Vox crafts partnerships to take enterprise mobility beyond the basics

Vox Telecom’s Enterprise Mobility Division has announced a number of new partnerships designed to help its customers not only integrate mobile devices seamlessly and securely into their corporate networks, but also to manage costs, maximise value and take full advantage of the opportunities mobile brings.

“The critical first step is to integrate all the mobile devices that need access to your corporate network and to secure them,” says Will Hardie, Executive Head of Enterprise Mobility at Vox Telecom. “Mobile devices are the most vulnerable area of most networks and traditional security tools don’t cover them, so protection is the first priority. We use MobileIron, which is probably the world’s leading mobile device management tool at this point. But a proper mobility strategy should deliver a lot more.”

Companies that in any way pay for or subsidise devices or data bundles need to look to cost management next, says Hardie. “Data charges can easily get out of hand, and once the money is spent it’s too late. We’re working with leading local mobile developer Aspivia on solutions that will, for example, lock SIM cards to particular handsets and soft lock profiles when data limits are exceeded.”

SMS messaging is another major cash drain for many clients, says Hardie – and one that can now be largely eliminated. “One of our new partners, BlazingChilli, has a great messaging app that drastically reduces the costs of mobile messaging, both within organisations and between organisations and their customers – without forcing customers to download new apps if they don’t want to.”

Beyond cost management, says Hardie, mobile strategies need to look at how companies can use or custom-develop apps to create efficiencies, differentiate themselves in the market, and improve productivity and customer service.

“We’ve partnered with mobile app developers 3Fifteen and DVT to serve clients who want to develop custom apps that are well integrated with their existing systems,” says Hardie. “Both these partners have a lot of experience developing in complex high-end environments, and we’re working with them on providing good mobile integration with shared file services like SharePoint and Dropbox.”

All these partnerships are about getting the most value possible out of the move to mobile devices, says Hardie. “There’s a logical progression,” he adds. “First integrate and secure, then start pushing apps and content to achieve your other business goals.”