the rise and rise of enterprise mobility
DESCRIPTION
Enterprise Mobility: It is a productivity driver, creator of opportunities, facilitator of learning and collaboration, and most of all, trailblazer for a whole new way of living and working. Download more white papers and eBooks http://www.boston-technology.com/resources-overview.htmlTRANSCRIPT
- Why Your Business Should Take Notice -
Mobile is considered a disruptive
technology.
What do we mean by disruptive technologies? According
to the McKinsey Global Institute, disruptive technologies
are "advances that will transform life, business, and the
global economy." Defined like that, mobile is assuredly a
disruptive technology. It is a productivity driver, creator of
opportunities, facilitator of learning and collaboration,
and most of all, trailblazer for a whole new way of living
and working.
Yet, mobile is not a disruptor in the sense of the word.
It does not create disorder. In fact, it harnesses existing
enterprise systems into a unified experience. Mobility is
perhaps the easiest technology to implement in an enter-
prise once the more elemental strategic questions of why,
where, and when are ironed out.
Mobile technology can latch on to existing IT systems
within any enterprise. Enterprise mobile solutions can
co-exist with personal applications on the personal
smartphones and tablets of end users, whether they are
employees, customers, partners or suppliers. Sure there
are technology, security and platform challenges for
enterprises to overcome but that does not take away any
of the value mobile technology brings to the table.
Mobility has always been a separate topic for IT
professionals, but it is now influencing mainstream
strategies and tactics in the wider areas of technology
enablement and enterprise architectures.
Gartner Predicts 2013
Mobile trends in the enterprise
According to Gartner’s figures for the devices market,
tablet sales in 2013 will go up by 69% while that of
smartphones, excluding all other mobiles, will more than
double to sales of over 1 billion units worldwide.1
Enterprise mobility is in a transformative phase where
organizations are increasingly waking to the potential of
mobility. At the same time, mobile technology has
become mature, affordable and accessible.
Modern mobile devices feature technological capabilities
and hardware attributes that can be optimally harnessed
to deliver real value to users. Enterprise application
developers are coming up with scalable, cost-effective,
and innovative mobile solutions for enterprise workers,
customers and other stakeholders to enhance
productivity, accelerate decision making, improve
workflow efficiency, and boost customer experiences.
Productivity Boost
The use of company owned or personal mobile devices in
the enterprise has created a surge in the productivity of
employees, from the front-desk receptionist to the C-level
executive. The ubiquity of "always on" smartphones and
tablets is building a flexible work culture where
employees can work from anywhere, anytime.
Increased responsiveness via mobile solutions is
shortening work completion cycles and enhancing
business value. The trend is also helping people balance
their life and work responsibilities with greater ease.
The mobile workforce in particular is benefitting hugely
from mobility, with easy access to:
▪ Real time data and information
▪ Instant connectivity with enterprise systems
▪ Instant communication and collaboration
▪ Operational and reporting tools
▪ Decision support tools
▪ Mobile enabled self-help applications
Operational Efficiency
Enterprise mobility solutions are enhancing existing
workflows by apportioning greater control to employees,
allowing them to stay productive beyond office hours.
Mobile connectivity is a major benefit for geographically
separated teams as it streamlines communication. Mobile
creates workflow efficiencies through:
▪ Improved responsiveness
▪ Real time communication and collaboration
▪ Anytime access to internal networks and forums
▪ Optimal resource consumption
▪ Lower time to market
▪ Access to mobile-enabled business applications
Responsiveness and Agility
Enterprise mobility solutions are like gold for C-level exec-
utives as they enable instant access to updated reports of
key financials, inventory, productivity and performance
indicators via mobile dashboards.
The constant state of connectedness allows CXOs to take
quick informed decisions on the fly for business
profitability and opportunity capture.
Mobility solutions also empower field workers with just-in
-time information, helping them take on-the-spot
decisions that enhance the customer experience, build
the brand, and increase revenue opportunities.
Time and Resource Savings
The productivity and operational gains created by
enterprise mobile solutions save time, a billable
commodity in organizations. More communication moves
to mobile devices because of easier accessibility, bringing
down paper and ink consumption. Furthermore, mobile
solutions prove cheaper, viable options for small
enterprises, helping them deliver a range of customer
services they could otherwise not afford.
However, these factors are not the KPIs for measuring the
ROI of enterprise mobility. The ROI is a measure of the
improvements seen in employee productivity and
efficiency, worker satisfaction and happiness, and the
ultimate impact on organizational growth, profitability,
and customer service.
Competitive Advantage
Enterprise mobility improves business processes in ways
that were not possible before. It also creates results that
were inconceivable before. While enterprises are
harnessing mobility to enhance existing processes, they
are also innovating with the indigenous attributes of
mobile devices such as high quality displays, cameras,
GPS, accelerometer, odometer, and other sensors to
create meaningful customer facing and internal solutions.
For example, geo-location-based services help consumers
get turn-by-turn directions to retail stores, pharmacies,
emergency hospitals and tourist spots.
Mobility also enhances the speed of communication
across organizations, accelerating strategic change
adoption. Retail partners are quickly trained on new
products via multimedia demos. Sales executives always
have access to latest content on the cloud. Critical
corporate communications are delivered to all employees
across the globe in seconds.
Nearly half (44 percent) of the 668 global technology leaders
participating in KPMG’s 2012 Technology Innovation Survey2
forecast consider mobile to be the next indispensable
consumer technology while more than one third (36 percent)
predict mobile will be the leading game changer in the
enterprise market.
Profitability
Mobility solutions impact bottom lines by integrating
business functions for cohesive performance and results.
Mobile dashboards offer a unified experience to end users
even though they may source information from multiple
disparate data sources in departments silos.
For example, the ROI of mobile sales automation,
customer services, app-based marketing, inventory
management, CRM, credit and collections, and other
revenue generating services is immediately evident on the
top line.
Customer Experience
Mobile solutions help enterprise workers deliver better
customer service through:
▪ Instant access to forms, reports, and other content
during client interactions
▪ On-site data capturing tools
▪ Instant automated updating of enterprise systems
such as CRM or ERP
Mobile has become one of the primary tools for
consumers to search the Internet and access social
networks and email, ads, and marketing content. It is
often the first touch point in a customer’s experience with
a business. Enterprises are employing multimedia
content, especially video; gamification; informational and
transactional mobile solutions to engage customers and
build an experience.
Conclusion
With mobile technology becoming a stepping stone for
further innovation such as the Internet of Things,
wearable devices, and the like, enterprises must embrace
mobility with all its ramifications. The key to enterprise
mobility success lies in shifting the focus from restricting
devices to mobile device management (MDM), mobile
application management (MAM), network management,
and security solutions.
Ensuring enterprise profitability in today's intensely
competitive market does not lie in skirting mobility but
taking it by the horns.
About Us
BTC is a leading provider of Web and Mobility
Development services. With over nine years in the
industry, our adaptive approach, laser focus on quality
and adherence to budgets has made us the go to partner
for our clients. Be it native mobile apps or full-fledged
web and mobile applications, we have delivered user
centric, scalable solutions for clients ranging from
startups to Fortune 500 Companies.
Contact Us
Boston Technology Corporation
33 Boston Post Road West, STE 160, Marlborough, MA-01752
Phone:+ 1 781-583-1144
E-mail: [email protected]
www.boston-technology.com
Sources:
CMS Wire. "Gartner: PC Market in Terminal Decline as Tablets, Smartphones Take Over." April 4, 2013. <http://www.cmswire.com/cms/information-management/gartner-pc-market-in-terminal-decline-as-tablets-smartphones-take-over-020335.php> KPMG Technology Innovation Survey 2012. "Mobilizing Innovation: The changing landscape of disruptive technologies" <http://www.kpmg.com/Global/en/IssuesAndInsights/ArticlesPublications/technology-innovation-survey/Documents/mobilizing-innovation-august-2012.pdf>