April 2011 fiercemobileit.com April 2011 2 2 diamond sponsor: silver sponsor: 2011 is being heralded as the year of mobile apps in the enterprise, and it’s no surprise given the growing number of smartphones in the enterprise and the increasingly digital savvy workforce. But experts say the proliferation of tablets is what is driving the growth of apps in the enterprise, as the larger screen size brings app usefulness to the forefront. Certain segments of the business market, such as retail, manufacturing and healthcare, are already adopting tablets because of their ease of use, long battery life and apps that can do everything a laptop software solution can. Still, the decision around mobile app development and distribution is anything but simple for most enterprises, thanks to the plethora of operating systems, devices and choices when it comes to developing, delivering and managing mobile applications. Enterprises have a myriad of choices when it comes to platforms and partners. With a seemingly endless number of vendors coming into the mobile enterprise app space, the market is much like the Wild West at this point. Do enterprises go it alone or outsource? Do they deploy pre-packaged apps or build from scratch? Mobile enterprise apps represent a challenging return on investment for businesses because they aren’t easily quantified. Still, analysts suggest businesses should invest in both in-house apps and customer-facing apps. Marketing apps represent a significant opportunity to not only drive sales but build customer and brand loyalty given the fact that consumers carry phones with them at practically all hours of the day and view them as highly personalized devices. While smartphones and tablets are great for productivity, they also present security concerns for the enterprise. These devices have become mini-computers complete with significant storage capabilities, and employees are bringing them into the workplace and creating thousands more touch points to the enterprise server. Enterprises are well aware of the potential security problems. Frost and Sullivan, in its “2011 Global Information Security Workforce Study,” cited mobile security as the second highest security concern for IT organizations. The top concern was application vulnerability. Still, the benefits of mobile apps initiatives will far outweigh the challenges of getting them into the enterprise, in the form of increased work productivity and customer response, analysts say. In this eBook, FierceMobileIT examines the various aspects of mobile enterprise apps—from the opportunities they hold to the possible pitfalls enterprises may face. l Lynnette Luna Editor /// FierceMobileIT Potentials and Pitfalls 3 Mobile Consumerization: A Revolution for the Enterprise 6 Five Steps to a Successful Mobile App * Sponsored Content * 7 Enterprises Face Myriad of Choices When It Comes to Mobile Apps Development 10 Mobile Apps Present Security Challenges for the Enterprise 11 Customer-Facing Apps Have Power to Transform Enterprise Loyalty 13 Q&A with AT&T’s Chris Hill on Enterprise Mobility Mobile Apps in the Enterprise:
