Mobility experts from around the globe gathered in Barcelona this week for Mobile World Congress, the annual confab to showcase the latest in mobile gadgetry. Flashy consumer devices always get the headlines, you shouldn't be surprised by the other buzz this year: enterprise mobility and the blurred lines between our working and personal lives. Here's a look at what the conference revealed for the future of mobile tech in the workplace, and other stories IT needs to know from around the web:
Major Shifts Predicted For IT in 2014
“The IT department isn't traditionally perceived as the hub for organizational innovation and growth, but it’s slowly getting there,” writes John Crane, chief commercial officer at IPsoft, in readwrite. Crane predicts two major developments will surface in 2014: the implementation of big data for predictive analysis, and the evolution of the operations manager role. With big data, explains Crane, organizations can apply predictive analytics to zero in on operational incidents. Even more importantly, this gives IT pros the ability to automate threshold alerts to flag potential incidents before they occur. He predicts that this will shift operations managers' roles from the traditional "break-fix" cycle, making them more of a strategic contributor, such as "a resource manager and criticalFor operations managers, this will shift their roles from the traditional “break-fix” cycle and make them more of a strategic contributor.
Read more at readwrite
Mobile World Conference: Top 3 Mobile Trends This Year
The major theme from this year's Mobile World Congress, the largest ever with 72,000-plus attendees? According to Tim Hottages, CEO at Deutsche Telekom, “Everything that can be connected will be connected.” Hottages’ analysis centers on the importance of addressing what trends are currently impacting the mobile industry. Here is his take on the top three trends this year at MWC:
- Internet of Things: “Market size is half a trillion dollars but any forecast will be too conservative.”
- Big data: “Algorithms analyze in real time and enable the intelligence infrastructure to make autonomous decisions.”
- Cloud and digital nomads: “Everything is going to be in the cloud. From a security perspective, cloud is actually much safer. Streaming is even more commonplace so unfettered access, complexity reduction and support for open platforms are essential.”
Read more at Forbes
IT Must Educate Employees on Cloud App Security
A new study proves what most IT pros have long-known: “Employees who use [unapproved] SaaS applications are irresponsible when it comes to password security and IT compliance.” Mike Kane, director of cloud and client software at Softchoice, explains in CIO: “Finding an app that makes one's daily job responsibilities easier is often perceived as more important than running those apps by IT first.” Here are a few pro tips from Kane on how IT can better educate employees:
- Establish a company-wide password security protocol: While not a fix-all solution, a well-crafted program can serve as a guide to dissuade workers from using common passwords like "123456" or "password."
- Select a standardized, cloud-based collaboration platform: Look for one with an end-user experience similar to a consumer file sharing platform, which also fulfills your security and compliance needs, advises Kane.
- Educate. Educate. Educate: “Employees will continue to seek ways to do their work better and more efficiently,” says Kane. "IT must teach employees best-use standards that will protect them at work and in their personal lives.”
Read more at CIO
How The Cloud Breaks Down Office Walls
The rise of cloud adoption and BYOD in the workplace has intensified employee collaboration. As a result, companies are seeking scaleable collaboration capabilities for their workforces, which has driven many companies to seek out scaleable collaboration capabilities, explains Michael Murphy, vice president and country manager for Citrix Canada. Companies making use of these technologies can see results in the form of shorter commuting times, fewer staffing and travel costs, and even reduced office space needs. Says Murphy, “Those savings in turn can be re-prioritized and spent more productively.”
Read more at Financial Post
[Image via Enterprise Mobile]
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