Can Mobile Computing Increase Your Company's Productivity?

This week I am taking a week off! I am delighted to offer up an article by Paul Hillis of Thinkgrid who are one of our cloud computing service partners.

---

You might not have even noticed, but gradually, the IT Systems you use and your workforce are embracing mobile computing. Look at the devices your staff use to communicate, compared with say, 5 years ago – now they will more likely use laptops, tablets, smartphones as opposed to PC’s under their desks. 

Next, take a look at what kind of applications they are using – if they are new applications to your business they are probably much more likely to be web browser based or app based than static applications that can only be accessed in the office.

For quite a lot of organisations, this seems to have just ‘happened’ without any directive or strategy behind it. Often the first step for an organisation becoming mobile in its operation is the MD wants to get his work email on his iPhone, like the rest of the lads at the golf club. However, proactively considering a mobility strategy is something you might want to consider, as there are many benefits to be had, as well as pitfalls that would be best avoided.

The first step in considering such a strategy is looking at your workforce to decide what they do, how they do it and what allowing them to be mobile would bring to the table. It might be the case that if they had the chance, they would happily update that tender they have been working on, or fire off a few emails at the weekend if they had the chance to do so.

The next step is to look at what you need to give them to work effectively in a mobile setting, and if doing so is feasible. It may be that just giving them access to email would give them the ability to do 90% of what they can do when they are in the office, or it may be that they would need to give them access to the complex software and databases to match what they do when they are at their desk.

Allowing your staff to be mobile can potentially bring lots or productivity benefits to your organisations. You can get closer to your customers, give your staff a better work/life balance, attract staff from further afield, plus get staff to put more into their jobs. There are plenty of technologies out there that will allow you to reap these benefits while mitigating the potential risks associated with going mobile too.

No matter where your organisation is on mobility - Whether your organisation is static, singular office, 9-5, or all working from home using cloud applications, tablet and virtual offices, it’s well worth taking a step back and to see if whether your business could become more efficient and more profitable by embracing mobile computing.