Evolving to a mobile enterprise platform

The specialised touch

On the path to mobility, many companies are moving beyond email and SMS and into specialised applications, Sybase A/NZ mobility director, Mark Geddes, said.

"In the last five years we've seen mobility as simple communications: email and SMS," he said. "But now that's seen as a common practice - and instead, we're moving to specialised industry-based solutions. Partners are building the framework of the solution adapted to key industries. They can use our core, ultra light mobile database and then build an application layer on top."

Current hot markets include fast moving consumer goods (for example, Coles and Woolworths for stock taking and synchronised tools), and the courier industry (which is very reliant on heavy ruggedised tools). But that's just the tip of the iceberg, Geddes said. The trade and services market is another option. Sybase recently signed communications specialist, I-Comm, as an OEM partner. The company provides business solutions for field personnel via voice, data and wireless mediums.

The two companies have collaborated on the Bhive mobility sales system. It manages customers, inventory, work orders, dispatching and billing systems and is designed for trade service and sales companies including HVAC, refrigeration, plumbing, electrical, pest control and swimming pool cleaners.

Geddes predicted the mobilisation of multiple business applications as well as the re-engineering or reinvention of business processes through mobility would be the next big industry step. Recent technology advancements, which improved ease of use and development features on a mobile platform, were also opening up the specialised market to a broader section of VARs.

"There are more user tools and wizards to build the GUI framework, along with easier plug-ins. Resellers don't need to be a full-on development house," Geddes said.

Microsoft Australia enterprise mobility specialist, Rick Anderson, agreed resellers could get ahead by going after select verticals and tailoring applications as needed. He said resellers would find continued success in wedging mobility tools into the field service market as it was the most mature market category and on its third iteration of product. Microsoft has 40 certified partners in the mobility space, and its ranks are growing rapidly.

Office repair is another hot category. Thanks to advanced mobile applications, companies like Konica are now able to do proactive maintenance using information collected from the machines in between job dispatch times.

Anderson said Microsoft is seeing strong sales in the mobility segment. He predicted a huge uptake of smart phones with keyboards this year.

IDC wireless and mobility senior analyst, Mercie Clement, said the smart handheld device market provides formidable growth opportunities for mobile carriers and device vendors. The analyst firm expects strong uptake in the corporate sector, as well as consumer circles. She advised device vendors, mobile carriers and other service providers to steer clear of a one-size-fi ts-all approach, and instead cater to the rapidly morphing consumer and business needs.

In addition to select verticals - including health, logistics, waste management, utilities and councils - there's also a major push for mobility in the mid-market, particularly companies below 1000 seats, Spectra Interface COO/CTO, Geoff Bowker, said.

The company, which is a Microsoft partner, knows a thing or two about mobility and has been around the traps pushing the message for some time.

"In early 2000, mobility apps came out in niche areas," Bowker said. "They were a bit bleeding edge, proprietary and the infrastructure was not able to support them, so many enterprises were bitten by them and are now slow to come back."

Bowker claimed the technology was now commoditised, making it more reliable and affordable.

"Now it's mainstream, and not such a huge leap of faith," he said. Some technology advancements by way of richer platforms, include CRM 3.0 and Exchange 2007, for example, are taking mobility more seriously, Microsoft's Anderson said.

Making a case

While the technology has made sense in select verticals, there's now activity across the board in general office locations. Toshiba Information Systems Division general manager, Mark Whittard, said there are compelling reasons these days for an enterprise to go mobile - and the reseller can help communicate the message.

Part of the pull is the slew of technology advancements including faster notebooks, widescreen functionality and the wireless play, which are all boosting the mobile category.

IT budget constraints can still be a stumbling block with the ongoing price gap between notebooks and desktops. But resellers can take heart in the fact that business notebook penetration sits at about 40-45 per cent. Whittard expected this to hit the 50 per cent market by year-end, proving notebooks are a force to be reckoned with in the enterprise.

"It's already happening in the business to consumer category," he said.

Another concern is whether an organisation puts mobility in the hands of the general office worker, administration staff and upper management or those in the know.

"It's a no-brainer for the senior or middle management crew and the sales and field service reps who're doing data capture, but what about the general office worker or the administrative worker who is doing traditional tasks, typically on desktop computers, and has legacy access?" Whittard said.

Pitching mobile email is a good way to start the conversation. "Many companies are using mobility for email and Internet applications, taking orders electronically and sending orders," he said. Getting intranet and extranet connectivity allowing suppliers to take the business with them is another top aspect of mobility.

IDC's Clement agreed mobile email was an integral factor in the enterprise mobility equation and continued to be the first step in most organisations' enterprise mobility plans and development. But some key developments in the mobile email market and the overarching enterprise mobility space will pose significant challenges to vendors.