Nearly three quarters of business professionals own a tablet device

Nearly three quarters of business professionals own a tablet device
By 2013 all business users will own a tablet

Nearly three quarters (71%) of business professionals own a tablet device and the vast majority of them (61%) use it daily for work.

Ownership of tablet devices is about to reach saturation point according to a June 2012 survey of over 3,000 IT and business professionals from all over the world, by analyst IDG Connect.

Of those that didn't already own a tablet device, 80% intended to get one of the next 12 months. This means by June 2013 the overwhelming majority of professionals will have a tablet of one form or another.

Thomas Coles, managing director of MSM Software, says, "Employees are increasingly demanding that their work devices and applications are as powerful and easy to use as those they use at home. Employers who refuse to service these demands may eventually struggle to attract the best talent. BYOD provides an easy solution, and while concerns remain around security and data protection, I firmly believe the benefits of BYOD far outweigh the difficulties."

However Coles believes the increasing mobility that BYOD offers to employees could have the potential to cause disruption for organisations considering the scheme.

He explains, "The higher level of freedom created by BYOD presents a threat which must be considered. With employees working independently a silo culture could seep in, causing widespread confusion and communication issues. This could be prevented however, by implementing a single cloud solution, removing the need for employees to store data locally.