Digital White Papers

EDUCATING THE ROAD WARRIORS Our company supports the "bring your own device" (BYOD) concept for iOS and Android devices, so shortly after the 2012 holiday season, we decided to capitalize on the opportunity to address the many gadget questions we knew were forthcoming. Using the "road warrior" moniker, we conducted a series of road warrior training sessions for attorneys, paralegals and managers throughout our corporate legal department. We invited attendees — typically no more than eight to 10 per session — to bring their laptops, smartphones, tablets and any other piece of technology they had, whether company-issued or personal. The sessions were extremely hands-on and interactive. We started with an overview of connectivity, addressing a very frequently asked question: "What's the best way to connect?" We addressed every supported technology, including physical Ethernet, Wi-Fi and various cellular technologies, such as tethering and mobile hot spots. Perhaps more important, we discussed the relative security risks associated with each. Many had little knowledge of the prevalence of risky Wi-Fi (e.g., keeping their home Wi-Fi secure and questionable public Wi-Fi). the various combinations of devices and access points (e.g., a company-issued laptop on a virtual private network (VPN) versus a personal iPad using Outlook Web Access). We also discussed the pros and cons associated with joining our organization's BYOD program. In our case, the use of MobileIron MDM software and enforcement of strict device passwords might be too inconvenient for a phone user, for example, but more tolerable for a tablet user. Beyond specific connectivity methods and capabilities, we also addressed the portfolio of applications our particular legal department uses, and which of those are available in what mobile form. Many internal Web-based applications are made available easily to mobile users via Citrix technology, but just making such an application appear on a tablet doesn't magically transform it into an app. This is something we found ourselves addressing frequently when it comes to usability. Finally, being a Microsoft Lync shop, we discussed the benefits of dumping the old-school plastic box on their desk in favor of a completely unified communications platform where all telephone calls, voicemail and meetings are conducted via Lync — typically computer-based, but also available in mobile form with some limitations. The sessions wrapped up with a general open forum, giving users a chance to share road warrior stories and ask questions about their particular devices and connectivity. Feedback was excellent, and we look forward to conducting more sessions of this type in the future, as well as recording them for use as self-guided training modules. Michael Russell has worked in enterprise legal services as a Strategic Legal Technologist and Special Projects Director for Liberty Mutual Insurance for the last 13 years. Mike has been involved with ILTA for more than 19 years, where he currently serves on the Law Department Peer Group Steering Committee. Following the connectivity overview (including a handy matrix chart as a takeaway), we covered exactly what could and could not be done from Before joining Liberty Mutual, he was a legal industry consultant and a law firm IT director. Contact Mike at michael.russell@libertymutual.com.

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