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THE APP ROADMAP: STRATEGY FOR THE WORKPLACE A coherent strategy improves productivity and enhances how enterprises operate.

Executive Summary As mobile devices become ubiquitous in the workplace, mobile applications are increasingly integral to everyday business operations and workflow. Having the right app — accessible in the right way — is critical. Effective mobile application deployment requires a thorough understanding of business needs and research into available solutions. A coherent app strategy is key to making the most of these business tools.

The market for mobile applications and device-centric computing has exploded over the past five years, dramatically affecting organizations of all types. Increasingly, employees expect to use enterprise or personal and tablets for business activities. And they have come to rely on mobile Table of Contents apps to make the most of their devices and their time.

The increase in and tablet use has forced changes 2 The Mobile Imperative in the way enterprises deliver information, services and 3 Virtualization: business logic to client devices, be they for staff, business From Desktop to Device partners or customers. When properly designed and rolled out, mobile apps help enterprises boost user productivity, 3 Productivity Apps: streamline business activity and ultimately reduce expenses. The Off-the-Shelf Option Organizations can decide among numerous off-the-shelf or customized solutions based on their needs. However, before 4 Partially Custom Apps: The Goldilocks Zone taking action, enterprises should develop a strategic worldview of their mobile app initiatives, mapping deployment and 6 Fully Custom Apps: development decisions against needs, budgetary constraints When Details Matter and IT infrastructure. This strategy serves as a critical roadmap for enterprises to migrate to a more mobile environment. 6 Mobile App Strategies

8 CDW: A Mobile App Partner That Gets IT

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The Mobile Imperative One-quarter of survey respondents claimed a more than fivefold increase in BYOD device connections. The ubiquity of ownership among enterprise users is indicative of the devices’ inevitable prevalence in the workplace. In Data, applications and assets that once resided safely behind the 2013, the number of smartphones and devices connecting to the firewall are now routinely exposed on poorly managed mobile worldwide surpassed the number of personal computers. devices, yielding a litany of serious risks, from data leakage to Many of these connections happen in relation to work. A 2014 the introduction of pernicious malware and advanced persistent Dimensional Research survey found that 95 percent of surveyed threats (APTs). organizations reported mobile devices connecting to their networks. As a result, workers today are as likely to access , schedules or The trend toward mobile devices has fueled a transition to bring- documents from a smartphone or tablet as they are on a traditional your-own-device (BYOD) policies, in which an IT department PC. Most rely on some form of mobile app to do so. Enterprises supports personal mobile devices for work use. The Dimensional that can strategically optimize that same technology to mobilize Research survey found that nearly three-quarters of organizations business activity can greatly benefit. However, organizations to now support BYOD, with the number of BYOD devices connecting date have been slow to adopt mobile apps in the workplace. to enterprise networks more than doubling in the past two years. Based on the Citrix Mobility Report for 2014, Windows-based applications still dominate at work, although the numbers are slowiy dropping (down from 64 percent in 2013 to 54 percent in BRING YOUR OWN APP: 2014). Mobile apps rose from 6 percent in 2013 to 9 percent a year THE NEW BYOD later; web applications rose from 20 percent to 23 percent; and as a Service (SaaS) rose from 10 percent to 14 percent. IT departments have struggled with the The report concluded that IT departments must work to mobilize bring-your-own-device movement since the days of the first personal computers. and manage the different types of applications so they can be Affordable smartphones and tablets have delivered in a diverse BYOD environment. taken BYOD to the next level. The rise of mobile software in the enterprise has some serious BYOD is big business, and getting bigger. Research firm implications for IT shops already burdened with supporting internal MarketsandMarkets expects BYOD spending to reach more than IT systems, cloud engagements and BYOD mobility. The Citrix $266 billion in 2019, up from nearly $72 billion in 2013. Meanwhile, a report found that 42 percent of surveyed respondents expected to 2013 Spiceworks survey of about 1,000 IT professionals finds that manage more than 100 apps in 2014, while 21 percent expected to 61 percent of small and midsize businesses support a BYOD policy. manage more than 1,000 apps.

The growth of BYOD has also created a new challenge for IT As a result, IT budgets to support mobile software are ramping up. A organizations, in the form of BYOA, or bring your own app. May 2014 CDW survey illustrated that small and midsize businesses The simplicity of partially custom app stores has prompted expect to spend, on average, 10 percent of their IT budgets on individuals and even entire business units to deploy off-the- custom mobile apps and related technologies. The figure for large shelf mobile apps without formal planning or management input from the IT group. The risks of such unmanaged app proliferation businesses was 12 percent. Nearly half of the survey’s respondents are many, including: reported rising mobile app budgets from 2013 to 2014.

App fragmentation created when different people and units Continued mobile activity points to a future with more mobile apps, deploy competing or incompatible apps for similar tasks delivering an ever larger set of services and functionality, while targeting an increasingly diverse array of tablets and handsets. In Security risks that result from unvetted and unmanaged apps residing on mobile devices that connect to enterprise short, the proliferation of mobile apps and software poses a major networks management challenge.

Support problems that arise from a lack of formal vendor Enterprises moving to mobile must make important decisions, contracts, employee training programs and IT engagement including deciding whether and when to deploy off-the-shelf

Inflated cost of ownership resulting from issues related to mobile apps or develop custom mobile apps. Perhaps most fragmentation, security and support important, organizations must transition internal processes and organizational structures to support the diverse application IT organizations can rein in BYOA proliferation through a environment enabled by mobility. combination of well-articulated policy and enterprise mobility management suites. EMM packages from vendors such as Buy, Build or Virtualize: Mobile App Approaches AirWatch and MobileIron can be used to create managed, enterprise For organizations coming to grips with this mobilized future, app stores populated with approved mobile apps. These suites can also be used to detect or prohibit rogue app installations on mobile committing to mobile apps is a vital waypoint. Enterprises can devices and guide workers to approved apps. choose from several categories of mobile client software to meet their mobility goals. These include: THE APP ROADMAP: 3 MOBILE APP STRATEGY FOR THE WORKPLACE 800.800.4239 | CDW.com

Client virtualization: Virtualization software from Citrix, VMware, and others can be used to package and stream desktop applications — or entire desktop environments — to mobile devices. Productivity apps: Enterprises can procure and deploy off-the- % shelf mobile apps, such as email clients from Microsoft and , 36The percentage of businesses that allow employees to use off- that can support existing business processes and data flows. the-shelf mobile apps for work purposes

Partially custom apps: Rich software platforms can extend the reach of deployed systems, such as Salesforce.com customer SOURCE: CDW, The App Age: How Enterprises Use Mobile relationship management (CRM) or SAP enterprise resource Applications, May 2014 planning (ERP) systems, or create custom apps using visual, rapid development tools. Avoid the cost and time spent training staff on new software Fully custom apps: By creating and supporting fully custom apps systems and processes that are tuned to each mobile platform and operating system, an Client virtualization is also a compelling solution in BYOD enterprise can often best meet stringent requirements around scenarios, where enterprises need to support a range of mobile performance, functionality and . devices and operating systems. It can be used to deliver apps to mobile endpoints two ways: via desktop or through application Client Virtualization: virtualization.

From Desktop to Device Desktop virtualization addresses the task of virtualizing the Virtualization technology has changed how many organizations entire operating system environment and delivering it to mobile do business. For instance, the consolidation of multiple virtual devices. It uses a hypervisor on the client to decouple the OS from servers a single, physical server has allowed enterprises the mobile hardware. It delivers all the resources and assets of to streamline many tedious management tasks by pooling and the user’s work computer to a remote client, making it extremely provisioning server assets. The same capabilities that make powerful. However, the small screens and limited user interface (UI) virtualization so compelling in server environments make it a capabilities of smartphones and tablets can sharply limit the value candidate for delivering desktop applications and environments of desktop virtualization in mobile scenarios. to mobile endpoints. Application virtualization is generally a better solution for Virtualization is a powerful technology that has become nearly delivering business logic and services to mobile devices. Virtualized ubiquitous in enterprise and server message block environments applications are packaged and either streamed to or stored on over the past decade. Server virtualization solutions, such as mobile clients. Virtualized applications run in an environment VMware vSphere and Microsoft Hyper-V, enable IT shops to isolated from the mobile OS, which provides inherent benefits in consolidate multiple virtual servers within a single, physical server. security and management. The robust management and configuration capabilities of these Although virtualized applications are still restricted by touch UIs solutions have made it possible for organizations to pool and and small screens, mobile experience virtualization solutions can provision server assets. The result: Management tasks that once adapt keyboard-and-mouse desktop applications to take better required physical changes to systems, or that demanded tedious advantage of touch-first UIs with little or no development work. A one-to-one interaction via software, can be performed blend of client software, improved protocols and mobile-optimized in a streamlined, automated and orchestrated manner. application program interfaces () can significantly improve the Research firm Research and Markets expects the general client mobile user experience and yield big gains in user satisfaction and virtualization market to grow rapidly in the coming years. Part of productivity. that growth is fueled by the benefits of applying client virtualization to mobile deployments. By leveraging virtualization, IT teams can: Productivity Apps: Extend the value of investments in existing client software and The Off-the-Shelf Option systems The debut of smartphones helped initiate a shift from web-centric Delay or eliminate the need for costly and often risky mobility to app-centric mobility. This “application economy” has replacement of existing software with mobilized versions had huge ramifications for organizations, which find themselves deploying and supporting numerous increasingly complex and Ensure the delivery of fully functional applications and services to critical mobile apps. mobile endpoints The numbers tell the story: The mobile app market is growing at Provide a secure and managed environment for applications breakneck speed, according to a 2014 report by research firm deployed to mobile endpoints Arxan. It found that there were 127 billion free app downloads in THE APP ROADMAP: 4 MOBILE APP STRATEGY FOR THE WORKPLACE 800.800.4239 | CDW.com

coworkers. Off-the-shelf apps optimized for various mobile MOBILE USER INTERFACE endpoints, such as Android, iOS, and BlackBerry, leverage the native user experience (UX) of each platform to turn Mobile app deployments demand that every tablet and smartphone into a capable productivity endpoint. organizations rethink the way they make In this regard, apps can be significantly more effective than software work. In many cases, traditional desktop applications — dominated by those virtualized desktop software streamed to mobile devices, and can based on the Windows operating system be significantly more cost-effective than custom-built apps. — are a poor fit for the smaller screens and Horizontal business activities such as email, scheduling and touch-based user interfaces (UI) found on document creation are well served by off-the-shelf, third- handheld devices. party apps, which offer the twin benefits of low cost and quick Enterprises are looking to mobile apps to leverage the reach deployment. Apps can be downloaded directly from public app and utility of smartphones and tablets. However, the success stores, or distributed in managed fashion via private app stores of mobile apps depends greatly on effective UI and design — using enterprise mobility management suites. much more so than traditional desktop enterprise applications. Industry surveys show that users will abandon apps that are However, off-the-shelf apps also come with some drawbacks. difficult to navigate. Yet, mobile UI design remains a common Equivalent off-the-shelf apps may not be available for every mobile problem within apps. device, or features may differ across supported mobile platforms, yielding costly disconnects in the organization. Fragmentation is In a 2014 survey of 340 mobile-engaged companies, 57 percent of respondents reported UI design to be the source of at least a concern too, as individuals and operational units deploy different one-quarter of their discovered app defects. In addition, nearly apps to achieve similar tasks across various mobile client platforms. one-half of respondents reported having to make late changes Ultimately, the value of off-the-shelf apps is greatest for activities to app UIs because of: and processes that are broadly shared across all enterprises. Software Failure to lock the UI design, resulting in frequent changes and services provider SAP developed a breakdown of enterprise throughout development mobile apps across five categories. Off-the-shelf apps are found to Failure of the UI design to meet at least one functional be appropriate for software focused on communications, data access requirement and universal processes such as human resources, sales, finance and IT. Custom app development, by contrast, is best suited for unique, Discovery of UI issues in the published app by stakeholders vertical processes and transformative applications that involve new or Traditional desktop development approaches that place UI work innovative approaches. at the back end are a poor match for the high-stakes challenge of creating an effective mobile app. This is particularly true for Low initial acquisition costs make these apps attractive, especially cross-platform efforts, which introduce additional complexity to for small and midsize businesses that do not face deep integration the task. In any app development project, time and effort should challenges with line-of-business systems. Off-the-shelf software be made to ensure the user interface is effectively integrated. also promises lower maintenance costs than apps tailored to the enterprise. However, those cost benefits must be balanced against 2014, a number that is expected to nearly double by 2017. The the heightened benefits that come from tuning custom software to market for paid apps, meanwhile, is expected to grow from 11 billion a specific task. downloads in 2014 to nearly 15 billion in 2017. In terms of revenue, the mobile app market is poised to reach $70 billion by 2017, up 171 Partially Custom Apps: percent from nearly $26 billion in 2013. The Goldilocks Zone Businesses are experiencing mobile app proliferation firsthand, Off-the-shelf apps have known limitations. Built for mass market as users, customers and partners increasingly rely on off- appeal and subject to the vagaries of mobile platform adoption the-shelf apps to drive business processes, consume services trends, third-party apps tend to meet most enterprise needs but and interact with enterprise data and assets. Tasks that were can leave critical requirements unmet. This is especially true as once accomplished on desktops behind the firewall can now be organizations become large and complex or must support very conducted in airports, taxi cabs and hotel rooms. Productivity apps specific processes and requirements. such as Adobe Creative Cloud, 365, Cisco Systems’ Enter mobile apps built on mature app development platforms such WebEx and Box.com enable activities on mobile devices that were as Kony, Salesforce.com and SAP. Unlike fully custom apps built once limited to traditional client desktops and notebooks. from scratch, partially custom apps offer an attractive “Goldilocks” There are both benefits and drawbacks to relying on third-party option for enterprises seeking to balance the cost of off-the-shelf productivity apps. Mature apps, such as Office 365, provide rich, with the functionality and benefits of fully custom apps. To be clear, secure functionality that largely mirrors traditional desktop enterprises that opt to build and deploy partially custom apps have applications and allows seamless collaboration with PC-bound already made an important decision: They have concluded that THE APP ROADMAP: 5 MOBILE APP STRATEGY FOR THE WORKPLACE 800.800.4239 | CDW.com

BENEFITS OF CUSTOM MOBILE APPS

Increased efficiency Increased productivity Ability to work remotely Cost savings Employee collaboration Customer communication Customer satisfaction Ability to use multiple devices Competitive advantage

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SOURCE: CDW, The App Age: How Enterprises Use Mobile Applications, May 2014 off-the-shelf mobile apps cannot meet one or more key business and to frequently evaluate strategy. requirements and are willing to invest in custom-built software to Among the key benefits of app development platforms: meet those needs. Streamlined, rapid app development and faster time to market Mobile app platforms offer a cost-effective way for organizations to quickly create and deploy custom mobile apps. They also reflect Simplified development experience, often enabled by templates the unique challenges and issues that arise with enterprise mobile or visual tools software, which must be built to support: Integration with included back-end hosting and services

Multiple mobile operating systems, each with its own software Efficient support and app maintenance, including the ability to stack and presentation and interaction styles quickly update apps to the latest operating system and device Diverse client form factors, hardware functionality and input versions methods Reduced need to hire or contract highly skilled native language Regular updates to client devices and operating system versions

Widely varied network connectivity and power conditions Some of these packages enable a single code base to serve multiple mobile operating systems, while providing a more immersive Partially customized solutions ease the burden of addressing these and consistent user experience than cross-platform HTML 5 and other challenges. Developers can build markup code. The drawbacks? Partially custom apps lack the high-level app logic and user interfaces via easy-to-use templates customizability of native code development. that are tuned for each engagement. The tooling produces the native application code that runs on client smartphones and tablets. Organizations may be constrained by the templated nature of these solutions, limiting the ability to fully customize apps and create a Some of these tools are provided by enterprise application unique look and feel. These limitations can be of particular concern with providers and enable organizations to extend and support these customer-facing apps, where optimal user experience is paramount. suites. Salesforce.com, for instance, provides the Force.com platform for creating partially custom apps that enhance the Fully Custom Apps: capabilities of the Salesforce.com CRM. When Details Matter Research firm Gartner in itsMagic Quadrant analysis last year noted Off-the-shelf and partially custom mobile apps offer compelling that the mobile app development platform sector consists of a efficiencies, but they cannot match the value of full-on, custom app fast-evolving blend of native and web toolkits, as well as a range of development when it comes to supporting very specific, complex specialized platforms that span app generators, wrapper tools and or niche business requirements. In these and other scenarios, the providers. Given the volatile nature of the sector, the additional cost of writing fully custom app code is often more than report cautions decision-makers to avoid long-term commitments offset by the many benefits that result from it. THE APP ROADMAP: 6 MOBILE APP STRATEGY FOR THE WORKPLACE 800.800.4239 | CDW.com

Fully custom mobile apps differ from partially custom apps in that they are free-standing and not anchored to an enterprise application suite, such as Salesforce or SAP, or a code generator such as Kony. With fully custom mobile apps, skilled programmers write app code directly and compile that code to a specific mobile platform. 5The average number of mobile apps used by businesses This approach offers fine-grained control over all aspects of the mobile app, from UI and UX elements to data handling and SOURCE: CDW, The App Age: How Enterprises Use Mobile integration with back-end systems. Fully custom app code can Applications, May 2014 be rigorously tuned for performance and shaped to handle very specific or complex use cases that off-the-shelf or partially custom apps cannot handle. In 2014, Xebia Labs surveyed more than 1,000 companies and found The CDW mobile app survey found that nearly all respondents that a little more than 30 percent of all software delivery efforts end saw benefits from fully custom mobile app deployments. Three in failure. The danger is higher still in mobile app deployments, which benefits — improved efficiency, productivity and the ability to work present a number of unique challenges. Among them: remotely — were cited most. Furthermore, nearly three-quarters of Adapting to new or unfamiliar mobile platforms and software models surveyed managers said they plan to make additional investments Supporting a diverse range of mobile client device types (tablets in fully custom mobile apps in the future. and smartphones), operating systems and device models The same survey also found that, on average, each employee Responding to shorter OS and app version release cycles using a fully custom app was reported to have saved 7.5 hours of common to mobile platforms time per week. In addition, 82 percent of respondents said mobile apps helped their businesses generate additional revenue, with an Grappling with security issues unique to mobile app deployment average reported revenue gain of 16 percent. and maintenance

Fully custom mobile app development is benefiting from Mobile apps can deliver substantial benefits or produce calamitous increasingly sophisticated and capable resources and tooling, such results, depending largely on how organizations go about deploying as frameworks that make it possible to write a single code base for them. A flawed development effort can yield software that is multiple mobile client targets. tooling, for instance, allows expensive to create, hard to maintain and prone to flaws. A poorly Microsoft Visual # programmers to create native Android and iOS planned and managed mobility effort will yield a fractured and apps, while Adobe Systems’ PhoneGap can translate HTML5, CSS fragmented mobile infrastructure that complicates operations, and JavaScript code for iOS, Android and BlackBerry devices. inflates costs and sharply increases the chance of bad outcomes.

Organizations considering a fully custom mobile app push may want By the same token, a rush to mobilize business processes with to weigh the benefits and costs of such an effort against those poorly selected or designed software can result in reduced presented by a partially custom app. A review of a project’s return productivity, lost sales or damaged customer relationships. Study on investment (ROI) can help weigh the costs of a fully custom app after study has shown that poorly designed software yields project against the predicted benefits that can be gained with a depressed adoption and usage rates, higher incidents of error and full-on effort to write code. The objective: To determine if a native lower user satisfaction. A 2013 study by research firm Equation custom app will yield additional competitive advantage over a more Reach found that only 16 percent of surveyed users have the limited, partially custom app. patience to keep using an app after two failed attempts to launch it. Enterprises that take the time to coherently understand their Mobile App Strategies business requirements and outline their mobility goals see greater Mobile apps are proven solutions for delivering tangible gains results. A strong mobile strategy yields tangible competitive in productivity, efficiency and customer satisfaction. Yet, any advantages for an enterprise that commits to it. software development and deployment efforts come with a This strategic approach to mobility is essential for a successful measure of risk. Those risks are multiplied when working with mobile app effort. Ahead of any deployment or development relatively unfamiliar and fast-moving mobile tools and platforms. activity, management should consider an eight-step process: How great is the risk? IAG Consulting surveyed more than 100 large Identify stakeholders and decision-makers enterprises and found that 68 percent of all IT projects are at high risk of failure due to a poor grasp of requirements and subpar analysis. Target specific operational processes

For more information on how CDW can help with your mobile app deployment, contact your account manager, call 800.800.4239 or visit CDW.com/mobility. THE APP ROADMAP: 7 MOBILE APP STRATEGY FOR THE WORKPLACE 800.800.4239 | CDW.com

Develop use cases

Determine and select technologies and vendor options MOBILE

Formulate relevant metrics MANAGEMENT TOOLS Solutions such as mobile device Set the schedule and pattern for updates management, mobile application Establish the role of service contracts management and all-inclusive enterprise mobility management suites are invaluable Consider issues around business process transformation and tools for organizations struggling with ongoing lifecycle mobile app and device usage. Products such Establishing the Foundation as VMware AirWatch, Symantec Suite and MobileIron provide The first three steps define the audience, scope and function of an precise control over mobile hardware and software and enable app. They are directly responsible for both driving and promoting IT managers to enforce policies and take action to protect mobile deployment efforts. enterprise assets and ensure effective service and delivery.

Research firm Gartner urges enterprises to establish a mobile Among the capabilities of these suites: center of excellence, gathering mobile-engaged stakeholders into Features, such as sandboxed containers and application formalized roles so they can coherently respond to issues and help wrapping, help wall off enterprise apps and data to prevent direct decision-making. Because mobility touches so many aspects data leakage, while app blacklisting and whitelisting provide of an enterprise, this group should be diverse in background. control over the apps that run on each device. Departments that may be represented include IT and security, Management tools allow IT staff to monitor app usage and to line of business, marketing, sales, operations, human resources set access permissions for apps running on all devices. and legal. The team should work together to craft coherent mobile policy and strategy for the enterprise. Private functionality limits users to installing only approved apps hosted in the enterprise’s app store. For specific mobile deployments, representatives from affected Remote app provisioning, device diagnostics and lock/wipe business units should be engaged, with units working together capability help IT managers set up, maintain and secure to ensure that processes and operations are adapted to new devices and data — even in the case of loss or theft. app solutions. For instance, a mobile app that enables intake of specifications and data for manufacturing will almost certainly require changes in the way information is delivered to engineers seat concessions purchases and a beaconing system that enables and supervisors. the app to suggest shopping opportunities to customers based on Executive engagement is paramount, and mobile leadership teams where they are in the venue. A detailed use scenario helps every should work closely with executives to communicate the project aspect of the effort — from giving the app development team a mission, budget expectations and well-researched projections tangible target to driving more accurate cost and ROI projections. for ROI. These communications must be sustained throughout the The effort to establish use cases can yield unexpected benefits, project lifecycle to ensure ongoing support from top management. such as discovery of secondary use cases that extend the value of From a process perspective, it is vital that teams talk coherently the initial mobile app proposal. Such efforts will need to be properly about the operational activities that are affected by a mobile app scoped, of course, to prevent mission creep that can produce cost rollout and develop detailed use cases that verify the validity of and time overruns. the proposed approach. An engagement that devolves into a list of Taking Action desired program features will almost certainly fail to address the underlying need. Once the initial groundwork is done, the project can move into the action phase. This phase includes selecting technologies and vendors, The first step is to identify the problem and perform a full formulating relevant metrics, and setting update schedules and assessment that examines, in detail, the existing process and how patterns. The nature and course of these activities will depend to a it is conducted. Interviews with users and a review of job roles large extent on the type of mobile app being deployed: virtualization, and activities are vital at this stage. From there, a coherent plan to off-the-shelf, or partially or fully customized. mobilize and improve the existing process can be crafted. It can also help to see how industry peers are executing similar processes. Once the team has identified the approach, it can identify candidate technologies, solutions and vendor companies. Decisions must be Crafting detailed use cases for the mobile app deployment is the made across a matrix of issues that includes technology platform next logical step. Here, the mobile team works with all stakeholders alignments, integration challenges, industry-specific requirements to propose specific use examples. For instance, a stadium operator (including regulatory compliance), cost considerations and future might document use cases for a smartphone app that enables in- mobility planning. In many instances, organizations may want THE APP ROADMAP: 8 MOBILE APP STRATEGY FOR THE WORKPLACE 800.800.4239 | CDW.com to engage a third-party service provider to help assess and CDW: A Mobile App Partner recommend solutions and vendors.

Defining metrics is an important step that allows enterprises to That Gets IT CDW has been delivering mobility products and services to track and gauge the effectiveness of a mobile app deployment. customers for many years, providing a wide array of IT solutions. Metrics should be developed through careful consideration of More than 250,000 organizations count on CDW as a trusted what defines success or failure in the project. For instance, an app partner because of its collaborative approach to solving IT initiative that measures success in terms of downloads, rather challenges. Because they partner with vendors throughout the than in terms of actual usage of the app, may fail to detect that industry, our account managers, solution architects and advanced registered users are not using the software — a clear sign of failure. technology engineers are able to offer clients knowledgeable, in- Key metrics to consider for a mobile app effort include usage, user depth advice on their technology initiatives. lifetime value, session length and interval, user acquisition and CDW experts listen closely to customers. We use our experiences retention, average revenue per user, and performance metrics such and feedback to continuously shape and improve offerings and as app launch and load times. In-app instrumentation and telemetry services and to help enterprises make the best possible decisions help to capture user behaviors and interactions, allowing developers to around mobile software development and deployment. pinpoint poorly executed or little-used features. This intelligence can be used to drive updates and improvements to the app. CDW account managers and solution architects are ready to assist with every phase of your mobile app deployment. The CDW Detailed metrics can also help mobile apps meet service contract approach includes: and service-level agreement commitments. These can be especially important for enterprise apps deployed to partners and internal An initial discovery session to understand goals, requirements operating units. The contracts can be used to define expectations and budget and shape decision-making in the development phase. Performance An assessment review of existing environment and definition of issues around uptime, availability, responsiveness and software project requirements quality are all relevant. In the case of performance shortfalls, such as Detailed manufacturer evaluations, recommendations, future extended downtime, a refund or other restitution may be made. environment design and proof of concept Mobile apps represent a major opportunity and profound challenge Procurement, configuration and deployment of the final solution to organizations of every type. Device-bound apps can create new efficiencies, enable compelling user experiences and support Telephone support as well as product lifecycle support vastly enhanced business processes that promise gains in revenue, To learn more about how to keep pace with productivity and customer satisfaction. Solid forethought and the mobile revolution, read CDW’s white paper planning are needed to achieve this promise. Mobile Procurement: Cleared for Takeoff.

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