By Bob Abernethy,
SVP & GM at Strategy Companion Corporation
At Strategy Companion, we are hearing over and over again this kind of
comment from IT personnel: “Our C-level executives have iPads and they want to use them for business. And they are asking us to make it happen. Help!”
OK, they usually don’t actually say the word “Help!” But it is clear that is what is really being said, even without uttering the word. There is pressure, often intense pressure, for IT to deliver on these mobile requirements, and to do it NOW. Or at the very least, SOON. It’s not hard to see why, given the explosive growth of the mobile user base.
The mobile computing revolution is nothing short of breathtaking. An important part of this revolution is the Apple iPad. In its Q3 ending June 25, Apple sold over 9 million iPads, the most ever sold in one quarter. So the revolution is picking up speed, not slowing down. Just think, no one even owned an iPad before January 2010. Now you see them everywhere you go – including executive offices and corporate boardrooms.
How is IT supposed to handle its already demanding workload, while at the same time supporting the delivery of corporate data to all these new devices? And not just the Apple devices, but BlackBerry, Android, and other types as well, with new entrants appearing all the time. To make things even more interesting, for the first time ever, IT has little or no control over which devices (including both the hardware and OS software) people are needing to be supported on. It’s the rare company that actually buys mobile devices for their mobile workers. Almost always, your users, whether internal or external, are buying these themselves. Not challenging enough? OK, let’s add in the fact that many of them are purchasing multiple devices from different device providers. How many of your users are like me, with an Apple iPad in one hand and an Android smartphone in the other? And let’s not forget security, which by the way happens to be more of a risk with mobile devices, which by their very nature are more likely to be lost or stolen than laptops or PCs.
It’s a daunting challenge, and at Strategy Companion, we love a challenge. And we enjoy working with talented partners like NextBridge who don’t shrink from these kinds of challenges. Our contribution is to helping our partners and customers meet these challenges by delivering leading-edge mobile BI for iPhones, iPads, BlackBerry smartphones and tablets, and Android smartphones and tablets. Today. Right now. At affordable prices while still supporting leading-edge interactivity and graphics. Delivered securely, using a consistent interface between devices.
We are delighted to be working with NextBridge on some exciting mobile BI engagements which we believe will set the standard for effective and intelligent use of the myriad mobile devices in use today – and in the future.