IT's 8-Point Mobile Handheld Solutions Checklist
Deploying mobile handheld solutions devices forces IT to think about business alignment, device selection, remote support, security, and more.
By Howard Baldwin
Chances are, if IT had any say in the matter, mobile devices would never appear on a corporate purchase order. Think about it—they're light and portable, so they get dropped and lost. They communicate wirelessly, so they increase an organization's security risk. They require extra accessories—PC cards, chargers, cradles, and so on—sometimes in duplicate. And they seem to become obsolete twice as fast as desktop computers.
But IT managers weren't thrilled about PCs when they first appeared on desktops, and you know how that battle turned out. Mobile devices—smartphones, laptops, and PDAs—offer the same advantages that PCs offered 20 years ago: They bring computing power to where people actually do their work.
To keep pace with the mobility train, IT should compile its own mobile handheld solutions checklist. The goal: to ensure that mobile devices actually deliver the productivity that they promise, without compromising the corporate infrastructure. According to experts, here are eight items to start your list.
1. Get management authorization
Because of cost and security issues, don't let users bring mobile devices into the company on an ad hoc basis and expect IT to support them. Make sure management clearly determines these mobile devices have specific value to the organization from a cost-benefit standpoint. This is especially important regarding wireless devices. Network consultants note that it's so easy to set up a wireless access point, some office workers do it on their own.
2. Understand user constraints when mobile
As part of your return on investment (ROI) investigation, conduct an in-depth survey of exactly how employees will use a mobile handheld solutions device. For instance, if they need continual and highly-reliable connectivity, go with broadband. For occasional access, a less expensive modem might suffice. Find out where employees most often will use the device. For example, if it's in a client's office, a laptop is likely adequate, but if it's in their car, a smaller PDA is better. Whether their communication needs are more voice-intensive or data-intensive will also determine if they should use a mobile phone, PDA, or a smartphone.
3. Understand technology constraints on the road
Once you've determined employees' needs, look at the devices themselves. Because wireless devices consume battery power, you might want to add an extra battery for a device outfitted with broadband. If warehouse workers are carrying PDAs for inventory management, consider that few such devices would survive a drop onto a concrete floor; you will likely want to purchase more durable versions. If employees don't return to a central office every day, you might also want to invest in extra charging cradles for employees to use at home.
Then there's the variable nature of wireless access. You'll need to determine what carriers offer the best coverage in the areas your employees work most as well as what access options—wireless LAN, broadband, cellular modem—are most viable.
4. Standardize devices
Depending on how many departments need mobile handheld solutions devices, you may not be able to standardize on a single device. That's not necessarily wise anyway because changing product features and release cycles means you might not be able to replace one device with an identical device six months after the initial purchase. However, you might want to commit to a single vendor so that you can negotiate a volume discount based on purchases over time. Based on usage needs (for instance, screen size, battery time, and memory capacity), you should provide employees with a choice of no more than three devices. "If you don't limit yourself to a few," warns David Holyoak, CIO for consulting firm Grant Thornton, "you'll find you can't support any of them very well." The more sophisticated the device, the more support issues the device will likely have, Holyoak adds.
5. Establish contingency plans for security
As a precaution, it's a good idea to encrypt certain business-sensitive drives or folders on laptops and the highly portable "thumb drives." If possible, add what's known as a "kill" capability: an automated security feature that erases a mobile device's hard drive and memory when it attempts to access your corporate system after it has been lost or stolen (you may perform this using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 or Exchange Server 2003 SP2). Robert Douglas, president of the Campbell, California-based IT consulting firm Planet Magpie, suggests configuring building-access cards to serve as laptop-access cards that require passwords as well. By doing this, no one can access the computer without the card and the appropriate credentials.
6. Plan for data access and integration
If a mobile application requires access to corporate systems, conduct a rigorous analysis of how frequently users will access those systems and what kind of performance degradation they'll experience both on the server and the mobile device. You might want to set up a separate system for data access, which could then update the primary database over a higher-speed connection. This way, increased traffic from remote wireless users (who may be exchanging information at slower data speeds) won't necessarily impact the performance of the corporate server whether for internal users or other remote users.
This is especially important for e-mail exchange, notes Douglas. If you add multiple mobile users to your Microsoft Exchange server, Douglas says, confirm that it can accommodate the increased usage.
7. Begin mobile application development
Anyone who's survived the initial pain of early wireless application development efforts can tell you horror stories about trying to format data onto small device screens and dealing with exceedingly slow data transfer protocols. Today, developing custom applications for mobile devices is easier thanks to wireless XML and development tools such as the .NET Compact Framework, which enables developers to create Microsoft .NET-compliant applications for mobile devices.
8. Designate support for remote resources
Because they are mobile, you will find yourself having to support devices that aren't physically in front of you. In field sales, field support, and warehouse deployments, you might also support employees with less computing background and experience than the typical office worker. You might want to designate one or two IT staffers as the primary source for remote support issues. Because remote workers sometimes travel at odd hours, you might also download basic troubleshooting tips onto the devices (or have them available through an automated phone support system).
Don't conclude that mobile devices are an imposition on IT. In fact, because IT staffers frequently roam the organization as part of their duties, they'll grow to love their own mobile flexibility. But it's important to set boundaries for the rest of the organization that continue to serve and support its mobile strategy.
Silicon Valley-based freelancer Howard Baldwin knows from experience how easy it is to disable a PDA by dropping it, even onto carpeting.
