August 12, 2014
Many IT organizations are starting to recognize that mobile technology has the power to help drive business growth by improving speed and productivity across the enterprise. Though mobility is oftenviewed as disruptive, it enables companies to reinvent how they interact with customers, employees, partners, and deliver innovative products and services to the market. Mobile technology can fundamentally change the way organizations do business, but many are just getting started on their mobile enterprise journey. So what gives for increased interest and investments in mobile?
Results of a study conducted by the IBM Institute for Business Value found that 90 percent of organizations surveyed are willing to sustain or increase their investments in mobile technologies over the next 12- 18 months. One major additional finding is that CIOs are ranked as primarily responsible for mobile strategies and play an important role in implementing and managing an organization’s mobile initiatives. Significant opportunities exist for companies to leverage mobility to reinvent operating models and deliver more effective mobile IT and business solutions. Find out several of the important benefits that come along with going mobile!
Benefits for the customer:
- Higher level of customer service
- Information is centrally located and easily accessed
- Enriched user experience
- Always on tech capabilities increases speed of access to vital information
Benefits for the organization:
- More time for customer value-added work
- Ability to monitor each project’s progress to meet terms of service agreemen
- Lower administration costs and enhanced data integrity
- Faster access to critical information for smart decision making
- Reduce the risk of bottlenecks occurring in the business process
- All critical business information is captured and entered into the system
- Greater use of full ERP capability
- Great opportunity to introduce new business practices
Shared benefits:
- Greater accuracy: mobile technology can eliminate error-prone manual data entry and transcription
- Improved safety: Enhanced situational awareness can protect individuals working remotely
- Faster results: Information can be entered and accessed immediately instead of having to wait to be entered
Once you’ve made the case for implementing mobile technology into your organization, here is a three-step path you can follow for making your business more mobile:
Reach
Extending everyday business communication and productivity tools to allow users to remain in touch regardless of location or the device they’re using is fundamental in offering a mobile solution. However, it is not enough to simply be able to reach the user. You should consider:
- Understanding your business’s core need for mobile technology
- Prioritizing the user experience- simplicity, familiarity, and ease of use are key
- Ensure appropriate security and support are in place to manage mobility effectively
Act
Allow ERP users to access key data wherever they are, enabling them to act on information through simple, easy-to-use authorizations and provide updates in real-time from remote locations. You can:
- Manage costs and support mobile requirements by creating a tiered approach for extending mobility deeper into your business
- Explore new areas where mobility can add value
- Emphasize the usability and consistency of apps deployed across your organization
- Make apps available on a trial basis to individuals who are likely to convey the importance of mobility to peers
Transform
Through action you can harness the power of mobility and bring new levels of flexibility to the workplace and increase engagement with your customers and employees. This enables you to:
- Identify mobile characteristics of industry leaders and how they are using the technology to transform their relationships
- Consider ways mobility can support broader strategic and process change
- Poll mobile business needs
Though its capabilities are already wide-spread, mobile technology is rapidly growing. Mobility is seen as an enabler to exceeding customers’ and employees’ expectations on productivity and software usability. Organizations can adopt the mobile first mindset by taking the necessary steps towards developing a well- thought out mobile strategy that can evolve with the needs of the business, and improve customer and employee experience.
Is your company considering or implementing a mobile strategy? What steps are you taking as an organization?
Posted By: Ariana Hampton-Marcell