How Durable Handheld Computers are Better Suited to the Mobile Workplace than Consumer-grade Smartphones
Mobility in the workplace is growing exponentially all around the world. “Companies continue to expand their mobile workforces, as increasingly capable and affordable technology becomes available in the form of high performance handheld devices connected to faster and more reliable wireless networks,” states industry analyst J. Gold Associates. According to VDC Research, “The global mobile workforce is comprised of 200 million knowledge workers and over 500 million task workers.”
What does this business mobility look like? “More and more types of workers are working away from the home office,” says Sheldon Safir, director of marketing at Motorola, “and the whole reason is to increase productivity.” Field sales forces and workforces can be away from the office for weeks at a time. But mobility is about more than simply being out of the office. More workers and managers are also getting out from behind their desks and working where they’re most needed. Retail sales associates are helping customers in multiple departments throughout the store. Warehouse workers are constantly on the move around indoor spaces larger than multiple football fields. And there’s one thing these and other mobile workers have in common.
Mobile Workers Need Mobile Communications
Every mobile worker needs to be able to communicate quickly and effectively from wherever they are. What’s making that happen? Wireless networks, mobile computers and advanced wireless devices. Today’s high-speed networks enable mobile workers to speak with one another in real-time on mobile phones and other devices.
But work communications are different than personal communications. For one thing, workers need to speak with other workers who may be using a variety of wireless devices—from laptops and tablet computers to two-way radios—that use a variety of technologies. In addition, their communications must be transmitted securely to help guard against cyber crime and identity theft. Workers need to access company databases that hold sensitive data to place orders, search inventory and perform other tasks. They need to share data, images and even video. They also need devices that can stand up to the physical pressures and elements of life in the business world. Mobile workers need mobile devices that are intelligent, versatile and tough.
The Smartphone Temptation
One way to provide mobile workers with mobile devices is to simply give them phones like their own personal wireless phones. Today’s consumer-class smartphones provide clear voice communication, they can access the Internet, they’re small and they look cool. You can get them at the local phone store at the mall, and the initial cost will be less than the class of handheld mobile computing devices designed for enterprise use. In economic times like these, lower cost of deployment is a very tempting option. Why shouldn’t you just give your mobile workers smartphones? It’s easy and it’s affordable. Or is it?
“In analyzing the optimum solution, organizations should look beyond acquisition cost of a device and concentrate on discovering the true lifecycle costs of the entire solution,” according to J Gold Associates. “Only then can the organization maximize its ROI.” In other words, you can’t afford to overlook the “oooops factor.”
Smart But Not So Tough
“My smartphone worked fine on the sales floor until I dropped it.” As exemplified by the words of our mythical retail sales associate, smartphones are great for consumers, but consumer-grade smartphones may not be great for the workplace. They may not be strong enough or versatile enough to meet the needs of mobile workers and field forces because the mobile workplace presents major challenges for mobile devices.
- Continuous use. Enterprise workers need to work for long hours at a time, and need mobile devices they can count on to do the same. They can’t be left out of the loop when their devices break down or when their batteries fail after only two or three hours of continuous use.
- Rough handling. It’s bad enough to drop a smartphone on carpet, it’s worse to drop it on a concrete shop floor. In the pressure of the moment, mobile workers’ mobile devices are handled like the rugged, hard-working tools they need to be.
- Tougher jobs. In consumers’ hands, smartphones are typically used for tweeting and texting, not for capturing, entering and transmitting data crucial to completing their tasks and the smooth running of a business. Devices must be more flexible and robust to deal with the complexity of business technology.
- Harsher environments. Smartphones aren’t normally built to withstand intense environmental conditions: rain, snow, extreme temperatures and other difficult situations regularly encountered by field workforces.
- Enterprise applications.* In today’s business environment, mobile workers—whether on the road in Rotterdam or on a retail clothing store floor during a clearance sale—need devices that can instantly interface with enterprise applications and systems such as VPN access or interactivity with the inventory database. Most consumer smartphones are limited in the range of applications they support.
- Need for add-ons. Smartphones are also not optimized for the empowering add-ons and peripherals—RFID readers, fingerprint scanners, printers and credit card readers—that enable mobile workers to perform more complex tasks more completely virtually anywhere and everywhere.
A New Class of Mobile Device
Until relatively recently, the alternative to supplying workers with consumer-grade phones was giving them more costly, totally ruggedized handheld mobile computers typically used in industrial environments such as public safety and public works operations, and in industries like petroleum, chemical, construction, manufacturing, transportation and more. Says Safir, “This often led to businesses overspending on devices that were more ruggedized—and more expensive— than they really needed.”
The solution was to create a new class of business-oriented handhelds—such as the Enterprise Digital Assistant (EDA). These handheld computing devices provide the robust functionality and degree of durability that meet the mobile communications needs of most businesses—without the high cost of ruggedized units. Good looks, smaller form factors and ease of use are also key. “EDAs look less industrial and more like the personal devices workers are used to,” says Safir, “and they provide functionality well beyond simple voice communications including data capabilities, WAN access, GPS and enhanced security.”
PRIME Time
Which mobile devices are optimal for your organization? “PRIME is the acronym for a process developed by Motorola to help organizations choose the best wireless device solution for their needs,” says Safir, “The process helps our customers understand the most important factors to consider when they are selecting mobile communications devices.” PRIME—Platform, Ruggedness, Integration, Management, Enterprise Lifecycle—helps enterprises choose devices that maximize durability, productivity, value and ROI (See Sidebar).
TCO is the Name of the Game
Speaking of TCO, J. Gold Associates offers an eye-opening comparison of the TCO of consumer-grade and EDA-class mobile devices.
“Comparing the TCO of durable handheld devices with those of commercial off-the-shelf devices deployed to field workers, we found that a durable enterprise-class handheld device has a 3-year TCO of $1,294 compared a 3-year TCO for a consumer-class device of $1,819… a 3-year lifecycle savings of $525.”
“Further, if enterprise-class devices provide a 2 percent productivity improvement over their consumer-class rivals, companies can generate an additional $3,000 per user per year, or over $9,000 over the expected 3-year life cycle of the device. This revenue enhancement potential more than makes up for the premium costs associated with business-class handheld devices.”
“The bottom line,” concludes Safir, “is that for the workplace, the EDA-class of business-centric handheld computing and communications devices is more valuable in terms of productivity and TCO than consumer-grade smartphones.” This introduces a totally different oooops factor into the equation, as in: “Oooops, I guess we should have used EDAs instead of smartphones.”
