Who pays
Who pays for what
An allowance should be derived from the device cost and the work share, not chosen as a round number in a meeting.
Stipend, Reimbursement or Nothing
Three ways of handling the money, with different administrative costs, different tax treatment and different effects on whether the arrangement feels fair.
Working Out What the Device Is Worth per Month
An allowance should be derived from the cost of the equipment and the share of its use that is work. The calculation takes ten minutes and is almost never done.
The Data Plan Question
The hardest cost to attribute and the one that generates the most friction, because nobody can say which megabytes were work.
Repairs, Breakage and Who Carries It
A device used for work breaks sooner, and under BYOD the loss falls on whoever happens to own it. Deciding that in advance is cheaper than deciding it on the day.
Tax and the Line Between Pay and Expense
Whether a BYOD payment is treated as income or as a business expense changes what it is worth, and the rules differ enough that assuming is expensive.
The Accessories Nobody Budgets
The device gets discussed and the things around it do not, which is where a surprising share of the real cost and most of the small resentments live.
When the Allowance Stops Covering It
Allowances are set once and prices move. The gap opens quietly and the first sign is usually somebody leaving rather than somebody complaining.