History of the Russian corporate mobility

At different times IT solutions for corporate mobility were called differently and had different form and content, but one steady general sign at them could be selected — they gave an opportunity of interaction of the employee who is out of stationary office with corporate information systems/services through public communication channels.^[1]

2016

VMware: IT heads are ready to risk data security for the sake of more mobile business

According to results of the research of VMware devoted to studying of mobility in the Russian companies, a half of IT heads are ready to put at risk security of corporate data to make business more mobile. So, nearly a half of respondents (48%) say that advantages of mobility outweigh all potential security concerns, including date leak. According to poll, the companies in Russia need urgent digital transformation for receiving competitive ^[2]

Business is under the increasing pressure inducing to implement innovations and to change workflows. More than a half (56%) of IT heads are recognized that to enhance mobility them employees push, and more than a third (42%) of respondents say about insufficient development of mobility that it negatively affects efficiency. Ensuring corporate mobility will make employees more flexible, but at the same time the organizations need to retain control over security.

According to survey results, a little more than a quarter of employees (26%) are often broken by corporate politicians of mobility for benefit of performance. The fact that more than a third (35%) of Chief information officers say that top managers request access to corporate data from personal mobile devices even if it is contrary to security policy is important. Providing such access — a key problem, emphasized in the company. 42% of respondents are concerned by obvious threats for security which arise when employees work from own devices, and more than a third (36%) say that such access creates the simplest vulnerability for cybercriminals.

"Digital transformation is impossible without corporate mobility today. To bring business to new level and to provide to the employees flexibility, the organizations are forced to risk security from time to time — Vasilenko Alexander, the chief representative of VMware in Russia and the CIS said. — Good news is that to make the choice between mobility and security it is optional — it is possible to have both. With software-defined architecture security can be embedded in the application, in network, at the level of the user and content. It means that the organizations will be able to implement reliable digital working spaces, providing to users data access from any device and in any place. The companies will be so mobile as far as they need it, without prejudice to security".

Employees recognize that data of the company on corporate devices protect not so carefully as information on personal gadgets. More than a third from them (40%) told that they pay more attention to security of information on the personal device, than on corporate. Speaking about mobile work, only 41% of employees reported that all mobile politicians set by their company are known to them. The others do not even know whether they violate these rules or not.

2015

In 2015 the IT industry, as well as all Russian economy, endures the crisis which is expressed "is powerful, rough, visible" that IT budgets are reduced, a number of projects not of prime necessity is postponed until the best times. Mobile solutions far not everywhere got to discharge crucial for business therefore with start of new mobile projects many customers decided to wait. Nevertheless support and development of already implemented solutions is performed adequately. And new projects can quite start this year if their importance and efficiency for business is proved by specific calculations — for example, increase in a subscriber base, acceleration of business processes, etc.

Separately it should be noted such phenomenon as a trend on import substitution. In Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications order No. 96 of April 1, 2015 there is a plan of import substitution of the software according to which in a segment "client and mobile operating systems" the import share from present 95% should be reduced by 2020 to 75%, and by 2025 — up to 50%. For accomplishment of the plan it is necessary to create till July 1, 2015 passports of projects of import substitution "with involvement of the interested Russian organizations of the information technology industry and their associations (associations)". It is known that within study of plans of import substitution the minister N.A. Nikiforov met the heads of the Finnish company Jolla (Sailfish Holding) who submitted open mobile Sailfish OS and the Samsung company which provided open OS Tizen. Whether these systems will create (at least for 50%) the future of the Russian corporate mobility — will show time.

2013–2014

During 2013 - 2014 the direction of corporate mobility began to enter a time of the maturity. It was expressed generally that mobile solutions became much more rare to be created and implemented "for show" or that "not to be worse than competitors". The practical expediency and economic effect began to come out on top.

The political factor began to interfere with this period in the competition of mobile platforms. About one of participants of leader "tandem" of IOS — Android the data which are (inevitably mixed) on his special predisposition to purposeful information leaks began to reach. It developed, in particular, into statements for iPad prohibition for officials and the requirement to Apple to open source codes of the operating system. The peak of these disorders fell approximately on winter of 2013-2014. The second participant of a tandem — Android — much more open system; at the same time this openness has as pluses (possibilities of flexible configuration of OS, existence of different shops for purchase/installation of applications, etc.), and minuses: for Android 98% of all harmful mobile programs are created (data of Kaspersky Lab for January, 2014). It is also necessary to add that the possibility of installation of specialized means of protecting in mobile is generally prohibited to Android device by the producer of the device, but it can be permited them in the presence of the relevant agreement. In political light the openness of Android allowed it to align several positions on popularity among IT and cybersecurity heads of the large companies. As a result now even more often to developers of mobile software requests for delivery/creation of cross-platform solutions which should work equally effectively both at iOS, and at Android arrive.

2012

In 2012 the large international companies began to step on the stage of corporate mobile development actively. They proposed the solutions on the organization of reliable data exchange between the mobile client and the corporate server. As a rule, these solutions were purchased by large vendors from the third firms — both startups, and developers with long-term experience could be them. Solutions of large players were very attractive on the presentations and in small pilot projects. But in serious projects serious restrictions came to light. Some were too crude; others well coped with one class of tasks (for example, replication of relational data), but were not adapted for transfer of big and even average files. In the master's hands that these solutions that "self-written" mechanisms began to work sooner or later; the real advantage of solutions with the known brands was in reputation and weight of these brands.

Also 2012 it is mentioned by a release of Windows 8 — the first version of Windows which supported work on mobile tablets, having well worked tach-interface, etc. But, according to many, Microsoft was late with entry into this market, having become the hostage of a classical "dilemma of the innovator". Truly mobile show was already run and continue to edit iOS and Android. Windows works on tablets, but in most cases is the classical Windows requiring a mouse and allowing to start Word and Project, i.e. the tablet is used as new modification of Windows notebook.

2011

In 2011 competitors of Apple recovered a little from shock which made on them triumph of iPad. They began to release similar tablets which first almost did not make success though expectations were high. But gradually, model behind model tablets with Android did not become worse to look iPad. Some of them resembled so that in legal procedure in California between Apple and Samsung in October, 2011 even the experiment in the course of which the lawyer of Samsung could not distinguish iPad 2 and Galaxy Tab 10.1 from three meters was made.

At this time the automated workplace of the head with functionality of the client of EDMS and reportings/diagrams was the prevailing mobile corporate application. Developers gradually mastered development tools for iOS and Android — it was not so difficult to master one more language and the object environment for professionals. It was more difficult to build reliable, productive and safe mechanisms of synchronization of mobile application with a server part of a corporate system: it was required to create or find new architecture of client-server calculations in the market. Difference from the traditional client-server systems was: communication channels with changeable availability and performance; new mechanisms of authorization of mobile users; need of the strengthened data protection leaving the protected network perimeter and "settling" on the device which was out of office spaces with their surveillance cameras and protection on an input.

Developers of corporate mobile solutions of an era Windows CE had such experience and to them, apparently, it was simpler — it was necessary to pass to the new client platform only. But also these developers had to pass mostly to new timing circuits of data — one of the reasons was in significantly the increased amount of data.

Not so many attention, generally was paid at this time to questions of security because new gadgets were not perceived by security services as IT objects. But it lasted not for long, and soon requirements for data protection in the mobile sphere became very strict, with only that refining that quite often the severity of requirements was compensated by non-obligation of their execution.

2010

On January 27, 2010 Steve Jobs provided to public of iPad. Responses were very contradictory. It was pleasant to someone, but critical and ironic responses prevailed. Admirers of Microsoft laughed, reminding that Bill Gates provided the tablet with the tach-screen and Windows OS (Windows XP Tablet PC Edition) in 2001 and it was the real, powerful computer, but not stretched on iPhone diagonal.

Global demand for iPad exceeded the most courageous expectations of analysts and, perhaps, Apple. In the forecast of TMT (technology, media and telecommunications) Predictions for 2010 the Deloitte company foretold that from the moment of release of the tablet within 12 their months will be sold for $1 billion. Upon since April, 2010th in March 2011 only ipad'ov was sold for the amount about $10 billion (at the same time at the end of 2010 the first Samsung Galaxy tablets were already on sale, other competitors also followed them what else increased the actual sales).

In Russia ipad'y very quickly extended among top managers. Many large organizations began to think of implementation of mobile corporate applications for iPad — that the head could participate in business processes of the company, being out of office.

The big impression rendered on top managers how easy and it was comfortable to work with information. Case was not only in convenience of the device, but also in considerably other (in comparison with traditional business applications on Windows) approach to the organization of the user interface. Having seen the automated workplace of the head on iPad, many asked a question: "And why not to make the same user-friendly interface and on Windows?". And many and made. The design of the interface of many Windows applications exchanged under the influence of the Apple tablet.

2007–2009

Emergence of iPhone, and after it devices based on Android became a boundary of a new stage of development of mobility. Communicators like Qtek resembled in many respects iPhone — the size of the body and screen, weight, cost. But these communicators were mainly widespread among an IT shnikov, i.e. they were not the mass, consumer device.

In June, 2007 the first iPhone, in October of the 2008th — the first smartphone with Android (HTC Dream) went on sale. It led to revolution in corporate mobility, but first changes concerned a consumer sector. Smartphones began to get more and more widely into layers of the middle class, youth and further everywhere.

In corporate practice these devices at first were not widely adopted and had no special impact on development of corporate mobility. To this period there was kind of a preparation for that in corporate solutions to apply the same principles of simplicity, convenience, "sexuality" of the interface which so attracted consumers in iPhone. Broad use of iPhone in business was constrained in many respects by its small screen and also weak support by the corporate developers who got used to very convenient and effective remedies of development of Microsoft.

Everything quickly changed with the advent of iPad.

2004–2007

With the advent of iPaq, Qtek and also other similar devices also began corporate mobility in its present form factor. The mobile employee had a mobile device allowing it to interact with corporate systems by rather convenient method.

Equipment by such devices of sales representatives became one of the first mass use of mobile technologies. This scenario had a number of obvious advantages: the sales representative constantly works out of office, i.e. belongs to the most mobile employee category; the accessibility to the system of orders in the online mode saved a lot of time and significantly accelerated business processes; the cost of the mobile device and a rate of cellular communication was reasonable and quickly paid off.

2000–2003

The period of 2000 - 2003 is characterized by active penetration of cellular communication as transmission media of data, emergence of real prototypes of modern smartphones (for example, Nokia 9110 Communicator) and also distribution of the WAP protocol (Wireless Application Protocol). It allowed cell phones which then had the small black-and-white screen, to receive and display small portions of information, something like mini-web pages.

Soon began to extend actively the PDA (personal digital assistant) — communicators like iPaq of Compaq company. They were equipped with the Pocket PC operating system (based on the Windows platform of CE based on which Windows Mobile appeared later). Because of the big size their use as phone for a normal conversation looked strange (though phablets now — a usual thing).

1996–1999

During 1996 - 1999 speeds of modems grew, Windows 95 (in which an opportunity to be connected to the server of remote access was most simplified) even more often began to act as client OS, the concept Internet extended out of limits of a narrow circle of the network administrators knowing TCP/IP protocol subtleties. Thanks to simplification and acceleration of access and also emergence of search servers (in Russia Aport, in America — Yahoo was one of the first) an opportunity to look for and find the necessary information floating around the Internet became real.

What changed qualitatively — not only IT professional, but also so-called users, i.e. in a most up-to-date way business users became remote users (it was still difficult to call them mobile). It could be sales managers, directors, etc. The true mobility in Russia then was practically absent.

1990–1995

In the early nineties there was an active penetration into the country and into economy of personal computers, in fact, formation of modern Russian IT market began. The modems existing at that time for the switched telephone lines maintained access rate from 1200 bps which gradually grew with the advent of new generations of devices. There were many server mechanisms. Example: RAS (Remote Access Service) for remote connection based on Windows NT. Such methods of connection were used by generally system administrators and programmers for remote administration and maintenance of corporate servers. As the client device the desktop computer, and even the small server, as a rule, made the same Windows NT. Notebooks were a rarity.

Read Also

• Structure of the market of corporate mobility
• History of the Russian corporate mobility
• Corporate mobility of Bring Your Own Device - BYOD
• Overview: Mobile technologies for business
• The Russian market of mobile applications for business

Notes