移动化企业真谛

    “移动化企业”这个词我们都快听腻了，不过却很难知道这个词究竟意味着什么，或者它的重要性到底体现在哪里。一想到未来员工们都会使用他们自己选择的设备工作，许多企业领导者都感到惶恐不安，不由得担心起一个越来越移动化的世界可能带来的复杂性、安全性和对规章制度的遵守程度等问题。

    以前的世界要比这简单多了。

    面对移动化的趋势长吁短叹无疑是种短视的行为。不如暂时不要考虑它的必然性，也不要考虑它可能会给企业带来多少实际价值。如果你是一家公司的领导者，你应该开始关心以下趋势，让公司的移动设备做好迎接未来的准备。

    应用制胜

    不久之前，移动设备还是彻头彻尾的新生事物。我还记得我的第一部手机，它厚得像一块砖头，除了能让我以每分钟1.99美元的高额话费打电话以外，没有任何用处。显然我们已经走过了一段漫长的路程。现在只需拍张自己的大头照就可以用手机兑付支票，轻触按钮就能在网上租车，刷一下手机就能买到一杯早晨的咖啡。当然，你还可以打电话、发短信、收发电子邮件。

    想想吧：就在短短10年前，我们还在用传真机、程控交换机（你还记得这些东西吗？）和厚得像砖头一样的“大哥大”。而今天，在云计算技术的支持下，我们几乎生活在电子邮件、平板电脑和智能手机的海洋里。变革就在一瞬间，短短10年光景，我们在工作和生活中用到的科技已经大不相同了。

    裤袋里的小电脑

    根据国际电信联盟（International Telecommunications Union）的统计，全世界共有10亿多位智能手机用户，移动电话用户总数近60亿人。（目前全球人口约70亿左右——看起来就连幼儿园的孩子都在拿手机发短信——译注）全球各地的老百姓、甚至连那些连自来水等基本生活设施都缺乏的人，都在使用无线网络聊天。无论身在喀布尔、卡拉马祖还是加德满都，移动业务都已经做得很大了。

    而最激动的人心的部分在于，一切现在才刚刚开始。

    未来几年里，智能手机会进一步取代无法上网的移动电话，也就是说，几乎每个地球人的裤袋里都会装着一部小电脑。不管他们从事的是什么行业，他们都会越来越多地通过智能手机来完成工作。全世界几乎每个工作都会变成“电脑工作”——并不是说大家都要像白领那样只是坐在办公室里，而是说无论是在远海勘探的石油工人也好，上门服务的水管工也好，办公室白领也好，大家都要依赖移动设备来完成工作。它不仅为企业界提供了与数十亿员工、顾客和合作伙伴沟通的机会，同时也为有远见的企业领导者提供了一个机会，让他们重新思考在即将到来的“移动化至上”的世界中，应该如何与员工进行沟通和协作，如何对员工进行培训。

    智能手机的崛起也宣告着许多行业形形色色的移动设备即将淡出历史舞台。比如专门的GPS接收器、门禁卡、电视遥控器、MP3播放器，以及UPS快递员用来扫描包裹和指纹的那种笨重的移动设备都将遭到淘汰。这些功能都会整合到智能手机这种单一的设备里，同时它也会令我们在日常生活中用到的其它产品变得更加高效、更加无缝地与智能手机配合工作。现在有些汽车已经能够阅读车主的Twitter和Facebook的消息更新，还有些智能设备可以让户主在外出时调解屋内的温度，甚至激活警报系统。   

    创新不仅仅为我们的私人生活服务。如果说CEO们想知道五年后的计算技术会变成什么样子，以及五年后企业员工会如何工作的话，那么首先他们应该预想的是，五年后大家人人都有一台超级强大的移动设备，而且无论在家还是在公司，都有一个十分快捷的周边设备网络为它提供支持。这才是我们未来的发展方向——也就是速度。而且移动设备对企业所产生的深远影响将一点也不亚于它对我们的私人生活所产生的影响。随着移动设备进一步密切我们之间的联系，工作和生活之间的界限会变得更加模糊。

    We hear so much about the 'mobile enterprise' that it's difficult to really know what it all means, or why it matters. A future where employees work from the device of their choosing intimidates many business leaders, causing them to fret about complexity and the security and compliance implications of an increasingly mobile world.

    It was all so much easier before.

    But lamenting the challenges of mobile is shortsighted and ignores both its inevitability and its massive potential to bring real value to companies. If you're a leader of a company, you should start paying attention to the following trends to get your company's mobile pieces in place for the future.

    There's An App for That...Now

    It wasn't long ago that mobile devices were completely novel. I remember my first mobile phone: It looked like a brick, and beyond allowing me to make phone calls at $1.99 per minute, had about the same level of usefulness. We've certainly come a long way. Now, you can cash checks by just snapping a picture, book a town car with the press of a button and pay for your morning coffee by swiping your phone. Oh, you can make phone calls, text and check your email, too.

    Think about it: Just 10 years ago, we had fax machines, PBX boxes (remember those?) and those clunky cell phones. Today, buoyed by the cloud, we're drowning in email, tablets and smartphones at every turn. Change happens fast, and in ten years, the technology we use at work and at home will look very different from how it looks today.

    Sent From a Tiny Computer in My Back Pocket

    According to the International Telecommunications Union, there are more than one billion smartphone users worldwide, and almost six billion mobile phone users total. (Note: The world's population is around seven billion right now – it seems that even toddlers are texting.) People all over the globe, even those who lack basic infrastructure such as running water, are chatting wirelessly. Mobile is already huge – whether you're in Kabul, Kalamazoo or Kathmandu.

    The most exciting part is that is that we're just getting started.

    Over the next several years, smartphones will increasingly replace unconnected mobile phones, which means that almost everyone on the planet will have a tiny computer in their back pocket. And they'll be doing more work on those computers, no matter their industry. Nearly every job in the world will become a 'computer job' — not just white-collar desk jobs. Oil rig workers miles out at sea, plumbers making house calls and, yes, office workers will all rely on smart mobile devices to do their jobs. Not only does this open up new ways for companies to connect with billions of employees, customers and partners, but it's also an opportunity for forward-thinking leaders to redefine how their companies communicate, collaborate and train employees in the "mobile-first" world we're quickly approaching.

    This shift also spells the end for the multiplicity of specialized mobile devices in many industries. Standalone GPS receivers, building badges, television remote controls, MP3 players and those rugged mobile devices the UPS driver uses to scan packages and capture signatures will soon become obsolete. This consolidation into a single device – the smartphone – will also cause other products that we use in our daily lives to become more efficient and to work seamlessly with smartphones. We're already seeing this in vehicles that read drivers' Twitter and Facebook feeds and in smart appliances that allow homeowners to adjust the temperature or activate the alarm while on vacation.

    And that innovation is not reserved for our personal lives – hardly. When CEOs think about computing and how employees will work in five years, they should envision one super powerful, personally owned device that's always on, supplemented by a network of peripheral devices at home and at work that are just as agile. That's the direction we're headed. Fast. And the implications will be as profound in business as they will be in our personal lives, a line that continues to blur as we all become more connected.