Building Compliance Features into Your Enterprise Mobility Solution, Part 2

Monitoring activities

This is Part 2 in this series on building compliance features into enterprise mobility solutions.  You can read Part 1 here.  This article looks at ways to configure best practices and other compliance requirements into mobile applications.

Sales and Marketing

It has been demonstrated many times that the trusted service technician that is standing in a customer's kitchen is a far better sales person than an unknown telephone sales person calling at dinner time. So how can you build processes into mobile applications that help your field services engineers be as effective as possible selling products and services?  Wouldn't it be nice if there was an automatic prompt that told the field services engineer what to discuss with each customer?

I have personally purchased extended maintenance warranties from my own HVAC service man several times over the past few years. They show me how I can save money and get better maintenance by being on the plan. I trust the experience of my service technician.

Mobile Enterprise Applications

When companies first begin considering an enterprise strategy for mobility, they often do not consider the role and value “compliance” layers can play. Even mobility vendors have not yet realized the true value. For the most part, enterprises are still thinking of mobile applications as a way to provide quick and mobile visibility to reports, notifications, approval processes, email messages and to replace paper forms. These are all good features, but there is much more that can be accomplished with mobile enterprise applications than has often been considered.

Building Compliance Features into Your Enterprise Mobility Solution, Part 1

One of the many challenges that companies have is managing a mobile workforce that is often working on remote and distant jobsites.  Many important parts of the business can be impacted by how the mobile workforce does their job while in these environments.  This article will discuss how mobile enterprise applications, with integrated compliance monitoring and prompting, can help companies manage remote and mobile work forces.

Customer Service in Remote Locations

The experience the customer has with your company is directly determined by how they are treated by the company representative they meet.  Often the onsite worker is the only face to face interaction the customer ever has with a person from your company.  The way the customer is treated and the services that are preformed can make all the difference between a good and bad experience and referral business.  How do you ensure that best practices are being followed in remote worksites?

Jobsite Safety

Jobsites can often be dangerous.  There may be safety issues and safety regulations that must be followed.  There are often specific processes that must be followed to reduce risks and to provide the safest working conditions possible for the workers and other people around the jobsite.

Legal Liabilities

There are many risks that must be considered.  If a jobsite is not properly prepared for safety and an accident happens, the company responsible for the work may be liable.  How do you ensure your workforce follows the appropriate processses, does mandated tasks and documents these steps to reduce risks?  Can a mobile device be used?

Best Practices

It is often the case that companies train their employees to do what is considered best practices within their company and industry.  These best practices can be at the core of a company’s competitive advantage.  How does a manager ensure that best practices are being followed on remote jobsites where there is no onsite supervision?  Best practices might be the difference between running an profitable operation and an unprofitable operation.

Read Part 2 of this article.

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer
Phone +1 208-991-4410
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Disclosure: I am an independent mobility analyst, consultant and blogger. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Rapid SAP Mobilization for the Enterprise Webinar

Preparing for the effort

SAP Services partner, Smartsoft Mobile Solutions has invited me to share my research on how best to prepare for implementing enterprise mobility in an upcoming webinar on March 8, 2011 at 11:00 AM ET.  Following my presentation, the Smartsoft Mobile team will present an overview of their experiences and knowledge gained through work on major SAP mobilization projects.

Topics to be covered include:

1. Trends in SAP Mobilization

2. Best Practice:  Mobile Engagement Methodology

3. Rapid Mobile Solution Deployment

4. Five Ways to Optimize your ROI

You are invited to join this webinar by registering here.

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer
Phone +1 208-991-4410
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Join the SAP Enterprise Mobility group on Linkedin:
http://www.linkedin.com/groups?about=&gid=2823585&trk=anet_ug_grppro

Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility analyst, consultant and blogger. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

M2M and SAP Enterprise Mobility

I have a bandwagon.  When I get on it, I shout that enterprise mobility and M2M communications will quickly merge.  I published an article earlier today about Zia Yusuf, former SAP EVP, and his new company Streetline that perfectly demonstrates the combination of mobile and M2M technologies.  Streetline’s parking sensors report the availability of a parking spot to an iPhone app.

Machines talking to machines and then sharing that information with mobile applications are the wave of the future.  Today, Redbox (kiosk DVD movie distributors) has their computerized and M2M enabled red metal kiosks communicate with your smartphone.  You can open a smartphone Redbox application and query the availability in inventory of a particular movie within a specific distance from your location.  The GPS on your smartphone tells Redbox your location and it queries each of its metal distribution kiosks for inventory levels and reports back to your smartphone app.

Let’s now take a look at some of the session titles at an upcoming M2M conference as they hint at the relevance and importance of M2M:

• M2M for Public Services and Smart Cities
• Automotive M2M, Asset Tracking, and Telemetry
• Embedded Networking Systems in the Smart Home and Office

M2M communications impacts, public services, cities, assets, vehicles, homes and offices.  Sounds pretty ubiquitous to me.

SAP is also now involved in various parts of the M2M and smart grid discussion.  Here is a recent press release about an SAP whitepaper titled, SAP Leads the Charge for Smart Grid Adoption in Europe. 

If you question the importance of this kind of technology here is the value as described in SAP’s press release on the paper, “the pervasive application of digital information and communication technologies can help the European Union achieve its 2020 goals of increased energy efficiency, lower carbon emissions, integration of renewables and greater energy security…”  Is there a nobler goal or mission?

SAP’s commitment to this technology area is highlighted in this press release excerpt, "At SAP, we are deeply committed to a leadership role in the development and application of ICT (information and communication technologies) tools and technologies able to turn the smart grid vision into reality…”




Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer
Phone +1 208-991-4410
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Join the SAP Enterprise Mobility group on Linkedin:
http://www.linkedin.com/groups?about=&gid=2823585&trk=anet_ug_grppro

Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility consultant, mobility analyst, writer and Web 2.0 marketing professional. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Former SAP EVP is Solving Headaches with Mobile and M2M Technologies

Today Zia Yusuf is CEO of Streetline, a San Francisco company.  This former SAP EVP is showing up all over the media these days.  Why?  His new company provides some very interesting mobile and M2M (machine-to-machine) technologies that show real time parking availability on smartphones.

What does his solution consists of?

• Battery-powered sensors (M2M) in parking spaces
• Receiver
• Data center in Dallas, Texas
• $1.99 Mobile Parker iPhone application

Here is how it appears to work - Yusuf convinces various municipal governments on the benefits of using Streetline’s solution.  These benefits include:

• Reduces fuel used searching for parking spots
• Reduces the time spent searching for a parking spot
• Reduces neighborhood traffic
• Increased driving safety (not distracted looking for parking spots)
• Provides directions to available parking spots

Once approved, Streetline’s battery-powered sensors are installed in parking spots.  The sensors communicate with the nearby receiver (reporting whether the parking spot is empty or occupied), which connects to the data center in Texas, which in turn connects to iPhone applications everywhere.  The mobile app then shows the number of open parking spaces on any given street and directs you to them via Google Maps.

Jefferson Graham in a USA TODAY article reports that, “IBM in 2010 named Streetline the 'Global Entrepreneur of the year,' after it won several competitions IBM staged to look for companies working on a 'smarter planet.'"

I write about both mobile solutions and M2M (machine-to-machine) communications.  This solution utilizes both, so it wins my favorite mobile solution of the day!

Congratulations Zia!  I knew there was an afterlife.

Whitepaper of Note: Unlocking the Value of Enterprise Mobility

Mobility News Weekly - Week of February 21, 2011

Kevin's Mobility News Weekly is an online newsletter made up of the most interesting news and articles related to enterprise mobility that I run across each week.  I am specifically targeting information that reflects market data and trends.

Also read Field Mobility News Weekly
Also read Mobile Money News Weekly
Also read Mobile Retailing News Weekly
Also read M2M News Monthly

Enterprise mobility will be the biggest trend in tech this year, according to Forrester, with private app stores popping up to simplify mobile app overload.

http://www.cio.com/article/661863/Enterprise_Mobility_in_2011_Keeping_Apps_and_Phones_Under_Control

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Sprint and Good Technology have announced a partnership to provide business grade security and full device management features on Sprint's lineup of popular Android devices that business customers want most.

http://www.androidcentral.com/sprint-partners-good-technology-provide-android-based-business-solutions

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A new Android app, appropriately titled Route 66 Maps + Navigation, contains a feature called Follow Me that allows real drivers to follow virtual cars turn for turn.

SAP PCN Webcast on Mobile Device Management

I wanted to share information about an upcoming SAP PCN webcast on mobile device management that I will be participating in at 2 PM ET on March 2, 2011. Here is an excerpt from the SAP PCN's official invitation.

LEARN HOW YOU CAN BETTER MANAGE ENTERPRISE MOBILITY

Learn Directly from SAP and Industry Experts About Key Device Management Aspects of Enterprise Mobility

Webinar Highlights

• The case for mobile device management
• What the Afaria mobile device management solution brings to the table
• Strategies for managing your enterprise usage of mobile devices such as iOS, Android, and Blackberry
• Deploying and integrating with Afaria

Panelists

Kevin Benedict
Kevin Benedict is an SAP mentor volunteer, blogger, mobile and M2M industry analyst, and SAP Topic Leader for enterprise mobility.  He is a popular enterprise-mobility consultant, writer, and speaker on subjects related to mobile enterprise. Kevin is an entrepreneur and consultant on enterprise mobility. 

James Naftel
James Naftel is an Afaria product manager at Sybase, an SAP company. In this position, James drives product strategy for Afaria, the market-leading mobile-device- management solution from Sybase. His areas of focus include mobile-device software and asset management, identity and access management, and threat management.

Sam Lakkundi
Sam Lakkundi is an enterprise-mobility architect and a “SWAT” team member at Sybase, an SAP company. He has 15 years' experience working directly with customers that employ a wide range of technologies including client server, database, application server, and mobile engineering.

Registration link:
http://bit.ly/hhMiUq



***************************************************
Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer
Phone +1 208-991-4410
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Join the SAP Enterprise Mobility group on Linkedin:
http://www.linkedin.com/groups?about=&gid=2823585&trk=anet_ug_grppro

Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility consultant, mobility analyst, writer and Web 2.0 marketing professional. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Mobile Retailing News Weekly - Week of February 21, 2011

Kevin's Mobile Retailing News Weekly is an online newsletter that is made up of the most interesting news, articles and links related to mobile retailing applications and mobile marketing applications that I run across each week. I am specifically targeting market size and market trend information.

Also read Field Mobility News Weekly
Also read Mobile Money News Weekly
Also read Mobility News Weekly
Also read M2M News Monthly

A number of blogs have pointed us to news that mobile payment company Square is dropping the .15 cents per transaction charge for any business using its mobile payments device and service.  Square previously charged 2.75 percent of each transaction amount plus a flat .15 cents per transaction fee.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13846_3-20035055-62.html

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Google searches conducted on mobile phones centering on shopping-related keywords grew more than 300 percent from January 2010 to January 2011, reports a new Google study on holiday shopping.

http://www.internetretailer.com/2011/02/17/holiday-shoppers-smartphones-search-and-researchand-buy

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A forecast from Yankee Group predicts the worldwide transaction value of mobile payments will total $984 billion by 2014, up from $162 billion last year.

http://finchannel.com/Main_News/Tech/81424_eMarketer%3A_Mobile_Payments_Take_Hold_Around_the_World/

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At the end of 2010 there were over 5.2 billion mobile connections globally – more than three times as many connections as there are PCs in the world. Mobile phone subscriptions continue to rise, making mobile phones the most rapidly adopted technology in history.

Meet Me in Brussels at The Enterprise Mobility Exchange!



Meet Me in Brussels!

I have had the good fortune to be invited to attend and speak at The Enterprise Mobility Exchange in Brussels this year.  It runs May 9th-11th.

Here is the official description:

Equipping your field workforce with mobile technology to deliver maximum profit, productivity and customer service excellence.

The 2011 Enterprise Mobility Exchange is the leading invitation only networking event for businesses actively purchasing and implementing mobile technology for their workforce.  This unique Director's forum will bring together the real decision makers from field service organisations from across Europe.

Attend the 2011 Enterprise Mobility Exchange and:

• Hear from market leaders about cutting edge developments in mobile technology and discover how to apply this to your own business objectives.
• Catch up with peers and make new business connections through a series of networking opportunities.
• Learn from the experiences and challenges other key decision makers face in implementing mobile technology and use this to improve your own enterprise mobility strategy.
• Hear from innovative organisations who have successfully implemented mobility solutions and find out where they plan to invest in the year ahead.

To request your invitation or to find out more visit www.enterprisemobilityexchange.com/kblog

I know SAP ecosystem members Sybase, ClickSoftware and Syclo will all be there.

***************************************************
Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer
Phone +1 208-991-4410
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Join the SAP Enterprise Mobility group on Linkedin:
http://www.linkedin.com/groups?about=&gid=2823585&trk=anet_ug_grppro

Full Disclosure: I am an independent mobility consultant, mobility analyst, writer and Web 2.0 marketing professional. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Field Mobility News Weekly - Week of February 21, 2011

Kevin’s Field Mobility News Weekly is an online newsletter made up of the most interesting news and articles related to field mobility that I run across each week.  I am specifically targeting information that reflects market data and trends.

Also read M2M News Monthly
Also read Mobile Retailing News Weekly
Also read Mobile Money News Weekly
Also read Mobility News Weekly

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Las Vegas Police have apprehended the suspect in the December 2010 robbery at the Bellagio Resort & Casino resulting in stolen chips whose face value totaled nearly $1.5 million, according to Singularity Hub.  RFID technology may have helped police find the thief.

http://www.rfidnews.org/2011/02/14/rfid-may-have-lead-to-arrest-in-casino-heist

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The highly competitive handset based mobile resource management market is expected to grow to $2.33 billion by 2016 in North America.

http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110216006370/en/Research-Markets-Highly-Competitive-Handset-based-Mobile-Resource

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In East Africa, the mobile phone is quickly replacing laptops and modems in terms of enabling workforce mobility.

http://news.idg.no/cw/art.cfm?id=798F8AEB-1A64-67EA-E473B076924D3486

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iPads are being used in construction for quality and field operations.