Enterprise Mobility Matters: Hi Melanie. It's good to speak with you again.  Thanks for taking the time to speak with me today.  Enterprise Mobility has changed a lot in the last few years. What would you say is the greatest recent advancement?

Melanie Gray: Philippe, to me, the greatest recent advancement is the increased awareness of software applications due primarily to the advancements made with the iPhone platform. I have been talking to mobile ISVs for over five years about support for these in the enterprise environment; finally, it seems they are going to be able to hit their stride and really drive mobility in the enterprise with real gains on productivity as a result.

EMM: Are companies looking at mobility differently today as compared to a few years ago?

MG: Yes, companies have realized that mobility is not just email access for the executive suite. The number of devices is proliferating across all areas of business and represent a critical new infrastructure for companies, similar to that of laptops in the late 90s. This awareness combined with the confluence of technology gains in the market (advanced platforms, consumer smartphone, faster/cheaper networks) are putting the mobile enterprise spend in competition with wire line spend. The expenditures are driving the need to manage this new cost center; and, companies are looking for creative solutions internally and externally.

EMM: How do you see the economy impacting mobility in the enterprise? When are we going to see an upturn in the (our) market?

MG: We have seen enterprises change behavior in 2009 including restricting device upgrades, access to new phones and, of course the overall shift in employee headcount. These changes were obviously in direct response to the economy and the focus on survival vs. growth for many companies. But, interesting to note is that as a result of restricting access to company-owned mobile devices (and the introduction of the iPhone), employees are now bringing their own devices into the workplace.  Personal devices can be an effective means of driving mobility in an organization and, an upturn in the economy is not necessarily going to reverse this trend. As the economy rebounds in early 2010, I believe that companies will once again focus on equipping employees with the latest in technology in order to maximize productivity and retention. This demand, combined with the increase in personal devices, will make it critical for companies find new tools and support structures to enable and manage the growth.

EMM: What do you think is the greatest current opportunity for enterprise mobility?

MG: Philippe, I think the greatest opportunity that is happening today is the influx of personal (smart) phones being brought into the work place. Companies have the opportunity to harness this new mobile capability and to realize the potential for productivity gains from additional software applications. Advancement will be coming from employees and will drive companies to add new software solutions resulting in productivity gains and employee satisfaction. The genie is not going back in the bottle!

EMM: What do you think is the greatest risk for organizations right now?

MG: Not realizing that mobility does need to have corporate oversight and proactively setting (at a minimum) a preliminary framework for mobility policy. And, the sooner the better of course to mitigate security, expense and productivity demands that will be made. Your recent mobility policy guide should be required reading for enterprises (Editor's note: Awwww.....shucks).

EMM: What steps should executives take to ensure the success of their mobility implementations?

MG: There are numerous guides on deploying mobility into an organization, most written from a particular vendor’s perspective; however, my belief is to keep it simple. Start small with pilot groups; understand the challenges and requirements that your employees and internal infrastructure will need to support mobility on a broader basis. Talk to your peers and investigate the many new options in the marketplace for guidance and support. Our industry in return needs to focus on providing clear education on what services we can provide to make these successful especially given the critical nature of the initiatives.

EMM: One last question Melanie.  There’s a lot of confusion in the market today around what mobility management means to an enterprise (in part because of the myriad solutions available in the market). What would you say is the key theme companies need to understand as they tackle the question of why they should use (internal or external) mobility management solutions & services?

MG: While an emerging (and admittedly confusing) marketplace today, in some ways it is not so new and complicated. Most importantly companies need to realize that the initial cost and purchase of the device is just the tip of the iceberg with regards to supporting employee mobile devices and, is in fact similar to how organizations manage and utilize third party providers to support laptops and desktops. Once deployed, these new devices are every bit, if not more, critical to an employee’s productivity. And as a result, requirements for a successful mobility initiative (whether internal or external) include: device & application management, service management, security, end user support / help desk, and break/fix/tech refresh processes.

Thank you Melanie for taking the time to chat with me today. If interested, you can connect with Melanie on LinkedIn . Do you know anyone who should be a guest here on Inside Looking Out?  Drop me a line.