rb|it : blog

The benefits of mobile computing

Mobile phones are a fixture in every business now, particularly for staff that travel.  It’s assumed that if you need to reach a colleague, you can, where-ever they are.  Surprisingly though, PDA and Smartphone technology hasn't achieved the same penetration, possibly due to the perceived technology barriers and market complexity.  I’m lucky enough to be in a position where I can overcome these barriers, and mobile computing has been a huge benefit to me, to the point where I would struggle without it.  So what are the benefits of PDA's and Smartphones, and how do you make sure you can take advantage of them?

The benefits

1. Mobile Email.  With an 'always on' data connection (GPRS, 3G or Wireless) your mobile staff can be notified of an email within seconds of you sending it, just like they are in the office.  Email can contain far more content than an SMS message, it's free, and easier to retrieve than voicemail.
2. Mobile Web browsing.  If you have an extranet or web enabled services (a CRM or Helpdesk system for example) then your staff can access these quickly from their PDA browser.
3. Mobile Office applications.  Both Windows Mobile devices and iPhones have support for Microsoft Office documents and PDF's.  This means your mobile staff can be reviewing a technical document, quote, or contract while they're on the move.

The 'How?'

1. What are you connecting to?  Make sure the devices you chose can access the systems you already have (don't buy new server systems just to fit in with your mobile devices).  Windows Mobile devices will work with Microsoft servers, and can also access email on any mail server, though the mobile browsing isn't particularly good.  Apple iPhones can access any mail server (including Microsoft Exchange) and have better mobile browsing support.
2. Get the right data package.  Even if your device has wireless built in, your staff can't guarantee they will be within reach of a wireless network, and will need to use GPRS or 3G.  Make sure your SIM contract includes unlimited data at a fixed cost.
3. Test the devices first.  My experience has been that HTC Windows Mobile devices are excellent, but the HTC devices branded by O2 (the XDA), T-Mobile (MDA) and Orange are rarely as reliable.  If possible, get a device to test, or invest in just one for a 'tech savvy' member of staff to evaluate.
4. Train your staff.  There's no point investing in the technology if your staff don't know how to use it.  Make sure they know how to use mobile email, browsing, and any applications they'll be expected to use.  It's also worth making sure someone in the company knows how to configure your phones in case the need to be reset and setup again.

Every day, I receive instant email notification of Helpdesk calls, view and update the calls and research a solution via Pocket Internet Explorer, and email the client with the fix, all from my PDA, where-ever I am.  If you invest carefully in your mobile technology, you too can effectively remove the communication barrier for off site staff.

Is uptime the best measure of system efficiency?

One of the main responsibilities of IT staff is to keep the company systems up and running, the success of which is commonly measured as percentage ‘uptime’.  For the business uptime = money made and downtime = money lost; the aim is to get the uptime figure as close to 100% as possible.  That figure is most commonly based on the response to tests, by network monitoring systems, on one or more specific servers or services.  The weakness of this approach is that a network might have a server uptime of 99.99%, but the average uptime on a company PC may only be 85%.  It's also possible to fall into the trap of obsessing about uptime when it's not as important as you might think.  I take a more pragmatic approach, that downtime is only an issue if it effects the users of the system.

For most companies, it's more productive to expand the definition of ‘downtime’ to include ANY reduction in functionality on ANY system during operating hours.  Now a truer picture of uptime appears (though the 100% target becomes even more impossible to reach).  This is the approach I prefer to take, focusing a little wider on the organisation as a whole, rather than exclusively on the servers and their uptime.

Unfortunately it’s very difficult to measure uptime in such a holistic way, based on every server, switch, router, PC, printer or mobile device.  Traditional network monitoring systems fall short of the task as the complexity of the functionality they would need to test is too great.  Only a person can make an assessment of whether a system is 'up' or 'down'.  For example, the PC may be up, Outlook may be running, and the mail server may be fine; but there is a permission error on a public folder so the user can't see what they need to see.  For the user, THAT is downtime.

An approach to get a better understanding of your total system performance is to use your helpdesk or other issue tracking system to track reported incidents and their impact.  If you educate and encourage your users to record every issue they encounter, and you record how long it takes to resolve the problem, then you have a better picture of the real uptime of your network.  That picture allows you to focus your resources on ALL causes of downtime, rather than the traditional priorities (server or component failure, power outages etc.)

Taking this approach will identify the causes of downtime which are often missed; poorly configured client software, incorrect permissions, user training etc.  Focus on these issues, and you will increase the real uptime of your systems and ultimately the productivity of staff.  It's not as conspicuous or immediately gratifying as a 99.99% uptime figure, but it's ultimately more meaningful!