Monday 30 May 2016

Is SaaS killing traditional IT?

software development companies

Before two decades, IT was the only department that handled IT services for an entire organization like a software development company — one department to rule them all, if you will. From mail to softwares to hardware problems like problems in printers, they were trusted upon for a variety of issues.

But now as technology continues to grow, more companies are moving towards to Software as a Service (SaaS) for their business needs. Of course there are lot of benefits that are associated with this new IT and employee dynamics, but also unplanned consequences i.e. a rift in the way IT works.

(Gartner Symposium Executive Summary Report, 2014) says enterprise apps will have sales of $40 billion for developers by 2016. A grip for consumer-friendly image applications, games, and renegade business applications, the app stores of today are now going through a major makeover as the enterprise-class comes into its own.

It’s apparent to see that enterprise mobility is rapidly acquiring ground, but it’s still a challenging experience for most developers due to the technical complications and extravagant delivery models for most enterprise mobile platforms. Adding to that the swiftly evolving nature of mobile technologies, and you can see, why most approach the world of enterprise applications (developing and implementing) with anxiety. But this is shifting, and affordable opportunities to build, test, and monetize are now more voluntarily available in the enterprise space.

What’s important in today’s world, is that ‘Application is not the only concern’; it’s also about how the application works within a system. The procedure of bringing data or a function from one application program together with that of another can turn out to be nightmarish for an IT company such as a software development company if it isn’t dealt with correctly. Companies are going to drift down towards the technologies that are simple and effective for their specific needs, meaning integration will be a part of the development process.

In recent years, SaaS has been merged into the strategy of all leading enterprise software development companies. The USP is this: Reduction in IT support costs by outsourcing hardware maintenance and support to the SaaS vendor.

However, the wide array of available applications requested by each department has made managing user access and approval an increasing challenge. The task of letting the users have access to dozens of different applications is time-consuming, and determining which department is using which apps and who has user access and permissions to what, is leading to a fragmented IT department. As the sales team requests different applications than that of engineers, IT is becoming more particular — an IT member for sales and a different IT member for the engineering department — and also more diversified.This diversification is happening across all businesses as departments start adopting new technologies. The question now is ‘Can this model be continued as technologies continue to grow?’ There will always be arguments to keep the traditional integrated IT department model. It’s a model that has worked well for years; however, it’s important for businesses to introspect and see which model will generate profits for them, the most.

(Forrester research on IT departments) predicts that IT departments could disappear as soon as 2020. However, we are not sure that it would go so far. Without a doubt, IT is always going to develop as it races to keep up with new technologies. It’s about how rapidly departments can familiarize.

Actually, the success will be achieved when the IT departments figure out these changes before others. This will unavoidably change the role of the CIO in software development companies as their IT team fragments and transfers into various departments. As this happens, their role will be defined by the central technology and business strategy of the day, in the same manner as by their own drive and talent and CIOs will be networking with the world in a whole new way. The question now is ‘Are they ready?’


Bibliography

Forrester. (n.d.). Forrester research on IT departments. Forrester.
Gartner. (2014). Gartner Symposium Executive Summary Report. Orlando: Gartner.

Tuesday 17 May 2016

Impact of wearables on BYOD policy of software development company

software development companies

It’s a known fact that many IT departments struggled with the growth in BYOD policies adopted by software development companies all over the globe. In an effort of protecting critical business data and making sure that all devices worked properly as employees used their own devices for work, IT had to handle more complex challenges. But that complex problem has now moved on to the next level, as employees have started bringing wearable devices for work.

With the latest announcement of the Apple Watch, alongside other wearable gadgets like Samsung’s Galaxy Gear and Google Glass, the wearable device market is on the verge of exploding. (Burrus, 2014) estimated sale of 10 lakhs wearable devices in 2014, and the same number is predicted to increase to 3000 lakhs by 2018. IT workers need to get prepared now, because wearable devices are making their place in the office premises sooner rather than later.

Wearable devices have the benefit of creating unique opportunities for a software development company though these devices also bring along the threats in a globally connected world.

Assimilating wearable devices into the work environment can arise a situation where company information is even more suitably accessed and utilized. For example, software installation can be done using smart glasses by following step by step instructions in case the installation procedure is complex.

The advantages might tempt business leaders to use wearable devices, but the same technology also brings with it, some drawbacks, the most concerning being increased security risks. IT workers have spent lot of their efforts in testing and approving apps using MDM software. As wearable devices become more prevalent, new apps will be developed, forcing IT department to go through that whole process once again.
IT departments will also have to build security controls for these new devices. Most organizations have controls in place that include a remote lock or wipe feature, where devices that are misplaced or stolen can be locked or wiped to ensure the data which resides inside the device is protected from unauthorized visitors. These controls will have to be created for wearable technology too.

There are also concerns over how wearable devices might be used to steal information by employees within the company (like an employee secretly recording a confidential meeting using smart glasses). So as this new technology comes alive, the search to answer these questions begins.

Even if the security concern is properly addressed, other significant obstacles will keep the businesses away from using wearable devices widely in the immediate future. Currently, most of these devices are expensive with prices out of the range of the average customer. Strategic level employees such as CXOs may use them, but making them available for operational level employees will be difficult until prices decline.

The other concern is the cost of data that comes with using more mobile devices in the work environment. As more innovative gadgets make their way to the workplace, increasing the amount of consumption of data, which can reduce the bandwidth of a business’s network. Pair that with the security risks mentioned above, and prevalent adoption of wearable devices under a BYOD policy might take a year or more to happen.
It took years for software development companies in India to finally get a handle on BYOD when it came to mobile devices and tablets. That epoch of BYOD created a radical shift in the business world which increased efficiency but introduced new security risks.

Conclusion: 

Wearable devices will likely outgrowth the next revolution in the workplace. If businesses don’t want to be caught unprepared, now is the time to create the policies and procedures to deal with the influx of new technology. With the right strategies in place, every software development company adapting WYOD will be able to gain maximally from the benefits while minimizing the drawbacks.


Bibliography

Burrus, D. (2014). How Wearables will Transform Business. Burrus Research.