By Samuel Greengard
You would think by now every business of a certain size would have a mobile strategy in place—and perhaps an app for customers, partners and employees. Pick up a magazine, venture online or attend a conference and you are likely to hear one word over and over again: app.
While Apple coined the clever phrase “There’s an App for That!”, the reality is that at a lot of organizations there is still no app for this or that. A new survey conducted by Robert Half Technology has found that 28 percent of companies have no mobile strategy whatsoever. Worse, 58 percent of CIOs polled said that their company has not developed a mobile application for customers and clients and has no plans to offer one within the next 12 months.
I’m sure there’s some enterprise somewhere that has a valid reason for not adopting a mobile strategy. And there are certainly a few organizations that can get away with a brick and mortar or PC-centric approach. If you fall into either of these categories and your enterprise is raking in record revenues, congratulations! By all means, keep doing whatever you’re doing!
But what’s disturbing about this survey is just how indifferent or seemingly inept a lot of business leaders are about mobility. For many, there seems to be no sense of urgency; there’s no strong desire to use mobile tools, including apps. This, despite the fact that we’ve moved to a post-PC world where the majority of devices are mobile, and just about every respected analyst and consultant views mobility as a critical element in achieving a competitive advantage.
Here’s a suggestion: If you’re one of the 28 percent of CIOs who haven’t formulated a mobile strategy, get one fast. The world will continue to march forward and mobility will become even more critical in the months and years ahead. Sticking your head in the proverbial sand doesn’t make the issue disappear. It just endangers your business.
And, while we’re at it, here’s a suggestion for the other 72 percent: Don’t rest on your laurels. Celebrate your new app or the latest update for about 45 seconds and then start thinking about how to innovate further—and add new and useful features. Think about ways to embed your mobile strategy in everything you do. Your business and your job depend on it.
About the Author
Samuel Greengard is a contributing writer for CIO Insight. To read his previous CIO Insight blog post, “Five Often Overlooked Ways CIOs Stumble,” click here.