For businesses, it’s now generally understood that the move to mobile is no longer a technological fad — it’s a vital progression of technology that enables convenience, adaptability and responsiveness in an ever-changing marketplace. Leading enterprises are leveraging mobile technology to gain a competitive advantage.

Enterprise mobility is more than an app

By putting data and analytics in the hands of employees, companies are quick to see the benefits, such as faster, better decisions that elevate professionals’ performance and drive higher levels of customer satisfaction. This is the mobile market IBM defined.

Today, we continue to push the market forward. Never before has the scale and breadth of enterprise data been so accessible, user-centric and readily available on any mobile device. Since forming our partnership with Apple more than two years ago, we have experienced a shift in enterprise mobility that is driving powerful innovation across our clients and their industries — digital transformation that starts with mobile.

The journey begins with a foundation for a broader transformation

We’ve guided thousands of companies on their digital transformation journeys — IBM is a one-stop shop for enterprises. The journey starts with a use case — how to overcome the on-the-job challenges of a professional, such as retail store associates, flight attendants and insurance agents. We then design elegant, compelling apps with key functions to make everyday tasks easier, while mirroring the look and feel of what professionals experience with consumer apps.

App design quality is certainly vital. More importantly, the app needs to be smart and provide professionals with the required insight for the best decision-making. To do that, enterprises require integration services to ensure mobile apps are securely connected to their existing system of record, allowing back-end data to seamlessly sync with these made-for-business apps. The result is a beautiful app that equips professionals with expertise, solutions and data to change how they work.

At IBM, we pull all that together in a rapid, staged and agile fashion to deploy our made-for-business apps, putting a premium on simplicity and design, focusing on interacting with high-value enterprise processes and deploying mobile solutions quickly. With a quick return on investment, enterprises are now primed for the next phase of mobile-led digital transformation.

Mobility at speed and scale

We’re now seeing the conversation shift from wanting a single mobile app to a much broader transformation around deploying multiple apps over a multiyear period — companies want to work on several apps at any given time and expect swift results. Many enterprises find themselves in the middle of tens to hundreds of mobile projects.

However, enterprises need to drive their mobile projects at speed and scale without compromising the quality of how apps are designed, developed and implemented. So, we created a Mobile at Scale for iOS offering that does just that. Clients across all industries start with our rich portfolio of IBM MobileFirst for iOS industry apps to jumpstart their journeys, then continue to work with us to create multiple apps customized for their unique needs. The economics and time-to-value for enterprises, as well as the degree to which we can help these large mobile transformation efforts, have been phenomenal.

Today, Finnair announced it will leverage Mobile at Scale for iOS to support the company’s digital transformation. The airline plans to roll out several IBM MobileFirst for iOS apps, as well as custom-built apps, to empower its employees with important insights that will improve business processes and deliver a better experience to its customers.

This unique app design and development model means Finnair can quickly and efficiently deploy multiple high-quality iOS apps over several years. Plus, a dedicated team in the IBM MobileFirst for iOS Garage ensures Finnair’s mobile apps will be delivered rapidly — as well as maintained and updated over their lifecycle, with each app specifically tailored to the airline’s needs.

Building one app at a time will not foster great change. No matter the industry, it’s a complete mobile platform and integrated approach — from the user experience to the company’s core business processes and data to seamless execution and delivery — that will ultimately drive deep, enterprise-scale transformation.

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