When looking at the biggest trends in the technology and communications space today, it’s hard to ignore the mobility trend. There are lots of benefits to the rising mobility tide, but there are also plenty of challenges. But savvy businesses can take note of these challenges and find a way to turn those challenges into opportunities. Experts from Gartner, Appcore, Cisco and Partnerpedia discussed this very topic during a panel at ITEXPO Miami 2013.
Mark Sochan of Partnerpedia talked about three phases that companies go through in the mobile application process. First, businesses deal with mobile device management, locking down devices and focusing on the devices as enablers. Then, companies work on discovering the apps that will serve it the best, looking at ratings and reviews. Finally, companies will then innovate, managing applications as a corporate asset. He sees a bright future in the enterprise app store, helping companies bring together relevant business apps for each role.
Akhil Behl from Cisco spoke about the need for companies to focus on their own expectations for BYOD and “bring your own storage.” These expectations will vary from vertical to vertical. A college campus has a need for connectivity, but it is not as essential as it is for a financial institution. He also emphasized the importance of security and that companies need to strategize what to do to deal with malicious applications.
Brian Donaghy from Appcore focused on the workforce, talking about how they need to work from anywhere no matter the situation. Trying to control devices is a losing battle. Instead, companies need to focus on a software layer and a virtual layer. Ultimately, he sees software rather than hardware solutions as the answer.
Finally, Bill Menezes of Gartner quoted a stat stating that by 2014, 80 percent of the global workforce will have some form of BYOD. It will range from true BYOD to restricted access, but it is going to change the work experience for employees.
Edited by
Brooke Neuman 
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