The World According to Mitch

Recently I wrote an article called Free Will… about people using their computers as they want.  I mentioned I had written a piece that was to be my introduction to a presentation I was going to do on BYOD, and I promised I would look for it.  I found it, and here it is.  I look forward to reading your comments! –MDG

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I want to tell you a story, and to some of you it will sound like a fairy tale.

Once upon a time there was a company without any computers. Then one day the King decreed: ‘We can be more productive with computers!’ And so the company bought computers… but they didn’t know what to do with the computers.

There was a humble serf in the company who had more than a passing interest in the new technology. The King noticed this, and asked him about the new machines. He sounded like he knew what he was talking about, and when he sat down at the computer he was able to speak with it in a sort of code, and after a few minutes of talking the machine did his bidding… it produced magic, performing seemingly impossible mathematical calculations… but more importantly to the king, he was able to make the company name fill the screen. The King was awed by this magic, and knighted the serf ‘Sir In Charge of Computers.’

The years passed by, and the knight was able to help the company increase its revenues and proved that the original decree that the company could be more productive with computers was in fact true, and way beyond the wildest dreams of the king. Over time the knight spent all of his free time learning more about these machines, increasing his magic, and earning industry certifications which grew his standing among his fellow magicians. He brought more of these magical machines into the company, and increased his domain with larger computers that nobody touched but him called servers, and these servers allowed the users to share information, collaborate on projects, and increase even further the productivity.

Of course the King was not simply impressed, he realized that he had grown richer beyond what he thought possible because of the knight, and one day he brought him into the palace, had him kneel before the King, and with his mighty sword tapped both of his shoulders and claimed ‘You, good Sir Knight, are now Prince Director of IT.

The new prince knew that in order to continue to prove his worth he would need to enlist help, and so he hired several brave knights – Sir Systems Administrator, Sir Desktop Expert, and the mysterious, great, and powerful Lord Infrastructure Architect. Together these magicians made the company prosper for the ages.

The serfs were taught to use their computers but only exactly how the Prince and his band decreed; unauthorized magic was punished harshly. To drive home the importance of the prince’s Acceptable Use Policies, those who veered from the path were struck with plagues – viruses and malware infected them, diminishing their productivity, and causing epidemics that reduced the collective productivity of the kingdom; the King empowered Prince Director of IT to work with Prince Director of Human Resources to severely punish and even banish serfs who veered from the path. These princes were viewed with awe, for those who dared to offend them might be fed to the dragon.

The wheels of time continued to turn, and as the medieval ages of the 80s and 90s made way for the new millennium; many efforts were made to bring magic to the masses, because while some great wizards had predicted that the world would never need more than 640 magicians, the desire to impart the knowledge of magic to the world was great. As magic was simplified, its mystique was slowly diminished.

Times were changing not only for this kingdom, but around the world. The serfs had become accustomed to their magical boxes, and were comfortable performing their daily tasks on them… but they were still wary of the great magic contained within. However the children of the serfs, whose schools began teaching computers very early on, did not see magic, and were not in awe of Prince Director of IT and his Merry Men. As the awe diminished, the serfs became haughty and uppity. ‘We do not wish to follow the Acceptable Use Policies of the prince! We want to use our magic boxes the way we want to use them! We wish to perform our own magic on these boxes!’

The King, understanding that the dangers were great that revolution would destroy the kingdom, told the Prince that he must allow the serfs to use their magic boxes to do their own magic… but because the boxes still belonged to the company, it was still the responsibility of the Prince and his band of men to ensure that these boxes remained safe, and to cure them of any potential illnesses before they could spread and infect others.

The serfs, realizing they could do more with these magical boxes than just work, bought them for their homes. They played, and they connected to the Internet, which opened their eyes to the true power of the magic. Their ire continued to grow within… quietly.

And then, in the second decade of the millennium, the revolution came. ‘We are no longer willing to use the devices that you decree. We want to use our own devices! While you wish to enslave us in a world of magical Windows, we want to explore other worlds, ones replete with fruits of the Apple tree, and robotic Androids, and Berry bushes which may be Black. We will continue to serve the king, but we will only do so on our own terms!

The Prince and his men were appalled; surely the serfs could never properly serve the King with these strange and alien devices. He and his men fought back against the revolution, reassured that they had the full support of the King…

…And then the unthinkable happened. King CEO called the prince into his chambers and decreed ‘You must allow the serfs to use the devices that they choose. You shall not prevent them from doing their own magic on these devices, but at the same time you must ensure the safety and security of our kingdom, and make sure that no epidemics are brought in, and that none of our secrets are compromised. Because you are such a great and powerful magician, so much so that I made you a Prince when you yourself were once a serf, I trust that you will be able to do this. Now go.’

Welcome to the age of Bring Your Own Device.