Mobile Enablement for the Enterprise - An overview

In the present day enterprise, the employees want access to the complete suite of enterprise applications. In addition to this, the network resources and any business tools they use at work are also needed on demand and that too on their devices of choice. A hunger for apps, data, resources and device independence, all these expectations add up to a requirement for a more creative enterprise enablement within the boundaries of the companies IT governance policies. Hence Mobile Device Management (MDM) has become of utmost importance for anytime anywhere access to enterprise data.

 

Companies use MDM to extend basic enterprise IT services like email, VPN and Wi-Fi access, while at the same time bringing devices under some form of control. When an employee leaves the company or a device is lost, MDM can restrict device usage that may leak proprietary data. MDM can wipe the entire device, including both corporate and personal data or also blacklist certain risky apps with cloud connectors or file synchronization services. Hence MDM is lays more stress on restriction of data than enablement of apps or resources needed to be productive using personal devices.

 

Nowadays, enterprises also want to give some sort of access to external business partners or consultants or even in some cases potential customers to certain data or applications. MDM offers limited choice in such non employee based device access to guarantee data security. So as enterprises increasingly move beyond employees to its partners for improved business processes and relationships, the ability to provide secure and manageable mobile apps to their broader group is becoming an enterprise mobility requirement.

 

Mobile Application Management (MAM) becomes a natural choice in these cases. MAM permits control over enterprise apps and data without changes to the employee’s personal data. MDM remains beneficial for basic service enablement and reporting functions, whereas MAM introduces app-focused security and policy controls. MAM lets us manage enterprise-approved apps and data on the device without having to take control of the entire device. This enables  access to and collaboration using approved enterprise resources. MAM solutions thus either co-exist with or replace MDM as preferred mobile enablement solutions. MAM also removes the need to restrict insecure device functions and blacklisting of apps. MAM tools can limit data deletion to selective wiping of certain enterprise apps and their data, leaving personal content intact. MAM is thus a business enabler than a restrictive solution and the enterprise users have a well defined view of business and personal data.

 

Many enterprises now have custom mobile apps that enhance an employee productivity or customer experience. There could be apps for speeding up sales cycles, streamline financial accounting, or expedite approval workflows for geographically distant teams. MAM provides a safety net to ensure these custom mobile applications drive down operational cost through process efficiencies without risking core enterprise IT governance and compliance processes. MAM also provides visibility into app usage. App analytics reveal the apps that deliver the most business value so you can direct capital, support, and maintenance to the ones that are working best for your business. This clarity makes it easier to justify investments or allocation of resources to apps that really matter—you may be able to do away with apps that are no longer in use.

 

The choice of MAM software should be beyond deployment and focus on end to end mobile implementation strategy. MAM solution choice should provide a secure and manageable framework for the entire application lifecycle. A good MAM software lets you enable application procurement (in house or 3^rd party), application deployment, application security, remote data wipe, usage statistics, feedback and application retirement.

 

SyneMobile can partner with  your enterprise to define the priorities for you mobile workforce enablement and provide various options for MDM or MAM that fits your corporate mobile strategy.