Kevin Benedict Ponders the Future

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.

Mobile Expert Video Series: ClickSoftware's Moshe BenBassat, Part 1

I was able to catch up with Dr. BenBassat, Founder/CEO of SAP Partner ClickSoftware and interview him on mobile enterprise strategies this week at SAPPHIRENOW 2011. This is Part 1 of 2. Watch Part 2 here.

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Expert Video Series: Smartsoft Mobile's Ed Krufka

Ed Krufka shows off their mobile enterprise asset managment application that SAP is demonstrating in the Mobility Theater. This is an iPad application.

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Expert Video Series: SAP's Dr. Ahmed El Adl, Part 2

This is the second interview that I recorded with SAP's Dr. Ahmed El Adl at SAPPHIRENOW 2011. In this interview he describes the strategies necessary for implementing a mobility strategy.

Sponsored Ad: Pyxis Mobile provides an agile, powerful, and secure mobile enterprise application platform. It enables rapid cross-platform application development, unlimited data integration, enterprise-grade security, and the unique ability to change and update applications in real time. http://pyxismobile.com/
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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Expert Video Series: SAP's Dr. Ahmed El Adl, Part 1

I was able to schedule two separate interviews with SAP's Dr. Ahmed El Adl yesterday. He shares his thoughts and insights on mobile enterprise strategies and services in this video.

Watch Part 2 of the video here.

Sponsored Ad: Pyxis Mobile provides an agile, powerful, and secure mobile enterprise application platform. It enables rapid cross-platform application development, unlimited data integration, enterprise-grade security, and the unique ability to change and update applications in real time. http://pyxismobile.com/
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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Expert Video Series: Leapfactor's Luis Cabrera

Leapfactor has a reputation for developing some of the most beautiful mobile applications in the market. Luis demonstrates some of their user interface skills in this video from SAPPIRENOW 2011.

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Expert Video Series: Smartsoft Mobile's Dan Homrich

In the Mobility Theater this week I saw the SAP team demonstrating an enterprise asset management application on an iPad that was developed by SAP partner Smartsoft Mobile. I caught up with Smartsoft Mobile's CEO Dan Homrich to learn about the application and his mobility strategy.

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Expert Video Series: AMT-Sybex's Malachy Martin

Mobile expert and mobility veteran Malachy Martin shares his thoughts on mobile strategy and designing, developing, deploying and supporting complex mobile applications.

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Expert Video Series: SAP's Thortsen Stephan

Learn about SAP's mobility announcements this week from SAP's Thortsen Stephan in this interview. He explains SUP 2.0.

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

SAPPHIRENOW 2011 Day 2 Mobility Photos!

SAP Co-CEOs

Day 2 at SAPPHIRENOW 2011 was "Mobility Day" with many mobility related announcements. The three from SAP were on:

SUP (Sybase Unwired Platform) version 2.0
SAP and Accenture partnering to deliver mobile apps
SAP announced 19 new mobile applications to be released by September 2011

Here is the photo slideshow related to enterprise mobility for Day 2.

SLIDE SHOW!

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Retailing News Weekly - Week of May 16, 2011

The 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

SAP is expected to launch the latest version of what it calls the Sybase Unwired Platform at its annual customer and partner event in Orlando, Florida this week. This includes 19 mobile apps for businesses covering areas such as sales, finance, procurement and human resources. Read More

Pyramid Research estimates that the number of mobile banking users in Latin America will grow 65 percent between 2010 and 2015, from around 18 million users to over 140 million users. Read More

PayPal expects to process more than $2 billion in mobile payments this year, which is nearly three times the amount it processed in 2010. Read More

According to TNS research, the use of mobile wallet technology amongst U.K. consumers has more than doubled in the last 12 months with more than one in ten people now making payments via a mobile device. Read More

Visa is building a digital wallet that people can use to purchase items online or with their phones instead of with traditional cards. Read More

According to a GfK NOP report, debit and credit card holders seem to be attracted to the idea of mobile payment services. Read More

Pyxis Mobile provides an agile, powerful, and secure mobile enterprise application platform. It enables rapid cross-platform application development, unlimited data integration, enterprise-grade security, and the unique ability to change and update applications in real time. This newsletter is sponsored in part by Pyxis Mobile, http://pyxismobile.com/.

According to Berg Insight, by 2015 there will be 900 million people using mobile banking on their phones. Read More

Google is gearing up for a launch of its Mobile Wallet project, which enables smartphone based NFC payments. Google plans to release the product first in Europe, where the competition is heating up, according to a Marketing Week report. Read More

In countries like the U.S., China and Brazil mobile banking users have increased over 100 percent in the past year. Read More

Asians are more likely than people elsewhere in the world to use their mobile phones to do their banking and to shop online. Read More

Recent Articles by Kevin Benedict

Today is Mobility Tuesday at SAP's SAPPHIRENOW 2011!!!
Kevin Benedict's Mobility Photos from SAPPHIRE Now 2011
Mobile Expert Video Series: Vivido Labs' Steve Cameron
Mobile Expert Video Series: K2 Partnering's Paul Andrew
Mobile Business App Store? Clicksoftware Says Yes!
Mobile Expert Video Series: Bord GAIS' Michael Cahill
Mobile Expert Video Series: ClickSoftware's Shamayun Miah
Mobile Expert Video Series: Sourcevolution's Pierre-Paul Samson
Mobile Expert Video Series: Syclo's Raj Singh
Mobile Expert Video Series: Philips' Divya Mahajan
Mobile Expert Video Series: IDC Research's Nic McQuire

Whitepapers of Note

The Business Benefits of Mobile Adoption with SAP Systems
ClickSoftware Mobility Suite and Sybase Mobility Solution
Networked Field Services

Webinars of Note

3 Critical Considerations for Embracing Mobile CRM
Exclusive SAP Mentor and Blogger Briefing: Syclo and SAP Deliver Mobile Apps on Sybase Unwired Platform
The Future of Enterprise Mobility
The Latest m-Business Trends and How the Onslaught of Mobile Devices Affects Development Strategies
The Real-Time Mobile Enterprise: The Benefits of Rapid, Easy Access
Redstone Arsenal's (DOD/Chugach) 3 Maintenance Challenges Solved by Mobile

You can follow me on Twitter @krbenedict and read my blog, Enterprise Mobility Strategies.

I have added a feature to my blog site that supports email subscriptions. You can now receive all blog articles directly via email. If you are interested, click here.

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Today is Mobility Tuesday at SAP's SAPPHIRENOW 2011!!!

Today promises to be very interesting and busy at SAPPHIRENOW 2011. The focus of the day is mobility and a bunch of press releases have been published today. It will take me some time to read through all of them and to organize my thoughts around them all.

I am sitting in the keynote conference area looking forward to hearing from the Co-CEOs of SAP this morning. There is a band set-up on stage. It ought to be a rock'in 9 AM keynote!

I walked by the broadcast studio on the way in and saw Dr. Raj Nathan and John Chen. They were being interviewed and responding to questions from an audience in Germany over satelite.

Yesterday I helped moderate two PCN (premier customer network) mobility roundtables. It was very interesting. Nearly every company said they were reluctant to roll out mobility due to security concerns. My suggestion to Sybase and SAP is to shine the spotlight on Afaria as a way to remove those concerns. Until those concerns are addressed, the companies I met with yesterday are moving in slow motion on mobility projects.

I also met with Pyxis Mobile, Syclo, ClickSoftware, Smartsoft Mobile, Vivido Labs, K2 Partnering, Sybase, SAP Mobility and many other companies that have a significant presence here.

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Kevin Benedict's Mobility Photos from SAPPHIRE Now 2011

Slideshow

Here are some photos I took related to enterprise mobility at SAP's SAPPHIRE NOW 2011 on day 1. I took a photo of each of the areas within the Mobility section.

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Expert Video Series: Vivido Labs' Steve Cameron

I interview Steve Cameron with Vivido Labs on what is new about their products and strategies in 2011.

Whitepapers of Note

The Business Benefits of Mobile Adoption with SAP Systems
ClickSoftware Mobility Suite and Sybase Mobility Solution
Networked Field Services

Webinars of Note

3 Critical Considerations for Embracing Mobile CRM
Exclusive SAP Mentor and Blogger Briefing: Syclo and SAP Deliver Mobile Apps on Sybase Unwired Platform
The Future of Enterprise Mobility
The Latest m-Business Trends and How the Onslaught of Mobile Devices Affects Development Strategies
The Real-Time Mobile Enterprise: The Benefits of Rapid, Easy Access
Redstone Arsenal’s (DOD/Chugach) 3 Maintenance Challenges Solved by Mobile
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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Expert Video Series: K2 Partnering's Paul Andrew

Learn about a system integrator's experiences and views on enterprise mobility in this video clip from SAPPHIRE NOW 2011.

Whitepapers of Note

The Business Benefits of Mobile Adoption with SAP Systems
ClickSoftware Mobility Suite and Sybase Mobility Solution
Networked Field Services

Webinars of Note

3 Critical Considerations for Embracing Mobile CRM
Exclusive SAP Mentor and Blogger Briefing: Syclo and SAP Deliver Mobile Apps on Sybase Unwired Platform
The Future of Enterprise Mobility
The Latest m-Business Trends and How the Onslaught of Mobile Devices Affects Development Strategies
The Real-Time Mobile Enterprise: The Benefits of Rapid, Easy Access
Redstone Arsenal’s (DOD/Chugach) 3 Maintenance Challenges Solved by Mobile

*************************************************************

Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Field Mobility News Weekly - Week of May 16, 2011

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

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

According to Berg Insight, the number of fleet management systems deployed in commercial vehicle fleets in North America was 2.1 million in fourth quarter 2010 and is expected to reach 3.8 million by 2015.

http://mobileenterprise.edgl.com/news/Research--Strong-Growth-Ahead-for-Fleet-Management72725?googleid=72725

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Xplore Technologies has unveiled its fifth generation of rugged tablets, which are designed to withstand the shocks and vibrations in military vehicles, ambulances or police cars.

http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Health-Care-IT/Xplore-Xtreme-Tablets-Withstand-Shocks-in-Combat-Emergency-Vehicles-543509/

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This summer telehealth services provider Teladoc plans to launch a group of iPhone and iPad medical apps for physicians that will enable them to collaborate using Apple’s FaceTime video calling app.

http://mobihealthnews.com/

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Hoyos Group has unveiled a new product called EyeLock at the Finovate conference in San Francisco. EyeLock is considered the first and only portable iris-scanning device for consumers.

The 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 Marketing News Weekly
Also read Mobile Money News Weekly
Also read Mobile Retailing News Weekly
Also read M2M News Monthly

The U.S. wireless data market grew 4 percent quarter over quarter 23 percent year over year to reach $15.4 billion in mobile data service revenues in the first quarter 2011 and is on course to increase year over year by 22 percent to $67 billion in 2011.

http://www.chetansharma.com/usmarketupdateq12011.htm

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Microsoft Corp. and Skype Global S.à r.l have announced they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Microsoft will acquire Skype, the leading Internet communications company, for $8.5 billion in cash from the investor group led by Silver Lake.

http://www.microsoft.com/Presspass/press/2011/may11/05-10CorpNewsPR.mspx

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Market researcher IHS iSuppli reported that Apple shipped 18.6 million smartphones in the first quarter, up from 16.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2010. That 14.9 percent increase marked the highest growth rate among the top five global smartphone vendors.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-20061381-37.html

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Now past the critical 50 percent threshold, analyst firm IDC Canada forecasts that smartphones could account for as much as 60 percent of mobile phone shipments by the end of the year.

ClickSoftware, the developer of the SAP Workforce Scheduling and Optimization solution and the ClickMobile application, today announced a new patent pending ClickAppStore for mobile applications. Here is their description:

The patent‐pending ClickAppStore includes hundreds of ready‐to‐use mobile business apps, and a unique integrated development environment (IDE) in which IT professionals can assemble business apps into end‐user solutions using primarily no‐coding ‘drag and drop’ wizards. ClickAppStore also offers tools to build user interfaces that are effectively device agnostic and enable its applications to run on just about any tablet or smart‐phone. Aimed at System Integrators, IT departments, ERP/CRM companies and product developers of vertical industry solutions to mobilize back‐office products, ClickAppStore also includes access to consulting, training, and outsourcing services.
What do you think? Is this useful?

When I was the CEO of a mobile application company we always thought this was needed. We had developed dozens of different applications for clients that were collecting dust on our shelves and we wanted to make them known and available to a wider community. I like this concept and will be watching how they manage this process. We all know that Apple's success was in large part due to their complete end-to-end solution including iTunes and the App store. It will be interesting to watch if an enterprise mobility vendor can also be successful using a version of this model.

You can read the full press release here.
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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Expert Video Series: Bord GAIS' Michael Cahill

This interview with Michael Cahill, Eastern Region Operational Manager with Bord GAIS in the Republic of Ireland, is very interesting in that his team implemented a complete enterprise asset management system (IBM Maximo) including workforce optimization and scheduling (ClickSoftware) and enterprise mobility (Syclo).

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Expert Video Series: ClickSoftware's Shamayun Miah

I met Shamayun from ClickSoftware at the Brussels Enterprise Mobility Exchange and sat down with him to learn what is new and interesting with ClickSoftware's enterprise mobility strategy, and Sybase and SAP partnerships.

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Expert Video Series: Sourcevolution's Pierre-Paul Samson

I met Pierre-Paul in Brussels at the Enterprise Mobility Exchange. He was sharing information on their mobility platform called Freedomone at the conference.

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Expert Video Series: Syclo's Raj Singh

I cornered Syclo's Raj Singh at the Enteprise Mobility Exchange conference in Brussels this week and got his thoughts on the most interesting developments in enterprise mobility.

Whitepapers of Note

The Business Benefits of Mobile Adoption with SAP Systems
ClickSoftware Mobility Suite and Sybase Mobility Solution
Networked Field Services

Webinars of Note

3 Critical Considerations for Embracing Mobile CRM
Exclusive SAP Mentor and Blogger Briefing: Syclo and SAP Deliver Mobile Apps on Sybase Unwired Platform
The Future of Enterprise Mobility
The Latest m-Business Trends and How the Onslaught of Mobile Devices Affects Development Strategies
The Real-Time Mobile Enterprise: The Benefits of Rapid, Easy Access
Redstone Arsenal’s (DOD/Chugach) 3 Maintenance Challenges Solved by Mobile

*************************************************************

Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Expert Video Series: Philips' Divya Mahajan

I really like this interview that I recorded in Brussels this week with Philips International's Divya Mahajan. He has been involved in very large enterprise mobility projects for thousands of users over the course of many years. He has tested many different mobility scenarios, strategies and products. He works in SAP environments and has successfully implemented the Sybase Unwired Platform, so he brings a great deal of wisdom and timely knowledge to this interview. Enjoy!

Whitepapers of Note

The Business Benefits of Mobile Adoption with SAP Systems
ClickSoftware Mobility Suite and Sybase Mobility Solution
Networked Field Services

Webinars of Note

3 Critical Considerations for Embracing Mobile CRM
The Latest m-Business Trends and How the Onslaught of Mobile Devices Affects Development Strategies
The Future of Enterprise Mobility
The Real-Time Mobile Enterprise: The Benefits of Rapid, Easy Access
Redstone Arsenal’s (DOD/Chugach) 3 Maintenance Challenges Solved by Mobile

Today's Mobile Expert Video Series sponsor: Pyxis Mobile provides an agile, powerful, and secure mobile enterprise application platform. It enables rapid cross-platform application development, unlimited data integration, enterprise-grade security, and the unique ability to change and update applications in real time. This newsletter is sponsored in part by Pyxis Mobile, http://pyxismobile.com/

*************************************************************

Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Mobile Retailing News Weekly - Week of May 9, 2011

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

The U.S. market for smart grid technologies was worth $15.3 billion in 2008. This is expected to increase to $17.3 billion in 2009 and $37.4 billion in 2014.

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/reportlinker-adds-enabling-technologies-for-the-smart-grid-121157529.html

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Daily RFID has released a new RFID tag for cattle ranchers that makes tracking livestock more accurate and reliable.

http://www.theopenpress.com/index.php?a=press&id=103883

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The Davenport City Council awarded the city’s fire department $250,000 to upgrade to rugged electronics including Panasonic’s Toughbook.

http://qctimes.com/news/local/article_aca5d2d8-77a3-11e0-8632-001cc4c002e0.html

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Smiths Detection has launched a new, more accurate handheld radiation detector to identify radiological and nuclear threats. The device has a wide array of applications from enabling civil defense and first responder rad-nuc search operations, to helping port and border personnel with cargo, container and vehicle screening.

Mobile Expert Video Series: IDC Research's Nic McQuire

I am in Brussels this week chairing the Enterprise Mobility Exchange conference and interviewing mobility experts. Nic from IDC Research is one of my favorite interviews. He has both opinions and the numbers to back them up!

Whitepapers of Note

The Business Benefits of Mobile Adoption with SAP Systems
ClickSoftware Mobility Suite and Sybase Mobility Solution
Networked Field Services

Webinars of Note

3 Critical Considerations for Embracing Mobile CRM
The Latest m-Business Trends and How the Onslaught of Mobile Devices Affects Development Strategies
The Future of Enterprise Mobility
The Real-Time Mobile Enterprise: The Benefits of Rapid, Easy Access
Redstone Arsenal’s (DOD/Chugach) 3 Maintenance Challenges Solved by Mobile

*************************************************************

Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

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.

Managing a Mobile and Network Centric Operation, Part 2

This article is Part 2 in this series, read Part 1 here.

In the first segment of this series, we introduced some key concepts in a network centric operational strategy. In Part 2 we will explore these concepts in greater depth, add some context, and introduce some additional requirements and considerations for you to ponder. Let’s now review and expand on a few of the key concepts:

Network Centric Operational data needs to be shared in real time. In a mobile world that means real time communications with the mobile workforce.
Network Centric Operations strategies are based on the concept of a dynamic, and shared information environment that provides access to trusted information for all users, based on need, independent of time and place. This description highlights the idea that the actual use of the data is not known in advance by the managers of the shared information environment. The approved consumers of this information will creatively utilize this content in their own applications and systems to best execute their individual missions. This concept supports an agile and unpredictable environment without causing unnecessary and artificial barriers that limit effectiveness and deployment in the field by setting up standards and integration methodologies.
Network Centric Operations are designed to use data that can be collected and processed in real time from thousands of different data collection sources - human, computer and machine. Examples are humans, mobile devices, satellites, web services connected to other data collection sources, GPS vehicle and cargo tracking systems, EDI, barcode scanners, RFID readers, Bluetooth anything, remote M2M wireless sensors, faxes, emails, SMS, physical mail, customers and partners. This data needs to be translated into standardized formats (data syntax and semantics) so consumers understand what it is and what it means.
Network Centric Operations can easily bury a consumer in irrelevant and unnecessary data. Humans can easily be distracted and overwhelmed with large quantities of data. Having the right, real time intelligence and analytical systems in place to assist the human consumer is critical. Systems that can offer highly accurate predictions, identify patterns, suggest actions and augment reality in real time, in the right place, at the right time, to the right person, on the right device and in the right amount are the goals.

As you can quickly see from just these four network centric operational concepts, it is not just about moving data from point A to point B, or from an ERP to a smartphone. Building and supporting this “network” requires all of the talent and skills that have made traditional ERP and IT systems irreplaceable for companies today.

Whitepapers of Note

The Business Benefits of Mobile Adoption with SAP Systems
ClickSoftware Mobility Suite and Sybase Mobility Solution
Networked Field Services

Webinars of Note

3 Critical Considerations for Embracing Mobile CRM
Exclusive SAP Mentor and Blogger Briefing: Syclo and SAP Deliver Mobile Apps on Sybase Unwired Platform
The Future of Enterprise Mobility
The Latest m-Business Trends and How the Onslaught of Mobile Devices Affects Development Strategies
The Real-Time Mobile Enterprise: The Benefits of Rapid, Easy Access
Redstone Arsenal’s (DOD/Chugach) 3 Maintenance Challenges Solved by Mobile

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Kevin Benedict, Independent Mobile and M2M Industry Analyst, SAP Mentor Volunteer

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict