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IBM, Apple unveil enterprise mobility solution

Staff Writer
By Staff Writer, ITWeb
Johannesburg, 10 Dec 2014
IBM wants its MobileFirst solution to make an impact across different industries.
IBM wants its MobileFirst solution to make an impact across different industries.

Apple and IBM have today announced the first wave of IBM MobileFirst for iOS solutions - a new range of made-for-business apps and supporting cloud services that bring big data and analytics capabilities to iPhone and iPad users in the enterprise.

Accordig to IBM, its collaboration with Apple means MobileFirst solutions are now available to enterprise customers in banking, retail, insurance, financial services, telecommunications as well as for governments and airlines.

The company noted some of its first clients to use the solution include Citi, Air Canada, Sprint and Banorte.

New value

Bridget van Kralingen, senior VP of IBM's global business services said the company aims to deliver technologies that unlock new value at the intersection of big data and individual engagement. "Our collaboration combines IBM's industry expertise and unmatched position in enterprise computing, with Apple's legendary user experience and excellence in product design to lift the performance of a new generation of business professionals," she said.

Philip Schiller, Apple's senior VP of worldwide marketing said the move represents "a big step for iPhone and iPad in the enterprise" while the company will keep a close eye on new ways organisations will put iOS devices to work. "The business world has gone mobile, and Apple and IBM are bringing together the world's best technology with the smartest data and analytics to help businesses redefine how work gets done," he added.

According to IBM, MobileFirst aims to help employees access their company's full capabilities wherever they interact with clients in a faster, easier and more secure way.

"Built exclusively for iPhone and iPad, IBM MobileFirst for iOS apps are delivered in a secure environment, embedded with analytics and linked to core enterprise processes. The apps can be customised for any organisation and easily deployed, managed and upgraded via cloud services from IBM specifically for iOS devices, with security across the data, app and device," the company said in a statement.

Wide range

This following suite of solutions is available across multiple industries, with additional apps being continuously designed and developed:

* Plan Flight (travel and transportation) addresses the major expense of all airlines - fuel - permitting pilots to view flight schedules, flight plans, and crew manifests ahead of time, report issues in-flight to ground crews, and make more informed decisions about discretionary fuel.

* Passenger+ (travel and transportation) empowers flight crews to offer an unmatched level of personalised services to passengers in-flight, including special offers, re-booking, and baggage information.

* Advise and Grow (banking and financial markets) puts bankers on premise with their small business clients, with secure authorisation to access client profiles and competitive analyses, gather analytics-driven insights to make personalised recommendations, and complete secure transactions.

* Trusted Advice (banking and financial markets) allows advisors to access and manage client portfolios, gain insight from powerful predictive analytics - in the client's kitchen or at the local coffee shop, rather than the advisor's office - with full ability to test recommendations with sophisticated modeling tools all the way to complete, secure transactions.

* Retention (insurance) empowers agents with access to customers' profiles and history, including an analytics-driven retention risk score as well as smart alerts, reminders, and recommendations on next best steps and facilitation of key transactions like collection of e-signatures and premiums.

* Case Advice (government) addresses the issue of workload and support among caseworkers who are making critical decisions, one family or situation at a time, on the go. The solution adjusts case priorities based on real-time analytics-driven insights, and assesses risk based on predictive analysis.

* Incident Aware (government) converts an iPhone into a vital crime prevention asset, presenting law enforcement officers with real-time access to maps and video-feeds of incident locations; information about victim status, escalation risk, and crime history; and improved ability to call for back-up and supporting services.

* Sales Assist (retail) enables associates to connect with customer profiles, make suggestions based on previous purchases and current selections, check inventory, locate items in-store, and ship out-of-store items.

* Pick and Pack (retail) combines proximity-based technology with back-end inventory systems for transformed order fulfillment.

* Expert Tech (telecommunications) taps into native iOS capabilities including FaceTime for easy access to expertise and location services for route optimisation to deliver superior on-site service, more effective issue resolution and productivity as well as improved customer satisfaction.

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