Embracing mobility: the key to success in the digital age

Mobile devices have brought advancements to virtually all aspects of modern life, from our personal time to how we work. And yet not all businesses — especially those that are small to medium sized — have embraced mobility to achieve positive results.

Of the 1400 companies included in the 2015 Cisco Mobility Landscape Survey, a full 63 per cent still didn’t have a mobility strategy, even though the majority (56 per cent) were using mobility to win over customers. So if the payoff is clear, what’s keeping businesses from “going digital”?

In the SMB space, the issue is one of resources, and security is strongly tied into that. According to Nolan Greene, a network infrastructure research analyst with IDC, “Many SMBs do not go beyond installing basic wireless connectivity, often through consumer-grade infrastructure. A lack of full-blown enterprise-grade security can result in SMBs being the target of network predators.”

Plus, employees want to use personal devices for work, and BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) remains a challenge for smaller organizations. As Nolan explains, “Devices can be infected off-premises and carry potentially harmful malware onto the business network. Also, personal devices can be used for non-business applications that may divert valuable bandwidth away from mission-critical applications.”

For these reasons, it’s not surprising that many SMBs are lacking in a mobility strategy — but it is unfortunate.

Here are the top five reasons why mobility is a key to success in the digital age, regardless of your company size:

1) Improved customer satisfaction and service with location-based applications and analytics, and connected mobile experiences that offer real value through customer engagement.

2) Improved employee productivity, collaboration and satisfaction with the ability to take advantage of a mobile workspace, greater efficiencies in day-to-day operations with cloud applications, and BYOD capabilities that satisfy “the mobile generation.”

3) Protected data, business and employees with an enterprise-level mobility management program that makes BYOD safer, offering malware and web protection.

4) Cost savings and scalability through moving to cloud-based platforms, which offer simplicity without giving up performance.

5) Increased ability to compete effectively with companies who lack a mobile strategy — and for SMBs, that can include larger organizations — due to the ability to quickly scale, improve operational efficiencies, and better engage employees and customers.

Want to learn how to embrace mobility for your company? Try the free Mobility Fundamentals course featured in the Cisco Women Entrepreneurs’ Academy! Simply fill in this quick survey for access.