Insights into the Impact of Big Data, Mobile Apps and Code Halos Strategies on Retail

In this short video series, I interview SmartStory's CEO/Founder Michael Boerner on how they are combining big data, Code Halos, POS systems and mobile applications with storytelling to dramatically change retail.  This is hyper-personalized selling, customer support and cross-selling at its best.  Enjoy!

Part 1 Video Link: http://youtu.be/5bpL5mk2F4Y?list=UUGizQCw2Zbs3eTLwp7icoqw
Part 2 Video Link: http://youtu.be/XkGozGpoBOY?list=UUGizQCw2Zbs3eTLwp7icoqw
Part 3 Video Link: http://youtu.be/En7scBkHk5E?list=UUGizQCw2Zbs3eTLwp7icoqw

Part 1



Part 2



Part 3




************************************************************************
Kevin Benedict
Writer, Speaker, Senior Analyst
Digital Transformation, EBA, Center for the Future of Work Cognizant
View my profile on LinkedIn
Learn about mobile strategies at MobileEnterpriseStrategies.com
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Subscribe to Kevin'sYouTube Channel
Join the Linkedin Group Strategic Enterprise Mobility
Join the Google+ Community Mobile Enterprise Strategies
Recommended Strategy Book Code Halos
Recommended iPad App Code Halos for iPads

***Full Disclosure: These are my personal opinions. No company is silly enough to claim them. I am a mobility and digital transformation analyst, consultant and writer. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Mobile Expert Interviews: Red Hat's Mike Piech

On September 18, 2014 Red Hat announced their acquisition of mobile platform vendor Feedhenry. Red Hat was an unexpected, but intriguing company to reach out and snag one of the most popular up and coming startups in the enterprise mobility market.  I immediately reached out to Red Hat to learn the strategy behind the acquisition and this interview is the results.  Enjoy!

Video Link: http://youtu.be/wSa0NUqfPYk?list=UUGizQCw2Zbs3eTLwp7icoqw



************************************************************************
Kevin Benedict
Writer, Speaker, Senior Analyst
Digital Transformation, EBA, Center for the Future of Work Cognizant
View my profile on LinkedIn
Learn about mobile strategies at MobileEnterpriseStrategies.com
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Subscribe to Kevin'sYouTube Channel
Join the Linkedin Group Strategic Enterprise Mobility
Join the Google+ Community Mobile Enterprise Strategies
Recommended Strategy Book Code Halos
Recommended iPad App Code Halos for iPads

***Full Disclosure: These are my personal opinions. No company is silly enough to claim them. I am a mobility and digital transformation analyst, consultant and writer. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Big Data Business Models and Code Halo Strategies with SmartStory's CEO Michael Boerner

While many companies talk about someday implementing strategies that will provide competitive advantages and change the world, SmartStory Technologies is delivering.  They combine the use of big data, POS (point of sale) systems, Code Halos strategies, mobile apps and hyper-personalization to deliver customized short-form videos to mobile devices that are specific to the user's needs, at the right time and on the right device.  This technology will change retail.  Especially when complex products and services are involved.

Digital transformation is about recognizing the impact of innovation in your industry, market and business.  It is about understanding how new technologies will transform your business plans and budget priorities.  It is about being bold enough to act and change direction mid-year, or budget cycle.

In this interview with SmartStory's CEO Michael Boerner, we dig deep into how digital transformations are already changing the way retailers interact and support their customers in completely new and innovative ways that will change the competitive landscape forever.

If you sell complex products and services - I strongly suggest you study this video segment and discuss what you are seeing with your strategy team.  Your industry and market will be impacted. Stay tuned for parts 2 and 3 in this series.

Video Link: http://youtu.be/rLlNmW-VmXw?list=UUGizQCw2Zbs3eTLwp7icoqw



************************************************************************
Kevin Benedict
Writer, Speaker, Senior Analyst
Digital Transformation, EBA, Center for the Future of Work Cognizant
View my profile on LinkedIn
Learn about mobile strategies at MobileEnterpriseStrategies.com
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Subscribe to Kevin'sYouTube Channel
Join the Linkedin Group Strategic Enterprise Mobility
Join the Google+ Community Mobile Enterprise Strategies
Recommended Strategy Book Code Halos
Recommended iPad App Code Halos for iPads

***Full Disclosure: These are my personal opinions. No company is silly enough to claim them. I am a mobility and digital transformation analyst, consultant and writer. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

What Portuguese Aqueducts, Google and High Speed Internet have in Common

View from my Apartment in Lisbon
I love Airbnb.  Look at this view from the apartment I booked in Lisbon!  Not only was it far cheaper than the business class hotels in Lisbon, it was in a location and with a view that no hotel could beat. Plus, what hotel would provide you with a historic, clanging elevator that rumbled all night next to your bed?

While I stood out on the terrace appreciating the view, I thought to research the aqueduct below my apartment.  What I learned is that the aqueduct has things in common with Google, mobile applications, Texas A&M and Kansas City, MO.  Here is what I learned:

Video Link: http://youtu.be/EseegMXep90?list=UUGizQCw2Zbs3eTLwp7icoqw



************************************************************************
Kevin Benedict
Writer, Speaker, Senior Analyst
Digital Transformation, EBA, Center for the Future of Work Cognizant
View my profile on LinkedIn
Learn about mobile strategies at MobileEnterpriseStrategies.com
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Subscribe to Kevin'sYouTube Channel
Join the Linkedin Group Strategic Enterprise Mobility
Join the Google+ Community Mobile Enterprise Strategies
Recommended Strategy Book Code Halos
Recommended iPad App Code Halos for iPads

***Full Disclosure: These are my personal opinions. No company is silly enough to claim them. I am a mobility and digital transformation analyst, consultant and writer. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Innovation and Mobile Applications in Lisbon

I had the honor of speaking in Lisbon, Portugal last week on mobile strategies, Code Halos and digital transformation.  When possible I try study up on the location I am traveling as I recognize it as a special treat that should not be overlooked.  In this short video I share some of my observations about technology innovation, mobile solutions and Portuguese history.  Enjoy!

Video Link: http://youtu.be/_G8pQ06lI6g?list=UUGizQCw2Zbs3eTLwp7icoqw




************************************************************************
Kevin Benedict
Writer, Speaker, Senior Analyst
Digital Transformation, EBA, Center for the Future of Work Cognizant
View my profile on LinkedIn
Learn about mobile strategies at MobileEnterpriseStrategies.com
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Subscribe to Kevin'sYouTube Channel
Join the Linkedin Group Strategic Enterprise Mobility
Join the Google+ Community Mobile Enterprise Strategies
Recommended Strategy Book Code Halos
Recommended iPad App Code Halos for iPads

***Full Disclosure: These are my personal opinions. No company is silly enough to claim them. I am a mobility and digital transformation analyst, consultant and writer. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

How Portugal's Age of Discovery is Related to Enterprise Mobility

Lisbon, Portugal
This week I had the good fortune of spending time in Lisbon, Portugal.  I met with several hundred business men and women at a mobility event in Microsoft's auditorium in Lisbon, at banks and with mobile network operators where we discussed digital transformation, enterprise mobility, IoT and mobile strategies.  In preparation for these discussions I did some homework.  Here is what I learned about Portuguese history and how it relates to digital transformation and enterprise mobility.

The Portuguese developed innovative sailing technologies and navigational skills in the 15th-century that enabled ocean-going ventures, where before most ships stayed within sight of land or took very short excursions. Portugal's Vasco da Gama (among others), using these innovations and skills, sailed south and east and ultimately reached India in 1498.

As a result of reaching India and exploring trading opportunities, the Portuguese were able to corner the profitable trade in eastern spices by displacing their competitor, Venice, who had a long established monopoly on a land-route for bringing spices to Europe.  Portugal transformed and optimized supply chains and logistics which gave them a giant competitive advantage!!!  They opened new markets and trading routes, globalized and took advantage of economies of scale.  For over 100 years the Portuguese had no European rivals on these long sea routes round Africa.

What were these innovations that enabled Portugal to develop such a competitive advantage?
  1. They thought bigger and more strategic
  2. They explored new technologies and invested in the winners
  3. They recognized the value of innovation
  4. They recognized the value of opening new markets
  5. They recognized the value of globalization
  6. They recognized the value of optimizing existing business processes, logistics, supply chains, etc.
  7. They recognized strategic global economic opportunities
  8. They understood the value of navigation technologies and how they could optimize routes and logistics
  9. They developed a navigation school to scale these skills in order to better compete globally
  10. They invested in advanced naval architectures to enhance ocean-going capabilities
  11. They invested in the knowledge of astronomy to enhance navigation skills

The Portuguese were able to establish sea routes round the Cape of Africa, which enabled Portugal to undercut the Venetian trade with its multiple layers of middlemen, slow and risky deliveries, and costly and inefficient transportation.  Seemingly overnight Portugal had a competitive advantage gained by being able to sail large ships, across oceans, carrying huge loads, great distances, efficiently.  These capabilities transformed markets, globalized, opened new sales channels and displaced competitors.  These transformations sealed the fates of two nations.

Technology has been shaking things up for millenniums!  Today mobile technologies are transforming markets in much the same way.  Here are some comparisons for your consideration:
  • The ability to use turn-by-turn navigation transformed the GPS device market and helped optimize routes and workforce utilization.
  • Mobile devices and apps transformed field service work. 
  • Smartphones with powerful cameras killed Kodak and most stand alone digital cameras.
  • Mobile apps for banks are quickly reducing the need for branches.
  • Mobile apps and mobile browsing killed Blackberry
  • Mobile apps for insurance claims are reducing the need for claims adjusters and optimizing claims processing.
  • Web and mobile technologies are changing the way education is provided.
  • Mobile apps for research and shopping are impacting retail stores.
  • The ability to read books and watch movies and to listen to music on mobile devices eliminated the need for video stores, record stores and bookstores.
  • Mobile and IoT technologies are in the midst of transforming healthcare 
What lessons can we learn from the Venetians who lost their businesses to Portuguese innovation? No matter how secure your position in the market seems to be, competitors are innovating and looking for opportunities to jump ahead of you.  Your company should be that innovator!

************************************************************************
Kevin Benedict
Writer, Speaker, Senior Analyst
Digital Transformation, EBA, Center for the Future of Work Cognizant
View my profile on LinkedIn
Learn about mobile strategies at MobileEnterpriseStrategies.com
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Subscribe to Kevin'sYouTube Channel
Join the Linkedin Group Strategic Enterprise Mobility
Join the Google+ Community Mobile Enterprise Strategies
Recommended Strategy Book Code Halos
Recommended iPad App Code Halos for iPads

***Full Disclosure: These are my personal opinions. No company is silly enough to claim them. I am a mobility and digital transformation analyst, consultant and writer. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Mobile Expert Interviews: Pedro Henriques

This week I had the privilege of speaking at the MobileEdge 2014 event in Lisbon, Portugal.  The event was limited to 200 hundred seats in Microsoft's auditorium, but over 500 people registered. There is definitely an interest in all things mobile in Lisbon.  In this segment, I have the opportunity to interview Pedro Henriques of Bold International on the state of enterprise mobility in Portugal.  Enjoy!

Video Link: http://youtu.be/C1CgBM6mduU?list=UUGizQCw2Zbs3eTLwp7icoqw




************************************************************************
Kevin Benedict
Writer, Speaker, Senior Analyst
Digital Transformation, EBA, Center for the Future of Work Cognizant
View my profile on LinkedIn
Learn about mobile strategies at MobileEnterpriseStrategies.com
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Subscribe to Kevin'sYouTube Channel
Join the Linkedin Group Strategic Enterprise Mobility
Join the Google+ Community Mobile Enterprise Strategies
Recommended Strategy Book Code Halos
Recommended iPad App Code Halos for iPads

***Full Disclosure: These are my personal opinions. No company is silly enough to claim them. I am a mobility and digital transformation analyst, consultant and writer. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

The 5-Step Roadmap to Mobile Collaboration

Mobile Collaboration
I talk and write a lot about enterprise collaboration and collaboration tools.  Workforces are becoming increasingly mobile, globalized and include members who work remotely.  This requires an increasing focus on how teams of people (employees, partners, customers, advisors, contractors, etc.) can work closer together in virtualized workplaces.  I asked Harmon.ie's VP of Product Strategy, David Lavenda to share, in this article, some of his insights and strategies.
***

Enterprises can no longer ignore what it takes to get the job done on the go, and must accept that reaching their end goal of mobile empowerment starts with a comprehensive roadmap. While business users are eager to collaborate on the go, having IT jump straight into the deep end with a new company-wide mobile collaboration tools is a surefire way to fail.

The greatest enterprise asset is a worker’s attention. If a tool fails to capture that attention, it will be of little use. True mobile enterprise collaboration at both the cultural and technical levels can only be achieved once companies are able to marry the choice of collaboration tools with specific business needs. Getting there starts with a clear roadmap:

1. Identify the killer use cases that produce real business results – IT innovators must start by identifying business use cases that provide demonstrable ROI. IT leaders in industries that have mobile field workers – such as construction, transportation and emergency services – will have the easiest time formulating these cases. For example, provisioning offline access to standard operating procedures for emergency response personnel has clear-cut benefits. These personnel must often work quickly to save lives, including work in remote areas where network coverage is unreliable. Saving more lives through offline remote access to complex operating procedures is a very easy way to measure ROI.

Another compelling example is providing remote access to construction plans, schematics and blueprints to contractors, architects and construction workers. Engineers and contractors frequently need to make changes to construction plans while onsite. If they are able to make edits in the field, they are less likely to make errors or reference out-of-date documents thanks to faster in-the-field maneuverability. Find your company’s use cases and work towards implementing technology that will directly lead to those uses – do not wait for the technology to tell you how to use it.

2. Agree on the right tools to enable your business use cases – Once you’ve identified a killer use case, work as a team to decide which tools will best benefit your cause. Is there a need for on-premise documents to be accessible to field workers away from the office? If not, then maybe an Office 365 implementation is the way to go. Are workers frequently sending revised copies of documents back and forth, causing email to become cluttered and difficult to follow? Then maybe an Office 365 implementation with a Yammer site will provide the overhead and document collaboration capabilities required. Whatever the need is, make sure that a consensus is reached and that it is tied to a key business use case – if people are going into the implementation already dismissing the solution, it’s sure to be dead on arrival.

3. Never lose sight of the user experience – Remember that the most valuable enterprise asset is an employee’s attention, and so any mobile collaboration project will live or die based on its ability to capture that attention. Providing a more feature-rich tool does not always mean that tool will be used, as changing user behavior is often the most difficult aspect of any project that seeks to implement new technology. From the start, the user experience must be a key component of your initiative. Not just the experience of the solution itself, but also the experience of its implementation.

4. Create an initial pilot followed by an onboarding program – Before going the whole nine yards and pushing mobile collaboration solutions out to your company, it is important to test the products on a smaller scale. This can be done by inviting a select few, likely those who are interested in new technologies, to pilot the program, provide feedback on what worked and what didn’t and, ultimately, champion the new implementation. From there the program should expand in scope to invite leaders from different departments to test among themselves, providing further feedback on a larger scale.

As an example, NIBC, a bank client of harmon.ie’s, singled out individuals who excelled with the company’s new Office 365/harmon.ie solution, and tasked these individuals with leading informational learning sessions for the company. The sessions were followed by onboarding sessions for the entire company, and the solution was finally rolled out on a department-by-department basis to iron out issues and gain support along the way. With this strategy, the bank achieved near complete adoption of their solution. Nothing was left to chance – everyone was ready to go when the solution rolled out in earnest, and champions from each department were available to help with any issues that arose during and after the rollout.

5. Never stop learning, teaching and analyzing – Just because the implementation went smoothly and adoption soared does not mean department leaders should sit back and call it a day. In fact, if high adoption is achieved, it is likely because people enjoy the product and would likely benefit from learning more about it on a regular basis. Continue to schedule learning sessions where employees who best understand the product can share information, tricks and tools they’ve learned with others. Also consider analyzing how individuals in the company are using the solution and drawing on that data to make sure it continues to meet the company’s needs.
X Marks the Spot on the Mobile Collaboration Roadmap

Enterprise mobility initiatives enabling personal productivity and collaboration have been gaining steady momentum, but without the right roadmap from both a cultural and technology standpoint, the end results typically fall flat.

Despite its many obvious advantages, new technology does not equate to easy implementation. To arrive at the desired end-state of mobile collaboration in the enterprise – where employees and mobile workers alike can get work done without being tethered to their desks – a roadmap is a powerful tool. With a concrete roadmap tied to key business objectives, you will have a guide to navigate to the “New World” of true mobile collaboration.


************************************************************************
Kevin Benedict
Writer, Speaker, Senior Analyst
Digital Transformation, EBA, Center for the Future of Work Cognizant
View my profile on LinkedIn
Learn about mobile strategies at MobileEnterpriseStrategies.com
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Subscribe to Kevin'sYouTube Channel
Join the Linkedin Group Strategic Enterprise Mobility
Join the Google+ Community Mobile Enterprise Strategies
Recommended Strategy Book Code Halos
Recommended iPad App Code Halos for iPads

***Full Disclosure: These are my personal opinions. No company is silly enough to claim them. I am a mobility and digital transformation analyst, consultant and writer. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

A Walk Through Boston - Talking about Digital Transformation, Code Halos and Mobility

If there are ever awards given out for people that take shaky, corny and unrehearsed videos of themselves talking about digital transformation, Code Halos and enterprise mobility while walking around Boston - I should be considered.  Grab some popcorn!

Video Link: http://youtu.be/w2ZrHnd0L2o?list=UUGizQCw2Zbs3eTLwp7icoqw




************************************************************************
Kevin Benedict
Writer, Speaker, Senior Analyst
Digital Transformation, EBA, Center for the Future of Work Cognizant
View my profile on LinkedIn
Learn about mobile strategies at MobileEnterpriseStrategies.com
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Subscribe to Kevin'sYouTube Channel
Join the Linkedin Group Strategic Enterprise Mobility
Join the Google+ Community Mobile Enterprise Strategies
Recommended Strategy Book Code Halos
Recommended iPad App Code Halos for iPads

***Full Disclosure: These are my personal opinions. No company is silly enough to claim them. I am a mobility and digital transformation analyst, consultant and writer. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Digital Devastation in the Mobile Hardware Market and Emerging Trends

HP's PC and laptop division missed the emergence of the smartphones and tablets markets.  They must now pay the penalty and split into two separate companies which will need to seek new paths. Over the past few years, the list of mobile device losers has grown from Ericsson, HTC, Motorola, Psion, BlackBerry, Nokia, and now it looks increasingly like Samsung will join that list.  Dell returned to being a private company in large part as a result of missing the mobile device market. What can we learn from these casualties of digital transformation?

I think it is very difficult for hardware manufacturers to understand that successful products are not just the results of better storage, memory, processing power, screens, cases, radios, keyboards, etc., but about people, lifestyles, experiences, simplicity and ecosystems.  The way people live, interact, communicate, consume entertainment and find fulfillment are all contributing factors to the success of technologies today.

Developers are busy people with limited resources.  They want to develop for the largest potential markets.  This market turned out not to be gadget geeks, but music lovers.  Music lovers who became amateur photographers, and then mobile app consumers - i.e., us.  Who knew?  Steve Jobs.

It was a digital transformation where physical items were being digitized and made available through new and innovative Internet-based digital sales channels - App Stores.  App store usage, functionality and design were not what hardware engineers spent their days thinking about.  It was someone else's job - Steve Jobs.

I have to imagine Steve Jobs, a few years back, asking himself over a vegan meal, or a glass of green organic vegetable juice, "What things in our day-to-day life can be digitized, and how will it change the world?  This was unlikely the line of questioning the average electrical engineer or computer scientist in Finland, Dallas, Waterloo or Taiwan were asking themselves.

The competitive field has now moved beyond hardware and digital Internet-based marketplaces.  It is now about interacting closely with customers and markets to provide hyper-personalized services tailored for each individual.  How is this accomplished?  Read Malcolm Frank, Paul Roehrig and Benjamin Pring's book on Code Halos or visit the Future of Works website at http://www.futureofwork.com/codehalos.  It is about providing incredible user experiences based on knowledge (collected and analyzed data, i.e. Code Halos) about the customer's preferences and history.

Here is how I see it:
  1. Enterprise hardware and industrial grade gadgets sold through brick and mortar markets which then morphed into consumer lifestyles devices, application ecosystems and digital markets.
  2. Each of these trends generated exponentially more data that are now increasingly analyzed for "meaning-making" and used to provide more intimate levels of hyper-personalized experiences.  These experiences are highly addictive and increasingly mobile.  We crave them and will spend our money with businesses that give us personalized experiences and spoil us. Consumers will quickly recognize the difference between companies with an effective "Code Halos" strategy and those without.  Consumers will spend their money with those that effectively and transparently use "Code Halos" to give us what we individually want.
  3. Hyper-personalized user experiences require a different level of IT infrastructure - a real-time IT infrastructure.  An increasing amount of commerce, research and shopping is conducted on mobile devices and this requires new and different real-time IT infrastructure to support mobile applications.  In a recent survey I conducted with over eighty participants, 77% said their current IT environment is inhibiting or limiting mobile strategies and plans.  82.7% said mobile app support would force them to make major investments in their IT infrastructure.  Over 70% answered that having optimized mobile applications and user experiences were "important to very important" for their company's future success.  
Making the transition to a real-time IT environment and infrastructure is BIG!  How much will it cost to support this Code Halos supported, hyper-personalized, mobile first IT infrastructure and environment?  61.7% said it would have a "Significant to Huge" impact on their IT budget.

It is critical for companies to take an inventory of their IT environments and to learn what it will take to digitally transform their businesses into a real-time, mobile first enterprises.  Budgets will and should be impacted.


************************************************************************
Kevin Benedict
Writer, Speaker, Senior Analyst
Digital Transformation, EBA, Center for the Future of Work Cognizant
View my profile on LinkedIn
Learn about mobile strategies at MobileEnterpriseStrategies.com
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Subscribe to Kevin'sYouTube Channel
Join the Linkedin Group Strategic Enterprise Mobility
Join the Google+ Community Mobile Enterprise Strategies
Recommended Strategy Book Code Halos
Recommended iPad App Code Halos for iPads

***Full Disclosure: These are my personal opinions. No company is silly enough to claim them. I am a mobility and digital transformation analyst, consultant and writer. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Interviews with Kevin Benedict