6 Critical Enterprise Mobility Challenges (And How to Overcome Them)
In the past few years, enterprises have begun to embrace mobile devices in the workforce. As mobile devices become more and more advanced, companies want to take advantage of the unique benefits that they provide. However, integrating and managing mobile devices isn’t as simple as it sounds. There are plenty of challenges regarding enterprise mobility that your company needs to address.
How can your company identify and overcome these enterprise mobility challenges? If possible, how can they be avoided — and if they happen, what should a business do to make it through them? We compiled a list of the most critical enterprise mobility challenges and the steps your team can take to
To address these enterprise mobility challenges, you should consider integrating an enterprise mobility management (EMM) solution. Our free 2019 MDM Buyer’s Guide contains profiles on the top vendors in the mobility management field and their key features and functions. It also lists questions you should ask yourself and prospective vendors before you choose a solution.
Mobile device, application, and data security
There’s never a time when security isn’t important, especially when it comes to protecting mobile devices and data. Your company and employees need to take care to prevent security threats like malware from entering your system. EMM solutions integrate multiple solutions like mobile device management, mobile application management, and mobile identity management to address specific mobile security concerns. However, you also need to have the right security policies in place — for instance, banning the use of public WiFi networks with business devices and enforcing data backups.
Enterprise system integration
In order to successfully add mobile devices into your business, they need to be able to connect with your other systems. Your devices need to be able to exchange data with each other and with other technologies in your enterprise. Otherwise, those devices become information silos. Mobile devices need to be able to synchronize with other systems to prevent your mobile operations from being disconnected from the rest of your enterprise.
User experience
Designing business mobile applications isn’t just about making it run well and perform its functions correctly. You also want to create a satisfying user experience for employees and clients who use them. Creating a good user experience means ensuring that your mobile solutions are compatible with common mobile device types. It also needs to be easy to navigate and users should be able to operate it without needing a tutorial.
Maintaining compliance
When you put sensitive business data on a mobile device, you must ensure that it complies with the rules and regulations it falls under. Regulations like HIPAA and GDPR provide specific mandates for how data is to be stored and used on a mobile device — as well as penalties if these mandates aren’t followed. It’s essential for your company to know what these mobile-specific regulations are, and that they take steps to meet these requirements.
Fragmentation
Mobile fragmentation occurs when users introduce a variety of mobile devices and operating systems to the business. Every device manufacturer and OS developer designs their solutions in different ways; in order to deploy successful mobile applications and workloads, you need to ensure that they’re compatible with a number of device types and operating systems. This is especially important for a BYOD-friendly company, as they need to account for the devices their employees are using.
Lost or stolen devices
It’s not a scenario companies or employees want to think about, but a device with company data on it being lost or stolen is an unfortunate reality for many organizations. If a device is lost or stolen, the employee needs to report it as soon as possible. The longer it takes for your enterprise to learn about the situation, the longer your device is exposed to hackers and other dangerous individuals. Many EMM solutions are equipped with remote device locking or wiping capabilities. This allows your team team to prevent access to a device or remove all corporate data from the device — all from a single management console. If it’s essential that your company track the device down, some EMM solutions provide GPS tracking functionality to help you discover where a device is located.
If you want to learn more about the benefits of enterprise mobility management and the best EMM solutions, you should check out our free 2019 MDM Buyer’s Guide. We profile the top vendors in the mobile device management field, their key capabilities, and our Bottom Line for each.
