How to Realize the Vision of Enterprise Mobility

Transcription

1 WHITE PAPER How to Realize the Vision of Enterprise Mobility Overcoming Key Challenges with a Comprehensive Strategic Approach May 2012 Magic is a trademark of Magic Software Enterprises Ltd. All other product and company names mentioned herein are for identification purposes only and are the property of, and may be trademarks of, their respective owners. Magic Software Enterprises has made every effort to ensure that the information contained in this document is accurate; however, there are no representations or warranties regarding this information, including warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. Magic Software Enterprises assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions that may occur in this document. The information in this document is subject to change without prior notice and does not represent a commitment by Magic Software Enterprises or its representatives.

2 Contents Executive Summary... 1 Introduction... 1 Why Move to Enterprise Mobility? Who Needs Enterprise Mobility?... 2 Why Now?... 2 Challenges to Implementing ng Enterprise Mobility... 2 Cost of Implementation... 2 Security Issues Functionality Challenges... 3 Mobile Application Design and Architecture... 3 Support for Multiple Device Types and Mobile Operating Systems... 3 Back-end Integration... 3 Addressing the Challenges... 4 Adopt a Comprehensive Strategic Approach... 4 Choose the Right Platform... 4 Implement Future-proof Technology for Any Mobile Device... 4 Provide Full Integration with Back-End Systems... 5 Ensure Cost-efficient Implementation... 5 Guarantee Enterprise-grade Security... 5 Conclusion... 5 About Magic Software Enterprises... 5

3 Executive Summary Enterprise mobility enables instant access to core enterprise information anywhere, anytime, through mobile applications. Organizations intent on accelerating their business performance must incorporate enterprise mobility as a fundamental component of their strategic plans. With the proliferation of smartphones and mobile platforms that support enterprise mobility, enterprises need to be able to develop device-independent and futureproof business solutions for fast, simple, and cost-effective mobile deployment. Introduction This white paper presents the ways in which companies and ISVs can address and overcome the main challenges they face in transitioning to enterprise mobility. Why Move to Enterprise Mobility? Enterprises need to mobilize their core activities, integrating back-office and front-end user experiences, so that enterprise mobile users can perform real-time business tasks from any location at any time using any smartphone (or tablet). Within the next five years, more users worldwide will connect to the Internet over mobile devices than via desktop PCs 1. Smartphone shipments in Europe and the US now exceed those of feature phones 2. 1 According to research published by Mary Meeker, Internet analyst at Morgan-Stanley 2 According to IDC (Europe) and Nielson (USA) research 1

4 The adoption of mobile technology is twice as fast as that of any technology that has emerged over the past 15 years, and by 2015, the market share of smart mobile devices is expected to increase tenfold. 3 Who Needs Enterprise Mobility? Enterprise mobile workers are not only field service engineers, or road warriors 4, but also executives, off-site project managers, inspectors, lawyers, sales representatives, and so on. As they already use their smartphones to make calls, take photos, listen to music, read s, schedule meetings, surf the Web, scan barcodes, and navigate journeys, they also expect to perform many of their important work-related tasks using their smartphones. The expectations of smartphone users differ from typical desktop users. For example, a typical desktop user will tolerate seconds of navigation time for a single procedural workflow, whereas a mobile user s attention span is typically limited to just seconds for the same procedure. Therefore, the trend towards enterprise mobility is a user-driven phenomenon. Enterprises, finding themselves in a reactive mode, need to respond to the demands of their employees, and enable them to maintain productivity, performing business and customer service transactions regardless of their physical location and the type of smartphones they are using. Why Now? The ubiquitous connectivity, increaseded capacity, and enhanced user experience of smartphones are turning enterprise mobility into the biggest global market force impacting IT today so much so that by 2013, enterprise mobile users throughout the global business community will account for 35% of the workforce 5. Challenges to Implementing Enterprise Mobility Implementing enterprise mobility raises significant challenges, including technical and practical concerns about cost, security, and functionality. Cost of Implementation Enterprises needs to redesign, re-implement, or complement existing business processes and related applications, (which were not originally intended for mobile deployment), to support multiple device types and multiple mobile operating systems. This can be timerequiring additional IT resources, multiple testing consuming, complex, and costly, environments, and changes to core business and technology infrastructure. These issues challenge enterprises to find a more cost-effective, simple, and versatile means of extending current development and deployment methodology to include deviceagnostic independent, platform-agnostic mobility. 3 According to Morgan-Stanley 4 According to Forrester 5 According to IDC research 2

5 Security Issues Functionality Challenges Enterprises cannot afford to risk losing sensitive data related to customer information, financial transactions, or company operations. Before exposing their back-end systems to the mobile network, enterprises need guarantees that their security will not be compromised by operating in a mobile environment with multiple potential security points- of-failure. Enterprises must also overcome technical challenges associated with the functionality of mobile applications. Mobile Application Design and Architecture To ensure a simple, reliable and user-friendly experience with a smartphone interface, enterprises must adopt a different style of development and deployment, taking into consideration many new mobile-specific factors, such as: UI limitations Communication methods and protocols Data storage CPU usage Battery life Data encryption Authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) Developers need an agile and flexible platform that enables them to design and deploy applications that really work in the mobile environment, including supporting the integration of mobile device features such as GPS and camera. Support for Multiple Device Types and Mobile Operating Systems Enterprises need to make decisions today regarding technological capabilities, platforms, and functionality, based on where they see the biggest commercial opportunities for the future. They must either attempt to second guess which operating system (OS) will dominate their industry, or else face an ongoing fragmented and costly effort to develop and maintain multiple variations of their software. Enterprises that want to mobilize their workforce must either develop multiple versions of applications to support the multiple device types being used by their employees, or else supply the entire workforce with the same device type. Back-end Integration Mobile users on multiple wireless networks must be able to extract and process data from a heterogeneous back-end environment, including both SaaS and in-house systems, with optimized system performance and responsiveness. 3

6 Addressing the Challenges Following are the key elements to achieving a solution that will enable an enterprise to effectively and efficiently mobilize its workforce and core business processes. Adopt a Comprehensive Strategic Approach Some enterprises attempt to implement mobility in a tactical, improvised manner often by delivering browser-based based applications but this approach has many limitations. Browser-based applications fail to realize the full potential of running natively on different mobile devices, and provide the end-user with an inconsistent, unfriendly interface. Enterprises need to adopt a comprehensive strategic approach to enterprise mobility if they are to successfully address more complex mobile work flow scenarios without compromising functionality or security. This means devising an approach that is not ad hoc but rather holistic, taking into consideration the wide range of platforms and technologies now on the market, and focused on fulfilling real-life business requirements. Choose the Right Platform Enterprises must choose an enterprise-grade application platform that meets the following requirements: Addresses all the underlying issues of technological advancements, enabling enterprises and ISVs to focus on the what rather than the how. Provides a secure and reliable means of delivering rich business applications that run natively on multiple device types for a wide variety of user groups. Supports integrated use of mobile device features, such as GPS and camera, to enhance data entry processes. Easily connects, via certified connectors and adaptors, to almost every application the enterprise uses, and delivers on mobile devices the same data, processes, and workflows that are accessed by desktop users, with no added complexity or limitations of functionality. Supports quick and straightforward mash-ups of information flows and processes from multiple sources, enabling enterprises to adopt process innovations or new approaches to existing processes that will accommodate the needs, expectations, and new capabilities of their mobile users. Implement Future-proof roof Technology for Any Mobile Device Adopting a device-agnostic approach circumvents the complexity of multi-device deployment. Using a single development paradigm based on a unified business logic repository, developers can create applications that run natively on any smartphone, regardless of the device type and the underlying mobile OS. Distinguishing between the development of an application and its subsequent deployment enables easy customization for new deployments on a variety of platforms in a single development effort, without requiring a specialized skill set or device-specific knowledge. Metadata-driven driven application development separates the application logic from the specific environment properties. This adds a future-proof dimension to the development process, ensuring that the applications support any current or future mobile platform and are highly portable between different deployment environments. 4

7 Provide Full Integration with Back-End Systems Providing comprehensive and effective integration, while retaining a unified user experience, requires reliable and managed connectivity of back-end systems, whether installed locally or deployed as cloud-based SaaS, to and from any mobile front-end applications. Using specialized tools and appropriate technologies to support connectivity to ERP, CRM, HR, GIS, and various other information management systems enables enterprises to deploy structured integration scenarios that can be easily monitored, reconfigured, and scaled up to meet any service level demand. Ensure Cost-efficient Implementation A comprehensive strategic approach ensures minimum cost, minimum risk, and maximum efficiency when implementing enterprise mobility. The benefits of such an approach include resource optimization, high productivity, and fast turnaround. Using metadata-driven application development is an optimal method of achieving costenterprise mobility, as it eliminates the need for heavy efficient implementation of replication of logic, data, and processes, and for re-engineering of core architecture. Guarantee Enterprise-grade Security Working over secure layers, with built-icached data, robust user authentication and roles assignment, and protection against features, such as encryption of transmitted and attempts to access back-end systems, provides the enterprise-grade security that makes transition to enterprise mobility a viable business strategy. Conclusion By implementing an authentic and comprehensive strategic approach to enterprise mobility, enterprises can address and overcome the key challenges posed by the mobile revolution and can exploit the business and operational opportunities it has created. Magic s mobile offering implements a powerful and versatile metadata-driven approach, providing a device-independent independent and future-proof platform for fast, simple, and costeffective mobile deployment. For more information, visit About Magic Software Enterprises Magic Software Enterprises (NASDAQ: MGIC) is a global provider of mobile and cloudenabled application and business integration platforms. Our technology gives our partners and customers the power to leverage existing IT resources, enhance business agility, and focus on core business priorities. With almost 30 years of experience, thousands of customers, and millions of installations worldwide, Magic has a presence in more than 50 countries, including 14 regional offices and a global network of business partners, including global IT leaders such as IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, Salesforce.com, and SAP AG. For more information about Magic and its products and services, visit and for more about our industry related news, business issues and trends, read the Magic Software Blog. 5