It is no secret that I am a proponent of developing mobile applications for the enterprise; it is increasingly becoming the most viable option for mobile developers to make a living. As the referenced blog post suggests, developers are already realizing better returns on targeting enterprises, and yet only 16% of them are doing so!
That is why I decided to dedicate my keynote at iTech Vancouver to driving the point home to IT Professionals, decision makers, and developers alike: Enterprises need more than Email.The talk laid out the current landscape of mobility in the Enterprise; how we got from single, fixed access points for each user (desktop computers), to managing users on the move with their laptops through VPN, to the current chaos of BYOD, where the ‘D’ is a variety of smartphones and tablets from different platform providers running different operating systems. I discussed the challenges and concerns IT Administrators face, and how they can overcome them using the power of the BlackBerry Enterprise Service 12 (BES12) architecture.
However, the challenge of securing and deploying mobile devices into an organization is only the beginning; now that these devices are in the hands of employees, they need to be enabled for productivity. This is where consciously developing applications for the enterprise comes into play. I discussed the 4 Pillars of App Development for Enterprise – Connectivity, Application Management, Coding Standards, and Push Notifications. Throughout each pillar I showcased how the BES12 solution simplifies the work a developer targeting the enterprise needs to put forth to ensure security and simplicity for their end users.
At the end of the talk I showcased some of the exciting new services BlackBerry has launched, such as BBM Protected and BlackBerry Blend, as well as some of our upcoming offerings through strategic acquisition of companies like SecuSmart and Movirtu.
Before the talk started to took a poll of audience to determine how many of them were completely aware of the mobility strategy within their organization, and how it was being executed…a single hand went up. At the end of the discussion I asked how many audience members felt the need to return to their organizations to determine not only what their internal mobility strategy is, but also how they can start contributing towards it…hundreds of hands flew into the air. That highlights the importance of enterprise mobility today.
Check out an online video of the talk with the slide deck to follow along to here