Back to Basics is an article series that highlights important, but possibly overlooked, information facilities management professionals should know.
A shift is about to begin, but an inspection tablet has a dead battery. The spare is locked in an office, and the person with the key has not arrived. The building is open and fully operational, yet the work still cannot start.
This kind of disruption is often treated as an IT support issue because it involves a device. In practice, it also affects facilities operations. Facilities teams are responsible for keeping workplaces, campuses, and shared environments usable, which increasingly depends on whether employees can access the technology required to do their jobs.
That makes shared-device readiness part of workplace readiness. The right device must be available, charged, working, accessible to an authorized user, and traceable through each handoff. When any one of those conditions is missing, a minor device problem can delay a shift, interrupt a service, or leave a shared space unable to function as intended.
Device-Readiness Failures Are a Recurring Operational Problem
The inspection-tablet scenario is not an isolated inconvenience. In frontline environments, mobile-device problems interrupt work often enough to become a routine operational burden.
B2M Solutions’ 2025 State of Enterprise Mobility survey covered 671 companies managing more than 1.2 million devices. It found that 81% of frontline workers stop work at least once a month because of mobile technology problems, while 58% experience these interruptions weekly.
Although the study also covered software and connectivity, several common causes relate directly to device readiness:
- 60% reported battery-life problems
- 38% cited broken devices
- 34% cited lost or stolen devices
What appears to be a series of minor device problems can therefore consume hours of operational time each week. A 2025 frontline mobility report by VDC Research found that a frontline device issue costs an average of 74 minutes of worker productivity.
IT teams then spend an average of 44 minutes resolving the related support request. Across a large workplace or campus, repeated failures can delay shifts, create queues, and send employees between departments or buildings to find, charge, or replace equipment.
Build a Shared-Device Readiness Process
A better process starts with facilities management and IT departments agreeing on how devices move through the workplace. The goal is to make device handoffs consistent and repeatable across locations and shifts. Here’s how to build that process.
1. Map Where Device Demand Occurs
Start with actual handoff points. Identify where employees collect devices, return broken equipment, request loaners, charge batteries, or receive replacements.
Review each handoff point for:
- Demand by time and location
- Distance from the user’s work area
- Wait times and access restrictions
- Dependence on specific staff members
- Pressure during shift changes or peak periods
Walking the route a user takes when a device fails will reveal where delays, unnecessary trips, and access barriers occur.
2. Define What “Ready” Means
A common mistake is to treat any device that is physically present as available. Facilities, IT, security, and operations departments should instead agree on a shared standard that defines when a device is truly ready for use.
The standard should cover:
- Sufficient battery charge for the expected task
- Confirmed working condition
- Required configuration and accessories
- Secure storage between users
- Authorized access
- A recorded pickup, return, or repair status
This definition supports audits, service levels, and site planning.
3. Standardize and Automate Routine Handoffs
Establish designated handoff points for device collection, return, repair, replacement, deployment, and retirement.
Workers should know exactly where equipment must be dropped off or collected, rather than leaving devices near desks, in reception areas, or other informal locations. Routine handoffs can then be automated with a purpose-built smart locker. A typical self-serve process works as follows:
- The worker authenticates with an approved credential
- The correct bay opens for pickup or return
- The worker collects or deposits the assigned device
- The system records the user, device, action, location, and time
- IT receives the updated handoff record without managing the exchange in person
4. Record Physical Handoffs in ITAM
Replace informal custody processes and spreadsheet logs with dedicated handoff records in the IT asset management system. Create event types that reflect how devices move through the organization, including:
- Device issued to a user
- Device returned
- Loaner checked out
- Loaner returned
- Broken device submitted for repair
- Replacement device collected
- Device placed into or removed from inventory
Handoff events captured by automated lockers can be synced with ITAM and ITSM systems, typically through APIs and webhooks, though some platforms also offer native integrations. This makes device tracking, audit logging, and operational reporting more consistent and less dependent on manual input.
5. Test the Process Before a Wider Rollout
Pilot the new handoff process in one location or department before expanding it, especially if the plan involves hardware and infrastructure investments. Use the pilot to confirm that the process reduces delays and fits actual demand.
Track measures such as:
- Time from request to device access
- Successful first-time pickups
- Overdue or unreturned devices
- Staff interventions per transaction
- Demand by location and time
- Repeat repair or replacement patterns
Use these results to adjust device stock, access rules, service hours, and placement of designated handoff infrastructure. A small pilot at one high-friction location usually provides better planning data for a wider rollout.
Treat Device Readiness as Part of Workplace Readiness
For facilities teams, device readiness should become an input into site planning, service design, and future infrastructure decisions. These findings can guide practical improvements, including relocating handoff points, adjusting device stock, extending self-service access, and prioritizing investment in automated storage. Over time, the same data can support capacity planning across additional departments, buildings, and shifts.
Mary Atamaniuk is a content marketing manager at ForwardPass with a passion for writing and technology. She focuses on how practical technology solutions can simplify device management, reduce manual work, and help organizations keep their devices ready for the people who rely on them.