Why all Digital Transformation Leaders Have a Mobile-First Information Management Strategy
Even now, lots of businesses first design their website to work on laptops and desktops. Afterwards, they will also make sure those same sites function well enough on phones and tablets, almost like an afterthought. Surprisingly, that’s what most people mean when they discuss responsive website design.
In an era when even Google has advocated for mobile-first development, such a cart-before-the-horse approach doesn’t signal digital transformation leadership. Businesses need a way to offer the same experience, including usability and security, to mobile devices that they strive to provide on desktops.
Why Employ a Mobile-First Information Management Strategy?
These statistics about the source of internet traffic were compiled in early 2020, even before the coronavirus made such a dramatic impact on remote, online access:
- Just about half of all internet traffic originates from mobile devices.
- Google reported getting 63 percent of their traffic from mobile devices.
- In the US, somewhat less than half of all online traffic comes from mobile; however, in some countries, it’s almost 90 percent.
From everywhere, mobile internet access has been growing dramatically each year, often driven by faster connection speeds. Industry analysts expect this trend to continue as 5G gets more common. Within the next two or three years, expect to see mobile take a 70% share of internet use.
The Rise of Mobile to Manage Business Information
First, it’s impossible to overlook the tremendous growth in mobile, remote access that the coronavirus pandemic sparked. As just one example, people have started using mobile apps for finance and banking up to 85% more than they did before the outbreak, according to Forbes. When customers and businesses can’t go to their offices or branch banks, the services need to come to them.
People aren’t just spending their time on their phones watching entertaining videos. They’re using them to conduct serious business. As an example, ZDNet noted a significant increase in downloads of mobile apps for businesses in the early months of 2020. Overall, business app downloads in the first quarter of 2020 increased by over 100 percent over the first quarter of 2019. Out of this, business app developers can enjoy some good news as paid installations of premium versions increased by 75 percent.
Is Mobile Information Management Secure Enough for the Enterprise?
Mobile Information Management even has its own acronym now, MIM. It refers to accessing critical and sensitive information from mobile apps to meet the demand for remote access by businesses. To handle this sort of access outside of corporate offices and in-house networks, these systems encrypt information, so that only authorized users can see or manipulate the information.
Businesses can take advantage of software systems and apps that will conform to their governance policies and compliance laws. At the same time, the business and their employees can enjoy the agility and productivity boost of accessing the information that they need from just about anywhere and with any type of device they choose, including phones, tablets, and other computers.
How M-Files Enables Remote, Mobile Information Management
M-Files first enables business productivity by taking a two-pronged approach to access:
- Companies can use the system’s central repository.
- Alternatively, users can point to the data wherever it’s stored.
M-Files already integrates with common kinds of software and information repositories. That means there’s no need for a large migration project or a change in business processes to use this intelligent information management system. At the same time, M-Files offers its own repository that businesses can choose to use for safe, secure, and recoverable storage if they choose. M-Files also has many features, such as moving documents along their workflow paths, that will help businesses improve productivity and processes.
These are some highlights of M-Files built-in mobile information management system:
- Besides giving companies the ability to access data from any storage, M-Files also has a device-agnostic design, meaning that users can enjoy the same good experience if they use the desktop in the corporate office or a mobile phone in their home office, airport lounge, or an offsite workplace.
- Advanced editing and co-authoring features also make it easy to collaborate and collate with other people, no matter where they’re working. It’s also possible to set input rules to reduce the chance of errors and to preserve data quality.
- Access controls, authentication, audit trails, recovery, and encryption make this ISO-27001-certified software secure and reliable for the most sensitive information. Companies can control information access and/or editing at the rule level and make certain that only authorized users can see the data. If an issue ever arises, it’s possible to see a complete history of the document and its use.
Find Out How M-Files Can Help Lead Your Company’s Digital Transformation
Especially in these days of social distancing and disruption, many businesses found they weren’t really prepared for a mobile workforce. At the same time, M-Files customers have found that the right tools can make this transition easier and less expensive than previously imagined. To fully understand how intelligent, remote, and mobile-first information management will benefit your business, contact us with your questions or to experience a demo or free trial.