{"id":5809,"date":"2013-04-14T07:19:56","date_gmt":"2013-04-14T07:19:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sidewaysthoughts.com\/blog\/?p=5809"},"modified":"2021-01-15T23:04:56","modified_gmt":"2021-01-15T23:04:56","slug":"mobile-strategy-using-the-ibrs-whitepaper-to-cut-through-the-noise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sidewaysthoughts.com\/blog\/2013\/04\/mobile-strategy-using-the-ibrs-whitepaper-to-cut-through-the-noise\/","title":{"rendered":"Mobile strategy: Using the IBRS Whitepaper to cut through the noise"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Mobile<\/p>\n

The impact of increased mobility from smart devices is a big thing. It has been listed as one of the four “nexus of forces<\/a>”\u00a0affecting business today, the other three being information, cloud, and social. In addition to business efficiencies\u00a0and marketing potential, the mobility movement has also created a huge market for those offering or promoting “mobile strategies”.<\/p>\n

Understanding the need for mobile strategy<\/h2>\n

Having been involved in an industry offering mobility solutions for the past several years, I ask what exactly does it mean to have a dedicated \u201cmobile strategy\u201d? Organisations can find it difficult to articulate an overall strategy<\/a>, and recent research shows only 52% of CEOs have a digital strategy<\/a>. Many are now feeling the pressure to define a separate mobile strategy.<\/p>\n

Indeed, some say your company needs a mobile strategy yesterday<\/a>\u00a0because today is too late, and apply a double negative to say it is not<\/i> OK to not<\/i> have a mobile strategy<\/a>.\u00a0 Inc. lists six reasons why you need a mobile strategy<\/a>\u00a0and LinkedIn posts ask whether you have a mobile strategy to accelerate growth<\/a>.\u00a0 No industry is spared from the need for a mobile strategy, including banking<\/a>, manufacturing<\/a>,\u00a0and logistics<\/a>.<\/p>\n

There are summits on mobile strategy<\/a>, blogs<\/a> on mobile strategy, and more blogs<\/a> on mobile strategy. If words are too complicated, then Google images<\/a>, Tumblr<\/a>, and Pinterest<\/a>\u00a0all have pictures about mobile strategies, many in the form of infographs<\/a>\u00a0that clearly explain why you need a mobile strategy and what one looks like.<\/p>\n

Much of this material is developed by those who can help you with such endeavours, including IBM<\/a>, Oracle\u00a0with their six steps for building a long-term strategy for mobile<\/a>, and assorted other white papers<\/a>\u00a0on the topic.<\/p>\n

There are also a few examples out there to draw from. Amazon shares about their thoughts in the mobile shopping world<\/a>.\u00a0 The Australian National Library seems an odd place for a mobile strategy, but their April 2012 outline<\/a>\u00a0provides an easy-to-read and relatively succinct outline covering definition, vision, strategy, goals, governance, tactics, and action. Others such as Coke speak often about their mobile strategy<\/a>, and it is interesting to track Coke’s changes going back to 2011<\/a>\u00a0and 2012<\/a>.<\/p>\n

With all this talk of mobile strategy, it is understandable that a counter-view is developed.\u00a0 An extreme point says that a dedicated mobile strategy is bovine excrement<\/a>. This is based on the premise that mobile is just another presentation layer on your systems and a component to be integrated into your digital strategy and your overall business strategy.<\/p>\n

I agree that a dedicated mobile strategy is futile if the business direction is not defined and there is not an overall approach to how a company utilises digital. There are some aspects of mobility, however, that need to be considered. These aspects include decisions about whether to use HTML5 versus native<\/a>\u00a0or some sort of hybrid<\/a>, the approach to cross platform development<\/a>, and whether to allow an approach towards \u201cbring your own device (BYOD)<\/a>\u201d.\u00a0 The end decision will be based on… you guessed it… your mobile strategy.<\/p>\n

Creating a Sustainable Mobility Strategy according to IBRS<\/h2>\n

So how does one go about creating a mobile strategy? Harvard Business Review\u00a0list four ideas for creating a mobile strategy<\/a> and other lists define four keys to a successful mobile strategy<\/a>. These ideas, keys, checklists<\/a>\u00a0and cheat lists<\/a>\u00a0present disparate prescriptions that increase the challenge of defining a strategy rather than making it easier. I also question the use of the term “strategy” in many of these examples.<\/p>\n

One approach that cuts through the noise is Joseph Sweeney\u2019s<\/a> Intelligent Business research Services (IBRS)<\/a>\u00a0free to download white paper: Creating a Sustainable Mobility Strategy<\/a>. The strategy outlines a formal framework to:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Identify opportunities;<\/li>\n
  2. Determine \u201cquick wins\u201d;<\/li>\n
  3. Identify the most appropriate architecture;<\/li>\n
  4. Create a decision-making governance model; and<\/li>\n
  5. Align mobility initiatives to overall strategy, vision, and principles<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The framework is executed through six stages across three phases:<\/p>\n