Welcome to Enterprise Mobility 1.5

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Enterprise Mobility 1.5?  I heard Web 2.0, Enterprise 2.0. When everything has moved to 2.0 why not Enterprise Mobility?

Ok, I got it! Hold your breath and read on…

In last article, we have seen how mobile and enterprises changed the way we work. There are lot of changes in particular in enterprises and its IT spending has changed.

In last couple of decades, most of the paper work in business moved to computers. Enterprise Resource Planning became most common tool business have invested-in in streamlining their businesses.

Two to Three decades back, the data in enterprises was scattered across multiple departments and there is no data link between these departments.  Most of the work was carried in paper or the work was done with custom software developed which catered to a specific requirement of a department.

Then the era of ERP came and vendors like SAP, BAAN, Peoplesoft, JDEdwards, etc become more prominent with lof of enterprises implementing ERP so that information is streamlined and best practices are adopted. There is a good promise by these ERP companies with a highlight to eliminating heterogeneous systems.

SAP has ruled the ERP era and within ERP sector there were new introductions to cater to manufacturing sectors by streamlining operations using MRP, followed by MRP 2.0.

However, by 2000, these enterprises accumulated large enterprise data and growing demand to ensure that the employees are empowered with the right knowledge at the right time.

The Era of Right Knowledge at the right time to the right people has born. Executives , Sales Persons, Employees every one wanted the right information delivered to them in right format for ex executives/ senior management wanted their reports in time to make the critical business decisions, etc.

This has resulted in Business Analytics, Customer/Supplier Relationship Management, Employee / Manager Self Service being in high demand in terms of implementing solutions. SAP again led the way with SAP Portal, SAP CRM, SAP SRM, ESS/MSS and SAP Business Warehouse.

Portal became the front face for businesses in terms of exposing their business data to its suppliers customers and employers and browser has become medium to access business functionality.

At the same time by around 2005, the era of Enterprise Mobility 1.0 has started. Slowly the enterprises in particular Utility sector has started implementing packages like Mobile Asset Management.  The devices mainly ran either Windows Mobile or Java based solutions. The devices are bulky and some of the devices has bar code reader. Enterprises opened corporate emails to be accessed using devices like Blackberry, etc.

With the introduction of iPhone in 2007 and iPad in 2010, more and more corporate employees preferred carrying those devices than the earlier corporate offered devices. Along with it, the consumer apps on the devices change the employee’s perception of how a mobile app should be in terms of usability and performance.

Google bought and opened up Android platform which quickly became most sought after on device O/S. Apart from that we have Blackberry and Windows with their own operating systems.

The variety of devices and complexity of providing vital business data without compromising security became biggest hurdles in corporate world.

SAP has bought Sybase and started promoting it as MEAP [Mobile Enterprise Application Platform]. SAP offers Afaria as the Mobile Device Management solution. In offering both the solutions, SAP claims to provide complete end to end Mobility solutions for enterprises. However, even today, it fails to provide tight integration between solutions. Recently, SAP bought Syclo, which specialises in field mobile applications. Again, MEAP from Syclo is considered the best when compared to Sybase. However, full integration from SAP may take one or two years. If you look at Sybase Mobile CRM Sales application and the number of middleware required will give a fair idea on what I say.

So, we kind of there with mobility but still it is evolving and fully not qualify to be 2.0. There is no magic wand yet and both the mobility providers and mobile operating systems are evaluating. By 2014, we might be able to see the real version of Enterprise Mobility 2.0.

Recent, Gartner reports points, SAP after acquisition of Syclo puts on right hand top side of the magic quadrant.

I know, I drifted more into SAP and from now on we focus more on SAP Enterprise Mobility. The lessons sections covers Sybase Mobility tutorials, information and other coolest things happening in Enterprise Mobility. Keep reading…

 

Mobility to Enterprise Mobility – a decade of change

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Mobility – the journey so far…

Not long ago there are mobile phones [a brick in size] with proprietary operating system with propreitary applications. It is lead by Nokia, Motorola, Ericsson most of the time. They are reliable and long term partner of the persons who bought them.

The phones became bit smart than what they normally do by incorporating PDA [iPaq any one remember?] features into it. The manufacturers focussed on adding more Camera features and GPS. Windows Mobile become predominant for the alternative looking people.

The phones started having touch and players like HTC started introducing more and more new phones with these features.

However, Apple changed the game  in 2007 by introducing iPhone, which made game changing in the way the people perceived phone and it introduced real smartness in the Smart Phones.  It soon became must have phone for all generations. However, the real game changer for Apple is opening of App Store in 2008. It made thousands and thousands of developers overnight  and introduced really cool apps and games. How one can forget Angry Birds which became must have game on all devices?

The iPhone [/smart phone] allowed the users irrespective of their age, quickly learn and use the phone without going through the user manuals [which some times harder than IKEA Assemble-it manuals].

While mobile phones are going through an evolution, the same is true with Enterprises and its data.

Last decade or so, the enterprises sat on growing business data and the focus quickly moved on how this data will be mined so that the rightful information is presented to the business user. It is to enable the business user to take the right decision at the right time.

Enterprise Portal became a norm and it bought the enterprise data to be accessed from any browser and made its employees truly mobile. The introduction of secure email on Blackberry devices allowed most of the enterprises to move in allowing Email access outside the corporate network without compromising on security.

The employee in an enterprise moved from fixed desk to more mobile. He no longer need to go to a computer / laptop to access the emails and thus eliminated the working patterns of an employee. The employee is now more of 24/7 employee of the organisation than 8 hours employee.

ERP companies like SAP introduced Mobile Asset Management which helped the utility companies allowing the employees travel with the devices and synchronising the data between device and back end ERP systems.

While Enterprises are adopting to the changes by implementing Portals, Data Ware House, etc software enriching the employee, new changes have happened in mobility scenario.

Apple introduced iPhone in 2010 thus allowing the user to have a device with instant start / stop of the system without the need to reboot. It is easily portable and its usability is of highest standards.

These devices with ease of portability and usability, is putting tremendous pressure on Enterprises to allow their employees to carry these devices and access the enterprise data.

Enterprise Mobility allowed the employee to access the relevant enterprise data on the go so that the employee can take the right decisions at the right time. In earlier days, the security of enterprise data on a mobile device is a big concern. However, this kind of risk is reduced with the introduction of Mobile Device Management softwares like Afaria, AirWatch, IBM, RIM, etc.

Will be continued….