In an increasingly mobile world and an age of instant gratification, the enterprise user is demanding the same access to information as the consumer. This is not surprising as in many cases, they are one and the same. At my company, Unvired, we have been implementing mobile solutions for several years now, and I would like to share our insights so that others can benefit. Here goes:
1. The Overwhelmed Enterprise: Unlike consumer mobility, enterprise mobility is yet to really take off. Customers are still defining their mobile strategy. In an age of tight budgets, Mobility projects have to pass the ROI test. Customers are faced with many challenges: worry about mobile security, mobile device management, choice of mobile application development platforms, testing, and support. Software vendors are consolidating, and many seemingly separate components of Enterprise Mobility Management are converging–like device management and application development platforms.
2. Cloud or Not to Cloud: We have found several customers still worried about data security in the cloud. When presented with both an on-premise and a cloud deployment option to build mobile applications, some customers prefer on-premise, even though it is more costly to implement.
3. HTML5 vs. Native: There is a perception that HTML5 will enable “Build Once Run Everywhere” saving development effort and costs for multiple platforms like iOS, Android, Blackberry, and Windows. From our experience, we believe that there is a place for both HTML5 and native apps. For sophisticated complex apps where performance is a premium, native apps may still be the best option.
In my next blog, I will discuss some Business Use Cases for Mobile Applications covering the Consumer Products, Utilities, and Oil & Gas industries.
