Guest post written by Jim Hemmer
Jim Hemmer is CEO of Antenna Software.
The world of mobile technology has never been as complex as it is today. Most organizations are investing heavily in the mobile channel, but it’s confusing and complex. There are multiple projects in play, multiple vendors to consider, an alphabet soup of acronyms to sort through (i.e., BYOD, MAM and MDM), and myriad new innovations to vet, like mobile payments, augmented reality, and context and location-aware content.
According to a recent survey of over 1,000 CIOs conducted by Vanson Bourne, U.S. companies plan to spend an average of nearly $1 million on mobile initiatives over the next year. Additionally, the number of mobile projects companies are managing is increasing – at the beginning of 2012 companies were managing an average of four to five mobile initiatives across various departments, and planning to add three to four new mobile undertakings in the second half of the year. This adds up to nine separate mobile projects – with at least three separate mobile solutions providers to manage.
The result is that many enterprises find themselves wondering how to manage this complex mobile ecosystem. While IT departments historically held the reins on all things mobile inside the enterprise, the various lines-of-business owners also see the mobile channel as the new frontier for business growth, brand differentiation and deeper customer insights. Because of this dynamic, a growing number of companies are investing in key executives who connect the business units and IT – ensuring that security, control and management of projects is up to par, while advising the company on how mobility can transform business processes and customer relationships.
We refer to these people as “mobile strategists,” but they could also have titles like Chief Mobile Officer, Head of Mobile Strategy or Director of Mobility. As their name implies, these mobile strategists play a critical role in gathering business requirements, building a ‘mobile center of excellence,’ creating a mobile strategy that aligns to the key business drivers, and selecting the right technology and platform to support both short- and long-term needs. At this point, a business without a mobile strategy is a business without a strategy at all.
Here are nine reasons why you need a mobile strategist:
- Business Moves at Mobile Speed
According to Cisco, by 2016, there will be 10 billion Internet-enabled devices globally and smartphone traffic will grow 50 times the size it is today. Mobility is no longer a nice to have — it’s a critical requirement of doing business and staying competitive. Enterprise mobile spending is higher than ever, and mobile projects now span every department and industry.
- BYOD is the New Reality
Apple has been a major force behind the BYOD movement and new findings show that globally, BYOD is catching on. Enterprises around the world are making the decision to support employee-selected devices. However, maintaining security, control and visibility into devices and data has become a primary concern for CIOs. According to Gartner, the BYOD movement is here to stay, but security and management of these devices will continue to be pressing concerns among enterprises.
- Multiple Mobile Initiatives Cause Major Fragmentation– Make it One Person’s Day Job
With enterprises currently managing multiple mobile projects and new ones being added at a rapid clip, mobile is too often put into silos at most organizations. This makes management and decision-making, as well as future proofing and budget management, incredibly complex and time-consuming for employees with other job functions.
- A Mobile Strategist is an Objective Voice of Reason for the Increasingly Mobile Business
Maintaining the delicate balance between addressing user needs and IT capabilities can be difficult for any company. Let your mobile strategist be a hub between all department spokes to ensure that mobile initiatives truly reflect business need – and the technology is in place to support it as well.
- Mobile is No Longer a “One and Done”
It used to be that enterprises designed and implemented a mobile app and called it a day. Today, a single mobile app alone cannot fulfill all business objectives and needs. Mobile initiatives today require strategic planning, budgeting, research, prototyping and testing, as well as consistent updating. Mobile undertakings need to be iterative and agile, rather than tactical one-off projects with a beginning and an end. Jeffrey Hammond from Forrester Research has some great advice on how to readjust your thinking this way in his recent report Take Advantage of the Mobile Shift.
- Time is of the Essence
Time to market for mobile initiatives is a top pain point for enterprises, as delays in deployment can cost major dollars. Every day a competitor has an engaging app on the market and your company does not is a day of lost revenue. Speed to market isn’t the only important factor when it comes to be able to do mobile fast – companies also have a need for speed in rapidly iterating and refining mobile initiatives to stay current, incorporate feedback from users, and make adjustments based on data from analytics.
- Poor Design is the Silent Killer
One in five IT and business decision makers is frustrated with the usability of mobile projects delivered, and a similar proportion is unhappy with the robustness of the projects commissioned, according to the 2012 Mobile Business Forecast. Ensuring mobile projects are easy to use will help improve efficiency and productivity gains, as well as profitability. A mobile strategist can ensure that intuitive UI design, ease of use and strong feature/functionality are built in to mobile projects from day one.
- Mobile Adoption is a Major Concern
Executives rolling out mobile initiatives aren’t the only ones that are frustrated with the end project. Perhaps more significant is that despite the investment of both money and time companies are making in mobile, 75 percent of employees are not adopting internally-facing mobile apps. Even worse, only one in five companies has seen customer-facing mobile initiatives adopted by ‘the majority’ of their target market.
- App Discoverability is the New Challenge
The work is far from over once an app is published. Today there are more than one million apps in the Apple App Store and Google Play. With Internet traffic increasing over smartphones and tablets, enterprises must take care to ensure their apps are discoverable quickly.
These factors combined have created an environment that has made it crucial for enterprises to evaluate their mobile strategy and who is tasked with leading that strategy today and tomorrow. As the mobile channel continues to grow we expect to see this strategic role take flight in a big way.
