I've been invited to speak next Thursday in a Webinar on a few of the practical and financial aspects of mobility, sponsored by Trellia Networks, who have been doing some very interesting work in the mobile policy management (MPM) space. MPM is not the same as mobile device management (MDM), although the two are related. MDM is very nuts-and-bolts - provisioning, zapping, updating, etc., and it is of course essential. But the other side of mobile operations is policy - which network or service to use when, security management, and generally giving management the visibility and control to see what users are really doing in the field, and, if necessary, to non-disruptively correct behaviors that result in unnecessary costs.
I've for some time been of the opinion that the operational elements of any mobile solution are significantly more important than those related to capital expense or technology alone. The potential for cost savings here is enormous (people are expensive and getting more so), and without compromise to what mobile users are able to do in the field. That's what we'll talk about in the Webinar - the issues, the opportunities, and the solutions available. I hope you can attend. Click here for more information or to sign up. A replay will be available if you can't attend the live event, but, regardless, MPM is a direction that I think will attract significant management attention going forward - as it very well should.
Mathias is a principal at Farpoint Group, a wireless advisory firm in Ashland, Mass.