The Proven Mobilization Strategy: Your Framework for Success

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2The Proven Mobilization Strategy: Your Framework for Success

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OverviewAccording to a Government Technology article on management’s awareness of personal device popularity at work, the number of employees using smartphones for work purposes will nearly double between 2009 and 2014. Work-forces are adopting mobile applications faster than their companies, driving employers to meet many new demands of a connected workplace. The time of mobilization has arrived.

The mobilization of business is not only about creating mobile versions of legacy desktop applications, but also updating business processes, opening access to back-office functions and developing mobile-specific applications. Benefits of mobilization include more timely and informed decision making through real-time data access, improved overall business efficiency, and reduced call-center costs. Mobilization often differentiates a business, allowing com-panies to enter and win competitive markets.

Mobilization is a vital step for companies in industries with predominate mobile workforces such as healthcare, insur-ance and education. For such enterprises to take advantage of the benefits of mobilization you need a comprehen-sive mobility strategy that defines your current conditions, as well as your short, mid- and long-term goals.

The first step in mobilizing a company is adoption of a mobilization strategy and process to assure mobilization not only meets, but enhances your company’s goals and objectives.

Mobility StrategyMobile application development and implementation requires careful planning and analysis, encompassing both IT and business departments, considering things such as broader business objectives, effects on existing business workflows, total cost of ownership, as well as the total economic impact of the desired solution.

Organizations need to consider which business processes to mobilize as a means to achieve business goals such as enhancing customer interaction, optimizing sales performance, or improving customer service. Other strategy considerations include choosing the best development approach, such as commercial off the shelf, customized or established mobile enterprise application platforms. Successful strategies also include finding the right balance between breadth of platform support and application functionality, taking into consideration the management of both supported devices and associated applications.

While it’s hard to over-emphasize the need for a well thought mobility strategy, it’s often a daunting task that leaves critical decisions overlooked or under-addressed, the result of which can lead to unnecessary cost overruns and a functionally incomplete solution that does more harm than good.

The key to adopting a sound mobility strategy is using an established and proven process to identify all issues in de-livering and supporting mobility across an enterprise that not only supports, but enhances broad business goals.

Mobilization ProcessA common approach to employing mobility throughout an enterprise is to adopt an industry standard structured framework, consisting of levels of analysis and decision making, with each level focusing on mobility requirements within particular scopes of an enterprise. Industry leaders such as Motorola and Vodafone have successfully taken such an approach.

A structured framework ensures the move to mobility is aligned with the company’s broader goals and objectives. This results in a seamless implementation from top to bottom of a given enterprise.

3The Proven Mobilization Strategy: Your Framework for Success

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Following is an example and description of a structured framework, used to mobilize a company, that considers the impact of mobility from broad business objectives to technology and application support:

Level What is it about

Business Scope, Business Needs, Long-Term Business Goals

Enterprise Lines of Business, Business Process Management (BPM)

System System Architecture: Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA), Software-as-a-Ser-vice (SaaS), Software+Services (S+S), Reference Architectures, Meta-Architec-tures

Technology Mobile platforms: (iPhone/iPad, Android, WP7, BlackBerry, WebOS)Clouds (Amazon, Google App Engine, MS Azure, Rackspace, Salesforce, Private ), Virtualization, Business Process Execution Language (Oracle ESB, TIBCO, Windows Workflow Foundation ), Warehouse, Business Intelligence (BI)

Applications & Databases Mobile Applications, Mobile Web sites, Back-Office Infrastructure (legacy apps + newly created services + orchestration )

Operational Business Continuity, IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL)

Business level considerations include analysis of business requirements and goals to ensure the move to mobiliza-tion is in alignment with broader company priorities and objectives spanning goals of increased efficiency to cost reduction.

At the Enterprise level, departments and lines of business are carefully defined and a Business Process Model is cre-ated to include a detailed description of pre and post-mobilization workflows.

The System level includes several activities such as defining the software delivery method to support smart devices, reference architectures for subsystems and modules, mapping services into the desired business model, as well as identifying and defining legacy services requiring mobilized support. Consideration is also given to security models, authentication and user experience strategies.

Next, Technology architectures are mapped onto frameworks and targeted mobile platforms, taking into consider-ation limited network speed, limited processing power, etc. The resulting mobile application architecture should be defined and conform to existing guidelines for each mobile platform. Things such as technical design specifications, list of security profiles and roles, and UI concept for each mobile device should be well defined and documented.

Applications & Databases analysis includes the development of back-end services and mobile applications imple-mentation planning. This process should contain assessments to ensure devices and applications being developed conform to the established architecture, security and UI guidelines, as well as ensuring all previously identified busi-ness requirements are being met. This analysis includes a thorough look at how applications will be submitted to application stores and which back-end services are exposed through mobile applications.

Operational level analysis includes planning for the maintenance and support of mobile applications, as well as iden-tifying which back-end services should and should not be performed.

4The Proven Mobilization Strategy: Your Framework for Success

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SoftServe ApproachAs mentioned earlier in this document, mobility can provide many advantages to an organization and its workforce by improving flexibility and efficiency to various workflows. Productivity gains may result in an increase in revenue and reduction of expenses. The promise of improved profitability alone will compel some companies to pursue mobility solutions.

But without a comprehensive mobile strategy, mobilization may unwittingly lead to reduced business efficiencies, cost overruns and overall disappointing results.

Incorporating a proven innovative approach to mobility migration, based on extensive experience and industry best practices, SoftServe offers a proven structured framework to form a mobility strategy.

Our solution includes a comprehensive mobility strategy, roadmap development, assessments and recommenda-tions, including full software application development, implementation and support.

The SoftServe approach combines industry standard mobility processes and a leading innovative framework to cre-ate the ideal mobilization strategy for your company.

MobileView. A strategic service to assist businesses with creating a mobility strategy and roadmap. MobileView can help your business smartly plan for mobilization:

▪ Decide which lines of business to mobilize,

▪ Align broader business objectives and goals to your unique mobility plan,

▪ Identify business requirements,

▪ Mapping of mobilized business processes into back office functions,

▪ Creating a mobile application roadmap.

Scoping Project planning Requirements de�nition Design/Development Porting from legacy systems Integration and testing Acceptance Maintenance and support

Mobile applications requirements

Mobile platforms & devices

Back-o�ce design

Implementation strategy

System Architecture

MobileVIEW

MobileMAP

MobileMOVE

Lines of business to mobilize

Short, mid and long term goals

Business requirements

Mapping of mobilized business processes into back o�ce

Mobile application roadmap

5The Proven Mobilization Strategy: Your Framework for Success

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Mobile Map. An assessment service to review current business processes and map them to the processes best suited for a mobile strategy, including recommendations on the benefits and risks:

▪ Mobile application requirements

▪ Support mobile platforms & devices

▪ Back-office design

▪ Implementation strategy

▪ Development requirements

MobileMove. This enabling service assists businesses in the development and deployment of applications from desktops and laptops to mobile technology, platforms and devices:

▪ Scoping

▪ Project planning

▪ Requirements definition

▪ Design/Development

▪ Porting from legacy systems

▪ Integration and testing

▪ Acceptance

▪ Maintenance and support

ConclusionMarketplace trends suggest businesses of all size are mobilizing at increasingly rapid rates. As they continue to do so, business leaders and managers will justifiably seek help addressing some of the toughest mobility issues including the integration of technology, mobile devise support, cost containment, use restrictions, and investment protection strategies. Having a proven framework to work though the myriad choices and strategic decisions is imperative to success.

For many businesses it is decision time regarding enterprise-wide mobility. With more and more employees utilizing personal smart devices for work purposes, adopting a mobility plan is more important than ever. Getting the plan right the first time crates buy-in from key corporate constituents, saves money, and lays a solid foundation for investment protection.

SoftServe is here to help you with proven mobilization strategies, customized solutions and the highest quality software development life cycle services available. Please contact us today to discuss your company’s mobilization opportunities.

SoftServe Inc.

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