There’s been a heavy focus on Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) and smartphone security lately as more people buy their own smartphones, and today Google announced a new program to bolster Android’s work readiness.

Android for Work is a new initiative from Google to help consumers use their existing Android smartphones for work by offering secure communication and document support. Google explains that Android for Work is made up of four main components:

• Work profiles: Android 5.0 includes default encryption, enhanced SELinux security and multi-user support, so these devices can have a dedicated work profile that’ll isolate and protect their work data. IT staff can deploy work apps to these users, and the users can launch the work apps alongside their personal apps without having to worry about their employer viewing their personal content.
• Android for Work app: Devices running Android 4.0 through Android 4.4 can use the Android for Work app, which includes secure mail, calendars, documents, access to work apps, and more. All of these features can be managed by an IT staff.
• Google Play for Work: Makes it easy for businesses to deploy and manage apps to devices running Android for Work.
• Built-in productivity tools: Google has created business apps for email, contacts, and calendar that support Exchange and Notes. The apps also support editing of documents, spreadsheets, and presentations.

Google is partnering with many different companies on its Android for Work initiative for management, devices, apps, and network. These partnerships will make it easy for IT staff to use existing management standards with Android for Work and will also include business-specific form factors, easy app deployment, and more.

Last year we saw Apple partner up with IBM to improve iOS’s business features, and now Google is beefing up Android’s own enterprise capabilities. That’s good news for Google’s platform, which has had a reputation for lax security in the past. And since Android for Work will support devices running Android 4.0 and up, the number of devices that’ll be ready to go to work is going to be large.

Do you use a smartphone for work? If so, is it issued by your employer or are you using your personal device?