Mobility for the Enterprise

16 April, 2015 | Della Wyler | Training & Education
Mobility for the Enterprise1

Mobile devices are changing the way people go about their day to day activities, as well as how they work. The enterprise needs to evolve with Mobile-Revolutiontheir customers. Enterprise mobility enables the workforce to have immediate access to company data and information through mobile devices at any given time. It allows them to stay connected with a customer base that is always connected. The ease with which mobile devices blend network connectivity and physical freedom presents tough security challenges for organizations.

 Mobile Revolution brings Security Concerns

Some businesses have already launched their mobility plans, including a BYOD policy, and are realizing the benefits through increased productivity and communication. Others are moving at a much slower pace when it comes to inviting mobile devices into their “homes”. Perhaps one of the reasons businesses are apprehensive to join society in the mobility revolution is concerns over security – 70% of survey respondents cited security as one of most important aspects of their mobile devices such as phones and tablets.

Traditionally, it has been possible for IT departments to build desktop and notebook PCs to their security specifications. Mobile devices are different because they are uncontrolled external devices, and their integration to an enterprise platform is often times a conglomeration of end-user applications or services to gain control of the device. Most if not all of these applications or services are alien to the enterprise deploying them. Unrestricted physical access to the device by its users is central to the concept of mobile computing.

Combating Mobile Security Threats & Control Issues

To combat security threats, enterprises need to do a couple of things:

  1. Build in complex proprietary mechanisms to prevent modification of operating systems and apps. This also allows companies to customize to the needs of their employees, customers, and applications.
  2. Get their staff the proper training to build, manage, and use mobile apps

Another enterprise concern is the lack of operating system and application version controls, as well as limited tools to enable unified, massive software updates. This is made more prevalent because of the lack of trained software developers capable of plugging these technical needs in large organizations.

Mobility Training is a Must

There is a large need for trained mobile software developers to create these capabilities, as well as other software anddevice management tools that are so important for these enterprise organizations to efficiently and securely transition their employees to mobile devices from traditional notebook, laptops and desktop PCs. As Mobile devices penetrate the enterprise workforce and evolve with the mobile economic conditions, the search for mobile developers has resulted in a need to train IT developers in the mobile disciplines within enterprise companies nationwide. Employers are beginning to appreciate the need to provide training in the important mobile programming skills and knowledge in order to create in-house experience and keeping it from walking out the door. This shift has emerged as companies continued to struggle to stay ahead of the mobile revolution, where they need to retain their current employees and to attract and retain the talent that drives success in the new mobile economy.

The US Department of Labor estimates that in the 21st century, 22 percent of all new jobs will require mobile skills possessed by only 11 percent of the IT workforce – that’s a pretty significant talent gap. Talent is a key factor in achieving a competitive advantage, and the reality is that talent is also a scarce resource, specifically when it comes to technological skills. With this shift, companies need to reevaluate their business strategies and ensure that a talent strategy is in place. One that attracts, retains, and develops talent. They can have a strategy that includes hiring talent, and/or hiring and then providing corporate training and personal development to build talent. Both strategies have proven to be successful. Companies that fail to invest in employees jeopardize their own success and even survival. In part, this practice has lingered for lack of alternatives.

A quote by Prof Jeffery Pfeffer of Stanford University, and considered one of today’s most influential management thinkers, wrote that “Virtually all descriptions of high performance management practices emphasize training, and the amount of training provided by commitment as opposed to control-orientated management is substantial”. Yet companies seem to be very short-sighted as he also writes that in times of economic stringency, many U.S. organizations reduce training to make profit goals.

Enterprise Mobility App Development Training

Data Collections Unlimited, in partnership with TechSherpas , is embarking in providing a training program for the mobile disciplines. This program will offer the following courses:

  • Developing iOS 8 SWIFT apps for the enterprise
  • Android Enterprise App Development
  • Cordova Enterprise Hybrid App Development
  • AngularJS End-to-end-course

Register now! The Mobility Revolution is upon us!