* Computing devices are becoming more personal—and more important
We recently bought my daughter a laptop for her 16th birthday. As I was shopping for this machine, I wasn’t focusing on the hard-drive space or RAM or OS. Yes, I’ll admit it. I was looking at the skins.
For those who haven’t entered the world of skins, they are personable designs for the covers of laptops, ranging from college mascots to movie characters to holiday scenes.
Laptops, like mobile devices, have become more than just a conduit for information and communications. They are a personal statement about who you are and what you like. The “cooler” the laptop, the “cooler” the person. (Well, maybe!)
The type of device also becomes relevant in the professional world, particularly as the 30-and-younger crowd enters the workforce and into more decision-making positions. To them, the laptop is a statement about who they are. With an increasing number of people using high-speed broadband cards, tablet PCs are traveling more frequently with their owners.
For example, one person recently told me he cannot listen to streaming music at work. So he brings his tablet PC with broadband access card to the branch office he works in, and listens music from his personal tablet while working on his employer-provided laptop.
The form factor, the skins, the capabilities of laptops and tablets are becoming more of a personal preference than ever before (not to mention Mac vs. PC). So is it time to decouple the laptop from company standards?
IT support teams are cringing at the thought, I’m sure. But if you virtualize desktop machines, implement centrally controlled security policies, and control application delivery is the device on which people work as relevant? If a prospective (young and promising) employee is evaluating two competitive offers, and he or she gets a stipend to buy whichever computing device he or she wants, that could make be the tie-breaker.
It’s important to start preparing for the next-generation of individuals entering the virtual workforce by considering some innovative ways to equip them.
