Mobile is transforming the way businesses work. Realising the benefits of mobile apps and devices, companies are adapting to mobility faster than ever. Here are some of the elements that every company must consider before drafting an enterprise mobile strategy.

App Development Technologies

Developers have the option to build apps using Native or web-based technologies. Native app development technologies offer the ultimate UX but are expensive to build. On the other side, web-based hybrid technologies offer easier app development and are gaining traction in the app development space. A recent report by Ionic says, 41.7% of the apps built with Ionic Framework are for internal-use (B2B) apps. The biggest benefit enterprises are seeing with Hybrid technologies is with the development and maintenance of app for different platforms. With hybrid technologies, developers need not maintain different versions and development is easier with single code for all the mobile platforms. In the coming years, native app development will see a gravitational pull as developers building exclusively with native tools will drop down in the next two years to 2.9% from 20%. So, companies are recommended to consider hybrid technologies when planning enterprise mobile strategy.

Prioritize App Development

Companies having various lines of businesses shall mobilize the highly important workflows first to achieve maximum business value and ROI. Do this by listing out all the workflows to be mobilized and prioritize them considering the business value they generate, technical feasibility and complexity and need for mobility.

Mobility Governance Policies

When employees use smart devices for company and personal purposes, issues such as security breach arise, and puts company’s data at risk. With Mobile device governance, companies can mitigate most of the issues by establishing a mobile governance Charter. Before implementing mobility in the enterprise, the Mobile Governance Team shall bring out all the possible issues and risks they may face in the future. They shall determine boundaries for using mobile and execute mobile governance policies necessary to put a check on the risks that may arise. These policies reduce wasteful spending of resources and improves security. Some of the key topics included in policies are protection of corporate data, app restrictions, mobile data reimbursements and agreements to standardize use of mobile phones and apps for company and personal purposes.

Build Vs Buy Apps

Buying Off the shelf apps helps users quickly go to market and save tons of money on design, development and maintenance, but vendors restrict platforms and lack flexibility and comprehensive solution offering.

Building apps helps companies develop tailor made custom apps but takes enormous amounts of time and resources to build 20+apps.

CAPRIZA Could be a potential platform to alleviate many of the Build issues.

Our recommendation Research the solution providers with a comprehensive strategy towards Enterprise Mobility. You need a full suite of apps, services for a quick journey towards Digital Transformation. Take a holistic enterprise wide look.

Design & UX

As mobile device popularity increases, digital experiences are more important than ever for your customers. The need for presenting complex information on a small screen have accentuated the importance of design in every software application. Design and user experience now play a much deeper role in the successful integration of technology into business. Create experiences that employees love to use and

“Design thinking helps you seek a balance between intuition and analytics, between exploration and exploitation, between reliability and validity, and between art and science” – Roger Martin

By discovering people’s unmet needs through rapid prototypes, you can offer solutions that are designed for end users. Straightforward and aesthetically pleasing products are compelling to use and more relevant in the mobile-first world. Simple solutions are easy to use and get the work done. Know more about the benefits of Design Thinking here.

Hidden Costs

Many Organizations do not take hidden costs into consideration while calculating TCO of Enterprise Mobility.

“In fact, in the US ‘real’ TCO is 116 per cent more than expected. Approximately $1,000 per device of annual costs for services, security and IT are not being taken into account when calculating the TCO of enterprise mobility.” Says Eldar Tuvey, CEO of Wandera for Enterprise Mobility Exchange.

It is necessary to include hidden costs of services, security into account before budgeting mobility. Taking all these into consideration, companies shall build/buy most effective mobile solutions. Those looking for companywide mobility can internally develop with a mobile team OR consider Rapid mobile app development (RMAD) tools such as Capriza for building large number of tailored apps. RMAD tools are the latest trend and offer low cost development and ensure security. However, enterprises planning for quick to go to market OR mobilizing only a few line of businesses can consider mobile solution providers with comprehensive mobile solution offering.

To know more about Benefits and Importance of Enterprise Mobility see Why Embrace Enterprise Mobility?

Enterprises that are not mobile will soon fade away. The best way for companies to achieve mobility is through well defined strategy. Propel Apps is an enterprise mobile solution provider and helps companies in their mobile transformation. Our strategy towards mobile offering is comprehensive. We offer everything from strategy to app development and support. Reach out to us if you need any help on mobile strategy. Here is a slider on Enterprise mobile strategy from Raj Peddisetty, mobile advisor at Propel Apps.