Big Data and Mobile Devices

How technology is changing testing and performance monitoring

BY AARON RUDGER, Keynote

North American electric utilities are experiencing a rapid shift to a mobile- first environment. Numerous research firms are confirming that the sale of smartphones and tablets has overtaken personal computers. For electric utility workers, the ability to work without a cumbersome laptop is welcome, and the capabilities of smartphones are now impressive.

While smart phone and tablet sales eclipsing PC sales is seen as a consumer trend, it also has a profound impact on enterprises and how they these devices employees with technology. For field personnel, such as utility workers, this evolution offers great potential for a sophisticated level of applications and data instantly, out in the field, through consumer mobile devices.

Ovum’s Richard Absalom wrote an extensive piece entitled, “Mobile Enterprise Apps Drive Mobile Working into a New Era” on the impact of enterprise apps.

However, the evolution of enterprise apps brings a major shift in how electric utilities’ data centers and information technology (IT) teams develop mobile applications and websites. Security, device/operating system diversity, small screens, touch, location services, and mobile networks are just some of the complexities involved with building and monitoring mobile apps and sites.