Enterprise mobility

Companies often recognise the opportunities of mobility - the ability to do things they could not do before, creating new business opportunities and competitive advantages. But most businesses also see mobility as a challenge. More people are working outside of the firewall than ever before, in multiple locations, at flexible times, and on a number of different devices. This phenomenon started years ago on traditional laptops and later Macs, but today's challenge is multiplied many times over with the introduction and tremendous popularity of smartphones and tablets. Moreover, many users are insisting on using personally owned devices, giving rise to the massive BYOD (bring your own device) movement. Now, IT organisations must not only deal with remote connections and personal devices, but also new operating systems and an unprecedented diversity of hardware.

There are at least two reasons to pay attention to this trend:

1. Many companies are finding increased end-user productivity when mobile devices are enabled for business use. There are often competitive advantages for companies that leverage line-of-business and custom apps on mobile devices.

2. Employees are using mobile devices for business, whether it is sanctioned or not. The methods they use are often in conflict with company policies and government or industry regulations, and the potential risk to company data when employees are working around the system can be enormous. It is generally far better (and safer) to have a strategy that allows controlled mobile access than to have no strategy at all.