Clive Shirley's Blog

Clive is a Principal engineer for Autonomy iManage. He has over 18 years of experience in content and document management in the legal and finances industry. Currently, his specialty is in mobile devices and server infrastructure for the mobile workforce. Clive’s blog looks at new trends for mobile professionals and how to effectively and efficiently be more mobile. Clive is an enthusiastic Apple Mac fan.

Customer Service on Vacation….what mobile devices have enabled

October 24, 2008 @ 1:03 pm by Clive Shirley

My vacation this year took me to an idyllic island in the Mediterranean sea, with no WIFI/internet cafe in site; yet I could still get email and internet feeds using the cellular networks (fortunately Interwoven pays for that :)).  This un-unique scenario really drove home the fact that we can work productively from almost any location around the world because everyone has mobile devices.

Summer is over now we begin the descent into the autumnal and winter months, a journey that seems to mirror the current economic climate.  As we see more corporations and financial institutions filing for chapter 11 many company strategists are devising plans to weather the storm…  So how can mobility help …?

We have been on the verge of a mobile explosion, or so analysts have been predicting for the last 10 years; in reality this has been more of a steady stream, with evolutionary rather than revolutionary steps.  With the advent of 3/3.5/3.75g networks (yes 3.75 does exist - in Europe anyway) the ability to work anywhere anytime is more then viable than ever. 

To leverage this type of mobile technology/infrastructure our application architectures must change.  No longer should we building connected solutions (they use too much bandwidth), more over we need to be implementing a disconnect synchronization architecture using public networks as our communication medium.  This is no real surprise particularly as we look at the proliferation of data only USB dongles providing cellular data connections.

OK, so far I have stated the obvious, but how can this help us in the current economic climate?   For some it will not, for others it will provide them with a more measurable competitive edge (i.e. up-to the minute market monitoring for making financial decisions).  For the majority it can provide a reactive mechanism that allows us to provide a higher level of customer service/satisfaction.  Being able to respond to clients effectively and in good time is a key differentiator when attracting new clientele, while financial cost is a factor, as most savvy CEO/CIO understand that old adage ‘you get what you pay for’.  Competition is good particularly when looking a goods but services need to be examined from a number of dimensions.

Thus being reactive when your competitors are not can be a key differentiator. To realize this we need business aligned applications over and above email that work well across the available data links.  While we can do this with classic applications on notebooks/web-books using USB Data modems it looks very un-cool (just imagine unpacking a laptop and then holding it above your head, against the window or walking up and down the street trying to get a data connection). 

But you guys are already sold on mobile devices; most people have a cell phone and or BlackBerry/iPhone etc.  So we need other line of business applications that integrate well with each other over an above the ‘bread and butter’ solutions.  But we need to taper this; ‘all work and no play’ makes Clive a very dull boy!

For me, well I just want one device that has everything on it - email, music, calendar, contacts, VOIP, web browsing, WorkSite Mobility and a cell phone. 

What funny/interesting “work” have you done on vacation using your favorite mobile device?

No Comments | Category: Document Management | Mobility

Mobility…What’s that about?

August 26, 2008 @ 5:00 am by Clive Shirley

So what do we actually mean by mobility.  Lets put some scope around this by placing it into a professional concept (google it and see). 

In this case we generally refer to solutions that provide universal access to information and applications that enable a professional to be ‘productive’ whenever and were ever they are.  Now this causes me some life choice pains as being contactable and productive 24/7 directly conflicts with personal priorities (i.e. quality time with my family). How can we draw a balance ?  Turn the BlackBerry OFF (won’t happen) !

No really, this presents considerable issues for every professional that I meet who use our Mobility Suite (or any other solution - but why would you?).  We can build the coolest applications that ensure one is connected and productive 24/7 but we cannot control how they are used and the work/life balance choices made by the individual.  Moreover as corporations provide these devices to their employees (often as an employment sweetener) there is an implication that said employee will be contactable 24/7, this in itself is unacceptable.

So what can we do?

Employers need to take responsibility. Mobile devices are an essential tool in business today, period.  Employers need to trust their employees, people (the right people anyway) will generally do the right thing and go above and beyond when needed (without being prompted).

We need to induce a mechanism that allows us to identify when people can be contacted.  Thus if the employee wants to be available rather than spending time with his/hers family - well this is a life choice they can make (without pressure).  OK I can hear everyone groaning…  Email kinda of solves this, but if you have your BlackBerry switched on and receive an email then it is difficult not to take a sneaky look at it regardless of whether you are at home, out to dinner or whatever.  But if we have a way to notify people and/or other systems that we are unavailable then we potentially solve this.  I know I know just turn the  BlackBerry OFF ! No need for more software solutions it is as easy as a software/hardware switch (not gonna happen).

Which brings me onto Presence…

So far we have not talked about the other-side of the coin.  What if we/I need to get in touch with someone URGENTLY - you know it can’t wait until Monday morning, I need to interrupt their Sunday lunch.  Well I can email them - but I don’t really know if they are reading their email.  I could phone them, but do I want to interrupt them during Sunday lunch as it can probably wait 1/2 hour or so (well we are not big on Sunday lunch ).  What I really need is a way to know if they are available and what medium I could use to contact them.  The answer - Presence information.

OK I admit the Sunday Lunch thing is a bit convoluted but, just think, you finish a morning meeting and what to know if another customer is available for a lunch time bite and chat about your latest and greatest Mobility Product (I am sure they would be if your paying!).  A look a my list of contacts along with their current presence information allows me to quickly identify whom to target.

Anyway,  this was not quite what I intended to start the Mobility Blog on, it just kind of happened - probably because I was multi tasking (IM with a colleague at the same time), yes us MEN can multi task (or co-operative task), OK I had to stop writing the blog to answer the IM messages).

I look forward to sharing some further thoughts about this topic with you guys over the following months.

No Comments | Category: Document Management | Mobility