big draw for potential candidates.
Ultimately, equitable reimbursements backed by data are one way for companies to avoid situations where employees feel unfairly compensated. The best BYO programs will rely on data that is continually updated and reflective of changes in an employee’s local costs. Consistent data tailored to each employee’s area of residence can protect the company from violations of labor laws.
During the research phase of your journey to find the best bring your own device or asset reimbursement program for your company, there are a few questions you should be asking providers.
First, look internally at what your company currently offers. Do you provide new employees with a full technology set-up, or do they use their own personal devices? For any personal asset use, does your company offer reimbursement of some kind, or none at all?
When choosing the right provider, they must speak to the needs of your company, such as easy management of devices or flexible reimbursements as employee numbers grow.
Undeniably, it is a security risk for employees to access sensitive company data with their personal devices. This entry point can be the target of attack for cyber criminals. The solution is to implement security measures that can be adopted by any device.
A single secure platform where employees can download all necessary software is a safeguard from encountering malware. It’s crucial that the management of the secure platform extends to all documents connected with content and domain filtering and anti-malware functionality, including mobile threat defense solutions and professional services capabilities. But don’t stop there.
Secure platforms are most effective when the applications added to mobile devices are properly vetted, reducing potential for exposures. Scrolling through an app’s website and review section isn’t enough – set up time with the company, ask for references and have questions ready that are specific to your company’s security system.
Multi-factor authentication is becoming a mainstream method of securing access to company sites and information. That’s for good reason! Authenticators offer all devices an additional level of security and protection in case they fall into the wrong hands.
Once you’ve determined how your company currently calculates reimbursements, if at all, your research will lead you to discover what makes for exceptional reimbursement. First, a good reimbursement considers all the costs associated with the BYO asset. With phones and tablets, there are hardware and carrier fees. With broadband, there is a cadence of bills and taxes. And a home office? These costs could include insurance, utilities and mortgage or rent.
These costs make reimbursing in-house challenging, especially as workforces are scattered across geographic areas. Inconsistent costs across employees are a serious concern. BYO programs that involve up-to-date data points from across the country can provide reimbursements tailored to each employee’s location of operation, calculating fair and accurate rates based on facts, not estimates.
Company size is also a determinant in which BYO program is right for you. If you only have a few employees, self-record keeping should be manageable. But if your company is in a growth period or already has full departments, it’s definitely time to explore BYO providers. As your workforce grows, if your company expands to multiple locations in different cities or employees are working remotely, you should implement a system that ensures fair reimbursements for all. With some cities having a higher cost of living, employees will receive a rate specific to their location. A BYO program takes care of this discrepancy with ease.
Where your company operates may impact how your company handles reimbursement. While labor laws vary by state, IRS compliance is a national requirement. To be sure you’re reimbursing employees’ mileage according to the state and national laws, you can rely on a BYO program.
Once you understand your company’s needs and are narrowing down options, it’s important to compare the reputation of BYO programs and read through client reviews. G2 is a reliable website that hosts peer-reviews on many software programs and applications.
As you move through your search for the BYO program that’s right for you, make it a priority to understand how the program would fit into your existing infrastructure and tailor to needs.
Motus’ BYO reimbursement program checks all the boxes:
And so much more! Learn more about the Motus Bring Your Own solution today.
With Motus, accurately capturing business mileage has never been faster or easier.
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