Data Management The Leading Mobility Focus For Enterprises

By Christine Kern, contributing writer

DMI and Clutch find high expectations for cloud integration and mobile security in 2017.

Data management is now the primary focus of enterprise mobility, while high expectations abound for cloud integration and mobile security this year according to research from DMI and Clutch. The research further found enterprises are allocating both focus and budgets towards mobilizing and managing company data through cloud integration, mobile security, and management software.

The survey polled 582 IT decision-makers at enterprises (companies with 500 or more employees) and found cloud integration is the number one priority for most with 30 percent of respondents anticipating investment growth in cloud integration. Twenty-eight 28 percent say this integration should provide significant benefits to their enterprise.

Sixty-seven percent of enterprises say cloud is a key component of their mobility efforts, more than any other initiative. According to Varun Dogra, Chief Technology of DMI, this shift represents three goals: scalability, accessibility, and security. “We have seen the way mobility has grown in the enterprise — initially it was about device security and accessing emails,” says Dogra. “Now enterprise mobility is more about applications and data.

“It’s mobile first, cloud first everywhere. Enterprises are moving towards providing secure access to enterprise data. They are looking for ways to improve the productivity of their workforce by ensuring their employees have secure access to accurate and timely information while they are on the move.”

As cloud integration and mobile security take center stage, the “access vs. security” dynamic becomes crucial for enterprises as they move towards mobilizing and managing company data. A central element in this dynamic is the sheer volume of potential unverified and insecure mobile access points that can result from providing access to company data through cloud storage.

Managed services including mobile device management, mobile application management, and mobility managed services all rank within the four most common mobility efforts pursued by enterprises, and enterprises are struggling to find the balance between access and security. Enterprises identified “improved data access” as one of the biggest benefits, while identifying “data security” as the leading challenge of mobility investments.

Enterprises are turning to forms of mobility management software that allow them to scale and secure previous mobility investments — namely mobile apps and devices — while redirecting budget dollars towards additional data management investment areas. According to the survey, more than half of enterprises currently operate mobility management software such as mobile application management (MAM) and mobile device management (MDM) and leverage mobility managed services (MMS) to deliver these solutions as part of their mobility strategies.

“Now that mobile devices are being used for more than just email, it’s not just about securing the device,” says Kathleen Urbine, Executive Vice President for Mobility Managed Services, DMI. “With increased access to corporate data, organizations are moving from securing the device to securing the data.”

Using managed services to deliver mobility solutions can “relive an organization of administrative and infrastructure burdens in order to concentrate on the organization’s mission, reduce cost, increase security, and deliver a consistent user experience.”