Yankee Group Scores Emerging Anywhere Applications

BOSTON--Yankee Group today announced that the adoption of Anywhere Applications will empower end-users with 24x7 access to corporate data within the next 12-24 months. These device- and location-agnostic applications will provide enterprises with a much greater competitive edge. This rapidly emerging technology provides the power and flexibility necessary for the increasingly growing mobile workforce. Yankee Group defines Anywhere Application as a set of standards-based technologies that enable customers to access information from an array of devices regardless of the location.

The recently published Yankee Group Research Report, Scoring the Anywhere Applications, includes a unique Anywhere Applications Scorecard, which evaluates the evolution of applications on the road to Anywhere connectivity. Applications can be ranked Anywhere (best), Somewhere+ (on the path to network, device and location agnosticism), Somewhere (the application has no intelligent use of a network) or Nowhere (the application is browser-based and written for specific devices with non-intelligent connectivity). The scorecard shows that vendors are making some progress at the application level. Yankee Group applied the scorecard in its first application to customer relationship management (CRM) and e-mail applications, because the majority of the respondents (global mid-size and enterprise corporations) found these to be the most strategic Anywhere Applications.

In scoring CRM applications, Salesforce.com achieved the highest score of those rated, Somewhere+, while Microsoft Dynamics for CRM scored Nowhere as a solution that is not device-neutral, is limited in connectivity options, and provides only siloed deployment capabilities. Conversely, Microsoft’s Exchange Server scored a Somewhere+ for its expanding array of Anywhere Applications capabilities, beating out IBM’s Lotus Notes, which got a Somewhere rating.

“Currently, Anywhere Application deployments are still in their infancy, but Anywhere Applications aren’t just a dream. They are fast becoming a reality in mainstream networks,” said Laura DiDio, research fellow in Yankee Group’s Enterprise Research group and coauthor of the report. “No company has yet to achieve full and complete Anywhere Applications capabilities.”

An Anywhere Application delivers information to the end-user easily, efficiently and transparently, regardless of device or physical location. Anywhere Applications are intelligently designed so that the user-interface changes dynamically based on device and connectivity to deliver the right information at the point of interaction for mobile workers. An Anywhere Application is:

• Device-aware: The Anywhere Application can be dynamically transformed to device-specific parameters.
• Network-aware: The Anywhere Application enables intelligent use of connectivity with session persistence, multiple connection methods and roaming.
• User-aware: The Anywhere Application is context-driven based on role, process, connectivity and device.

“As this market develops, we will clearly see that Anywhere Applications will be must-have for certain parts of an enterprise within the next 12 to 24 months,” said Sheryl Kingstone, director, Yankee Group’s Enterprise Research group and coauthor of the report. “It’s critical for businesses to begin mapping out short-term tactical plans and longer-term strategies immediately, or risk falling significantly behind competitors in unlocking the full productivity of the mobile worker.”

YANKEE GROUP (www.yankeegroup.com)

The people of Yankee Group are the global connectivity experts™—the leading source of insight and counsel for builders, operators and users of connectivity solutions. For nearly 40 years, Yankee Group has conducted primary research that charts the pace of technology change and its effect on networks, consumers and enterprises. Headquartered in Boston, Yankee Group has a global presence including operations in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and Asia-Pacific.