Originating Author: Kaushik Das
Enterprise mobility is one of those infrastructure expenditures that's not about saving on IT budget, but rather an initiative that drives enterprise productivity. A significant issue for an IT manager is to implement an effective, reliable, cost-effective enterprise mobility solution with low total cost of ownership (TCO). Since all the benefits of the system will accrue to business operations and the IT budget will have to absorb an increase in infrastructure spend this is particularly true.
The TCO includes:
- Initial implementation costs including handset, PDA and laptops and other hardware, software, installation and training
- Cost for wireless data services or plan
- IT management (upgrade, maintenances) and end-user support costs
For a ball-park estimate of TCO for a mid-size organization, see the table below. These figures assume a Standard Wikibon business model organization with $1 billion in revenue, with 4,000 employees and an IT budget of $40 million per year.
Item | Estimated Cost | Estimated Total Cost |
---|---|---|
Deployment cost |
| $5.8-to-6.4M |
Wireless data plan | $50*4000*12 | $2.4M per annum |
IT management (upgrade, maintenances) and end-user support costs | Cost for 10-12 IT management FTE | $1.4-1.8M per annum |
Source: SanPro
A successful enterprise mobility implementation will:
- Increase productivity because of flexibility in collaboration – employees will collaborate while on the move
- Provide better service delivery to customers
- Improve the quality of service in
- Help employees make decision- making faster because real time visibility of information and resourcsresources
- Help employees access corporate data anytime and anywhere securely
- Better utilization of enterprise resources
Employees reap benefits of enterprise mobility as follows:
- Flexibility in work hours and day extension
- Flexibility in work location while in the office, such as in meetings, in other offices and in ad-hoc workgroups
- Access to information and network applications - while not at a desk – traveling, client site, on-road via a hotspot
- Efficient voice communication including cost efficient roaming while travelling
The major expected business productivity improvements will normally include:
For an enterprise, mobility brings productivity gains as follows (according to Alinean):
- Flexibility for group activities and work - 19% improvement
- Timeliness of communication via e-mail - 19% improvement
- Ability to conduct remote meetings - 16% improvement
Action Item: IT must ensure that business lines quantify the benefits of enterprise mobility and reflect that improved productivity in business plans. IT must demonstrate a return on infrastructure investment using this baseline, and construct cost-effective solutions accordingly. Owning both the cost and the benefit sides of the equation will put IT in a lose-lose situation if clear returns are not realized.