Best practice tips for successful mobility projects, from Leif-Olof Wallin, research vice president, Gartner:

Don’t treat everybody the same

To successfully address enterprise mobility, it is important to segment the user base. You cannot just give everybody the same equipment and access, and hope that it works. Different types of equipment and services, together with training and support, will be required by separate groups of users. Most companies will be able to segment the user base into at least three profiles based on business requirements, job function, work style and locations.

Make IT responsible for mobility

Frequently, mobility projects have been sourced and driven in isolation by the line of business. Ensure that IT is responsible for all aspects of mobility to bring to it the same rigour that the delivery of traditional IT services enjoys. Such an initiative will ensure that the organisation benefits from the same predictability of costs and project delivery times, while achieving the agreed service levels for all its enterprise mobility projects.

Create a mobile centre of excellence

Enterprise mobility is going to show the same curve of maturity as the web, and it will take at least another five years before it becomes an integrated and standard technology. Lots of people throughout the organisation need to get involved. Create a centre of excellence with three or four key staff that pull in virtual members as required to look at issues such as compliance, security, procurement, contract negotiation and local policies for use.

Implement a single unified mobility policy

Have a single mobile policy that supports the wider enterprise mobility strategy. Rather than rely on separate policies that have grown up piecemeal for mobile phone and laptop use, firms need to create one end-to-end policy that addresses all the issues of mobility, including security and interconnection standards. Mobile devices can no longer be considered in isolation from the rest of the organisation.

Balance people, process and technology

For any strategy to be successful, it is important to balance technology with people and process. Companies do not need to focus on having the best technology; good enough technology and applications that meet key requirements are sufficient. While policies and processes are required for success, overly focusing on such aspects will delay time-to-business benefits while large amounts of documentation is produced. You need to have good, skilled people, but you can’t rely on expertise. Find the balance between good enough technology, skilled people and sufficient policy­ and processes for a successful implementation.