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The evolving deployment of wireless remote access technology

There are many reasons used to justify the deployment of technology, but ultimately it has to address the commercial needs of the business. It can be quite easy to embark in a particular direction, trying out the latest technologies being promoted by vendors, only to find that these do not really add value to the business. Running pilots is an effective way to test ideas, but taking the next step and deploying the technology can have a larger impact on the business - either positive or negative. The risk is especially high with deployments that have a mobile component - is the risk justified? Larger companies in particular use wireless remote access technology quite widely, but has it yet reached the employees who can benefit the most. Enterprises need to use their business strategy, not the availability of technology, to determine where and how to invest.
Author/s: Rob Bamforth
Created: 01/10/2005
Filename: T-Mobile_-_Adoption.pdf
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  • Wireless remote access sits between application and infrastructure investment
    For a high proportion of UK enterprises, wireless or remote access is seen from an IT perspective as closer to other general IT or communications investments than to business applications - ideas originate in the IT department and are part of the ongoing execution of IT strategy. However it also has a strong business alignment, similar to applications investment, related by around two thirds to the execution of business strategy and from a need identified by the business.
  • Adoption has two distinct directions, more users and more applications
    Wireless remote access is deployed more widely for more senior levels of employees, with 50% of senior executives using the technology widely, dropping to only 13% for field sales teams and less than 10% for field service personnel. This is mirrored by application deployment which is still more angled towards generic professional applications led by mobile email for senior employees, rather than the business specific applications for blue collar workers.
  • Business need and role dictates which employees get access, but seniority predominates
    A specific business need or the overall job role is cited as important for deciding where wireless remote access is actually deployed in the majority of cases, and fewer than one in five businesses claims to ascribe much importance to seniority. However, when looking at actual deployment, senior executives and other management have greater official deployment, with other groups seeing more unofficial ad hoc deployment.
  • Larger enterprises have wider usage, smaller ones see more white collar application benefits
    Almost half of larger enterprises have some wireless remote access usage widely spread across the organization; this is over three times the figure for smaller businesses. They in turn have started with applications mainly for white collar professionals, as this requires less IT infrastructure or integration investment, however even here, smaller enterprises are likely to be overwhelmed by the variety of options, tariffs and devices on offer.
  • Linking IT thinking to the business need is the way for businesses to get widest buy-in
    Many projects have started as ideas from the IT department and may fit well with existing strategies, but the business also needs to see a return on investment. Financial return is twice as likely to be the main driver for business managers as those in IT management, so they are working to different agendas. This gap needs to be closed to ensure further adoption is beneficial to the business and so projects can progress smoothly.