Using Smartphones in Business

Not so long ago I read somewhere that, as a general rule, enterprise adoption and implementation follows the consumer space by around 2 years.  So the rise of social networking in business (aka Enterprise 2.0 or Enterprise Web 2.0) is due imminently, and I think that there are signs already that this is starting to bear out.  I’m not exactly sure where or why this 2 years occurs, I guess in part it is as a result of the more conservative approach necessary within the business world – if you make a bad decision it can affect a great many people – and in part due to the process of change.  Whatever the reason, the changes we’ve seen in the way people interact and communicate on a personal level are starting to filter through to the we connect professionally.

For a long time, Research In Motion (RIM) has dominated the enterprise space with their reliable, robust and simple-to-use approach to mobile email.  Microsoft had a go, but trying to simply port a windows desktop to a mobile screen didn’t work, so it has basically been a one horse race for more than a decade.

But times are changing and as communications between people in the business sphere catches up with the way we interact outside of work, demand is increasing for a corporate mobile device offering more than a great email experience; this in turn is giving rise to innovation and competition (at long last).  This demand, fuelled with the release of the iPhone in 2007 and by the rise of super fast data networks (think 3G, 4G, WiMax, LTE, ubiquitous WiFi, etc) has the potential to create a significant change in the way mobile technology is used in business. 

Love it or hate it the release of the iPhone in 2007 was the single biggest event in Smartphone history in terms of shifting not only the way we interact with mobile technology, but in resetting our expectation of how we can interact with technology on mobile devices.  More and more companies I work with are considering the use of iPhones in business for both cost and performance reasons (often this investigation includes analysis of the what is required to replace incumbent Blackberry devices).

I don’t think I’m going out on a limb in suggesting that mobile devices will replace PC’s as the predominant way in which we communicate and access information. Indeed research shows this shift is happening and likely to be complete within the next 2 – 3 years. 

So my point in all this is that mobile devices are important to us professionally as well as personally, that these devices are becoming more and more important to us and that the Smartphone we want to carry around with us needs to be more than just good at email.

I have a friend who works with people in some of the most heavily regulated sectors and have had conversations a number of times about the use of smartphones in business. His perspective is perhaps more polarised than most as a result of his work, but in his opinion there is only one choice of Smartphone for business: Blackberry.  His argument focuses on the security techniques RIM employ on their devices.  He argues that other mobile platforms simply don’t cut it in terms of their protection of data.

If I look at this argument, on the surface I can understand it and, to some degree actually agree with it.  However, as I break it down I start to question it’s validity.  Communicating on a mobile device is only one way in which we use email.  We also use it on windows based PC’s, Macs, Linux, and a whole range of hardware / software combinations.  The encryption on those platforms is not questioned in terms of security of our data.  And for good reason – they are proven to work.  For example, using MS Outlook on Windows is quite standard, and in many cases this uses either https or IPSec technologies to provide a secure wrapper – both of which are available on Smartphone platforms other than Blackberry (including iOS on the iPhone and Android on many other devices).  These encryption technologies are not only robust but proven across many devices and configurable to provide the optimal balance between security and performance in any given situation – and they’re extensible to incorporate additional security measures such as 2-factor authentication. 

So is it the encryption in itself that is the most important thing, or is it the process or the tools that RIM has developed for its Blackberry devices that are important specifically as a result of the device being mobile  – i.e. portable and potentially more open to theft or loss? In terms of process there are definitely 2 sides to this coin as the negotiations in Saudi Arabia and The United Arab Emirates are showing.  And such tools as remote wipe, remote tracking and remote lockdown, all could be argued to be critical for a corporate mobile platform.  So again, I can understand these are important and the fact that Blackberry has them is significant; but – and how can I put this delicately – all these technologies are also available on other Smartphone platforms!!

Hook your iPhone up to an Exchange based mailbox and chances are you’ll have a remote wipe option available to you from the web interface.  I have actually had to use this in a real life situation where a customer had their iPhone stolen (it worked perfectly).  If only the same technology had been available for their laptop!  The same is true when you set up email for a Google Hosted account (either Gmail or via the business Google Apps platform). 

Android may not offer the same function out of the box, but third parties have been quick to fill the gap.  For less than US$20 per year, you can install WaveSecure. I’ve been using this for 2 months and have run a couple of real-world tests that prove its effectiveness.  Remote wipe, remote tracking, lock-down due to a changed SIM and many other features (including backups) are provided.   It is also noteworthy that WaveSecure is available for Blackberry, perhaps highlighting they have something to offer the stock experience in terms of secure services.

So to me, the reason Blackberry is still on top in the enterprise is a combination of the following:

• Confusion in terms of what is secure and what is not; and the availability of security options across all Smartphone platforms generally.
• Comfort – Blackberry has been the dominant mobile device in enterprise and it is the safe horse to back
• Inertia – the cost of change is often significant and re-aligning back-end infrastructure with an alternative Smartphone strategy takes significant time and effort to get agreed, planned and ultimately implemented

I don’t mean this to be a Blackberry hit piece, I’ve used Blackberries in the past and I think they have a number of qualities that has allowed them to compete successfully in the enterprise space over many years.  More recently their efforts to appeal to a younger audience with Blackberry Messenger have been inspired and has proved to be a great strategy.  However, I do think that as we move into a world where smartphones are king, RIM should be using their extensive experience of the enterprise to drive things forward in a positive and innovative way and a combination of what is essentially fear and confusion  shouldn’t form the basis of a corporate Smartphone strategy.  For me, RIM simply hasn’t done enough to warrant maintaining its dominance.

I’m not saying it’s going to be easy and I’m also not saying that a shift away from Blackbe
rry is always going to be the right one.  But I do think that people should make the choice based on full and accurate knowledge and consider all the options so that the most appropriate choice to meet the needs of the business is made.  As anyone who has seen my previous posts or heard me speak on this subject, I’m a strong believer that email is over used and under performs for many of the tasks we use it for.  My hope in all of this is that more open competition in the enterprise space will finally lead to adoption of more appropriate technologies in our professional lives; technologies that in themselves are more secure, more effective, more flexible and possibly cheaper.

For me, the rise of the Smartphone in business over the coming months and years represents the biggest opportunity to shift behaviour, processes and interactions for the better on a massive scale.  And for those companies that are prepared to be open minded, possible bold even and consider all the options, I’m super excited to see where it takes us.