When and Why Should Wireless Networking be Implemented?

The drive toward wireless networking has been rapid in recent years. It almost s eems as if wireless technology is all that most companies want to use anymore. W hile it is great to utilize the best technologies available to you, there are li mits to when anything should be used. For example, any technology that demands a dditional network support needs to be carefully weighed for its potential drawba cks and the benefits it brings to the table. When your company is looking to imp lement new technology, it should never be simply because this new technology exi sts. The fact of the matter is that far too many companies look at new technologies a s a great tool without testing whether these technologies are feasible from an I T support standpoint. While wireless networking is a potentially invaluable tool , some businesses need it and some do not. Before you take such a wide leap, you need to evaluate whether this technology will actually benefit your business. The additional level of network setup required to put up a wireless network is n ot simply that of installing a few Wi-Fi routers. While that is the most visible and obvious component of this type of network, it is only the beginning. Due to the highly insecure nature of more wireless networks, you also need to deal wit h data leakage and with more complicated connectivity. Every new technology requ ires that your company's networking services be kept tight with regard to data m anagement so that proprietary information is maintained. However, not all wireless networking happens in the office itself. *The flexibility of wireless networking lets your employees move around and work more organically than wired connections do *A wireless network allows increased employee morale Some ways to keep your data tightly reined in are to paint your office's walls w ith a specialized type of paint that does not allow a wireless signal to penetra te it. While this will limit your employees' mobility somewhat, it will also lim it the capability of a hacker sitting in a vehicle down the street to access the data your company has worked so hard to produce and collate. This type of paint is readily available and can be implemented with the same speed any at which ot her paint job can be applied to your office walls. Another way data leakage can be controlled with relative ease is to introduce a more disciplined approach to security. While most aspects of business software r equire some degree of password authorization, merely accessing the network itsel f needs to also require a username and password. While this will require your IT department to be more vigilant and other employees to learn one more password, it will ultimately maintain your two main goals with regard to wireless networki ng: increased employee morale and simplified physical networking. Employee morale tends to improve in offices where wireless connectivity exists a nd is properly maintained. Like everyone else, your employees like to move aroun d and be able to work from wherever they like. When you provide them with this c apability, they will appreciate it and their quantity and quality of work will t end to improve. As well, in many buildings the level of investment required for additional paint and/or beefed up security measures can easily be used to compensate for a lack of physical connection points. Since many older buildings do not have such conne ctions readily available and their installation can be difficult, the implementa tion of wireless technology can be both a cost saving measure and an aid to over all flexibility. When your company's networking capacity is more flexible, your

employees will be able to accomplish more with the same technology and the same number of hours in their work day.