Enterprise Investment in Mobile Initiatives Is on the Rise

Zenprise®, Inc., a leader in mobile device management (MDM) security and innovation, recently released the results of a survey that polled 501 IT professionals on their mobile initiatives. Findings reveal that organizations are taking proactive and innovative approaches to their mobile strategies. Organizations are investing in mobile business initiatives, developing mobile apps, and getting a return on their investment.

Click through for findings from a Zenprise, Inc. survey on mobile initiatives in the enterprise.

Organizations are going beyond addressing mobility as a security liability and using it strategically to increase revenue, reduce costs, and gain a competitive advantage. 74.7 percent of respondents said they have or will deploy mobile apps to support their line-of-business activities in the next 12 months. 52.2 percent have or will deploy mobile apps considered to be “mission-critical” to their organization.

23.4 percent of respondents reported generating a monetary return-on-investment (ROI) on their mobile initiatives. Of those who reported a monetary ROI, on average, every dollar spent on mobile returned $1.67. The most oft-cited primary benefit of mobile initiatives was competitive differentiation, at 31.8 percent. Another 18.9 percent of respondents cited an increase in revenue.

Companies are moving away from publicly available apps in favor of ones that are custom-built for their needs. 81.0 percent of organizations will deploy custom apps in the next 12 months. 40.2 percent will utilize a third party (such as a systems integrator) to develop apps on their behalf, and 40.7 percent will develop custom apps themselves. Currently, 57.0 percent of organizations deploy apps that are downloadable from public app stores, but over the next 12 months, that number will drop to 44.9 percent.

Despite the shift in thinking around how mobile initiatives can increase the bottom line, organizations still view security as the most important app capability. 79.8 percent cite data security and 79.1 percent cite secure access as the mobile capabilities that give respondents the most comfort in developing mobile apps.