The important distinction between the way you may have done business in the past and the way you will have to do business in the future is the consumers’ expectation of access to what they want to see, how they want to see it and when they want to see it. Offering customers a technology-limited experience will be met with increasing frustration or abandonment as the tablet and smarter smartphones become ubiquitous.
For most companies, accessing e-mail via mobile devices is now common. This is great and it represents a big leap forward for many organizations. The new standard, however, is for your work force to be able to take everything they do in the office and do it whenever and wherever they need to, without disruption and without having to fundamentally alter the way they do business.
This means having secure access to all documents, software and other applications – multiple reservoirs of corporate information – and being able to interact with them in familiar environments that have the same interfaces as the office.
Though they are more than just incremental upgrades, mobile devices are still not replacing primary business computers in most workplaces. Today’s mobile devices are highly integrated into the work flow and they are excellent tools for displaying and communicating. However, mobile devices are not yet particularly conducive to content creation. Yes, portable keyboards and docks make mobile devices more like full capability desktop environments. But they are not the first choice when one needs to create a business plan or design a website.
The impact of mobile on the enterprise largely results in acknowledging that your customers (and your employees) expect more from you than they did before smartphones and tablets made their debut. Allowing customer expectations to drive the way you engage and interact with them should help you assess how to implement mobile throughout your business and match the right tools with the right people for deeper connections and a better overall brand experience.
James L. Jay is president and CEO of TechPoint, Indiana’s technology industry and entrepreneurship growth initiative. Jay also serves as president and CEO of TechPoint Ventures, which has invested more than $16 million in early-stage capital in twelve Indiana-based technology companies through HALO Capital Group since 2009. An Indianapolis native, Jay has a successful track record as an entrepreneur, business leader and public servant.
