Ian Thain

Over the last year I have been quite a convert in the area of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) as part of the Consumerization of IT in Enterprise Mobility. It allows the Prosumer in the company to bring their own device into the workplace, increasing their productivity. Less training etc ! Mobile Weapon of Choice ;-). Though for the Company it brings in the areas of device management and security above and beyond any reduction in cost of supplying any such devices. Some would class it as a win-win and it has been for a while. I see one drawback of BYOD which is the fact that in certain industries features of cool devices may need to be disabled, making that great device a little less useable. For example, the camera or Bluetooth may not be allowed by some Mobile Governance Policies. Going even further, some policies may try to restrict consumer apps and usage scenarios... (more)

Mobile Apps Have to Have the LOOK!

Branding and Corporate Identity is another part of the Mobile Application UX that will be important from 2012 onwards. Compliance to a standard corporate visual design helps to build a consistent look and feel for your brand, that you have already have spent time and money on. Now you must visualise the look that the Mobile Application will be designed around. Nowadays we can take a number of approaches, such as Paper, Pencil & Stencil and digital means. I prefer the digital way forward. There are a number of Applications that aid iterative RAD design processes such as Balsamiq ... (more)

What to Build in Your Mobile Apps

What should you always keep in mind when building your Mobile Business App? Mobile Applications should be available everywhere, though there may be restriction if Wireless 3G/Wifi is not. This may be because of geographic location or maybe restriction on the usage of radio signals. Personally I am a great believer of building as much of the Application in an ‘occasionally connected – always available’ model that allows data to be stored locally on the mobile device and updated bi-directionally back to the backend systems when available, minimising down-time for Application and th... (more)

It's All About Beautiful Mobile Apps

Mobile Business Applications should help users get their jobs done, intuitively, effectively and efficiently. This can be achieved with a Beautiful Mobile Application, which in turn means a great experience and that’s no different from consumer to business Applications. Now that the Prosumer (Professional with Consumer expectations and knowledge) is part of every workforce, it is most important to satisfy your Mobile Information Workers with adequate, correct, and consistent information, in new innovative ways. That is why companies such as Apple suggest that the design of how th... (more)

Mobility in Business Is Now a Necessity!

If you have been reading my articles and blogs you will know that I am a staunch believer that the iPad is the Corporate Mobility game changer and enabler for the future and the Future of Mobility is NOW! I totally believe that the Mobile device is a tool for the future worker that can be unlocked with the forward thinking and design of bespoke business apps. Having a Mobile Device and never building Corporate Apps is like having a Swiss Army Knife on a Survival Trip and never using it. Check out my full article at TechWorld here I also have another article on Apps in the Enterp... (more)