Business Service Management Hub

The Hub Commentary_

As the iPad2 came to market and there were many articles regarding the use of employees bringing their own devices to the work environment saving capex spending.  My challenge with this is the hidden cost of support and security of data.  Just because the employee can bring a device in does not mean it should come in and be supported without a business reason.

I was seeking a genuine business reason that these devices become a business value add, justifying a new deployment option.  As I started to read this article it sounded more personal preference and that this CIO still had a secondary device too.  Just as I arrived at the end of the article there were a couple of great examples for use.

The medical field and the sharing of a simple device with access to patient information with the ability to access personal calendars and email that is portable for the shifts of the medical staff.  Now add file sharing and synchronization services where the data is backed-up elsewhere and accessible by many from many devices and I’m on board with true business value changing the way business is conducted improving patient care and creating efficiencies for the staff.

How are you using new devices for value and efficiency for a good business service management practice?

Michele

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One CIO who has already made the iPad a critical part of his organization shares what he liked – and still wished for – after his first couple of days with the iPad 2. Read on for his take on FaceTime, Apple’s not-so “smart” cover, and more.  (Read Full Article…)

VMware has introduced a new iPad app for IT professionals that enables you to monitor your virtual machines from the iPad. The vSphere Client app was approved and available in the Apple App Store as of March 18th.

This tool brings monitoring to mobile devices. While some tools like Windows Intune let you access the monitoring console from a mobile browser, VMware built an app from the ground up to give IT professionals access to the virtual machines they monitor from wherever they are from the iPad..

You can monitor performance, keep an eye on your host servers and all of the virtual machines associated with those servers in a visually attractive, easy-to-manipulate interface.

The way it works is you download the app, log into your VMware account and you get access to all of the servers under your watch. You click a server and you can see the all of the virtual machines running on it. It even provides little icons like Windows and Red Hat to let you know which virtual machines are running a particular operating system. You can see a shot of this screen below:

Once you have a server displayed you can put it in maintenance mode or even reboot it remotely from your iPad if need be.

Clicking on a particular virtual machine displays a screen with information about that virtual machine such as recent events, and each virtual machine has controls like the server that let you suspend, stop or restart it as needed.

What’s more you can see the amount of memory and CPU that the chosen virtual machine is using from the server as a whole.

We like to show many examples of different types of monitoring on this blog, and this new tool from VMware brings virtual machine monitoring to a new level. It might not be as comprehensive as the tools you have access from your PC, but it provides a lot of good information to help you manage and understand your virtual machine environment from an iPad and from a monitoring perspective, that’s pretty exciting stuff.

Screenshot courtesy of VMware.

The Hub Commentary_

The survey says 7% of IT buyers plan to buy iPad Tablets in Q1 2011 not as a replacement to laptops, but more experimental.  I know I am hooked and have it on the top of my “want” list, however, I continue with my “need” requirements.  The same struggle businesses will go through in determining the business value of the iPad internal to the organization.

I really want one and am a fan, but what will I get that I don’t really already have with my laptop.  Definite cool factor and smaller, lighter footprint, no doubt.  It will carry additional costs with the 3G service, so we would all need to be mindful there.

So what will it take to be adopted in the enterprise?  It will be driving down internal costs and the apps that also drive down costs and increase productivity.

Where in the enterprise and IT will the iPad rule?  In servicing and interacting with your customers.  It will be the unique applications that take advantage of that 1-click ease in the apps store, exposure to potential customers and providing the same experience with your customers that they enjoy with other suppliers.

So what would push me right off the ledge from the “want” to “need” category in justifying my iPad2?  Starz Play on the iPad….Starz are you listening?  I am a happy Verizon FiOS customer, I take my Wi-Fi with me with no additional charges and I download and watch movies from Starz for one flat monthly rate where ever I am.  However, for that monthly rate I don’t use it as often as I thought on the laptop.  However, I see the iPad as the device I would get more out of the subscription.

Ok, not a great justification and I may find a different service provider who supplies the device I choose use.  So you see from a business perspective, it is the subscription and the customer interaction that will be relevant and we are mobile enough that we will switch to he who makes life simple and transacts business the way we want to interact.

How will you deploy and support tablets in your enterprise?

Michele

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When it comes to releasing new form factors for its iPad tablet and other products, Apple not only gets there first; it gets there best. (Read Full Article…..)

The Hub Commentary_

iPad Friday I think.  As I discussed in the previous post, the cost and value for business purpose will have to be weighed.  Just because the employee makes the capital expenditure, doesn’t mean it will be cheaper when you factor in support and address security vulnerabilities.

So far, I see cost, cool factor, but haven’t read the article or had the “aha”  there is the unique enterprise value-add use.  Make no mistake, I want one too, but have yet to find something that I cannot do more cheaply on my current laptop – which I call the “Barbie” laptop as it is quite small and light.

There will come a tipping point in the enterprise, but I haven’t heard, read or seen it yet.

How is your enterprise planning to use Tablets in the enterprise?

Michele

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One of the more surprising results of the mobile revolution is the way that IT departments have lost their role as the providers of the technology. It’s now just as likely that people will be doing business with personally owned devices, as they are to use devices issued by their employers.  (Read Full Article…)