A mobile-first organization is one that, while enabling resources for all types of devices, focuses primarily on making sure that the corporate environment is one in which mobile resources take precedence. Employees, contractors and consultants in organizations are no longer tied to a desktop device, and no longer beholden to any one operating system, collaborative suite or security standard. This paradigm shift in the way business is conducted requires an organization’s IT departments to make a near complete shift in their resourcing disciplines.
What does a mobile-first organization look like?
While a mobile-first organization doesn’t have any specific form or structure, the common thread among businesses that take a mobile-first approach is three-fold.
First, a mobile-first business looks to be as agnostic as possible to the devices that employees use to accomplish their work. The more an IT department says “no” to a class of device, the less secure your data is going to be. Why, you ask? In this day and age, people expect to have access to the tools they need, and if you don’t allow them access, they find a way to get it, and a business’ security is rarely the employees’ first concern.
Secondly, the tools that a mobile-first organization uses will be designed with the mobile user in mind. What does that mean exactly? It means that employees should not have to buy new equipment, software or licenses to start doing their job. It means that employees can use an Android tablet, a Windows laptop, an iPad or a Blackberry device to start doing their job on day one without having jump through any hoops. Sounds like weak security? You’re wrong!
The third, and (kind-of sort-of) last, common thread that you will see in a mobile-first organization is that of security. A mobile-first company takes it’s security very seriously. This focus on security can take a number of forms, but it always includes some form of mobile device management, mobile application management and document digital rights management. A mobile-first organization that builds its mobile strategy properly is infinitely more secure than a legacy-built business with mobile “add-ons.”
The tools a business can use to achieve these common threads are numerous — each becoming better at what it does and more secure.
