Enterprise software vendor Sybase announced Monday it has partnered with a group of vendors to launch enterprise resource planning-oriented mobile applications on its Unwired Platform, the company's mobile enterprise application tool. Mobile developers can use the latest version of Sybase Unwired Platform to build applications enabling mobile workers to receive business data on any device at any time, said Sybase, an SAP company.
Sybase also has two mobile SAP applications -- Sybase Mobile Sales for SAP CRM and Sybase Mobile Workflow for SAP Business Suite -- that provide access to backend data sources, the company said.
The partners include Bluefin Solutions, which is piloting the mobility platform for its sales staff to view and update customer information via an iPhone application for faster access to information and customer relationship management functionality, a Bluefin spokesperson said.
Another vendor, HCL Axon is using Sybase Unwired Platform initially to roll out a mobile application for the travel and transportation industry, a spokesperson said.
CRM independent consulting firm Maihiro built an application with Sybase and SAP technology for companies to conduct mobile sales and use other CRM functions on a number of devices, including RIM BlackBerry, iPhone, and Windows Mobile, a spokesperson said.
MSC Mobile is also using technology from Sybase and SAP in its Momentum application. The company integrated SAP's ERP application into Momentum to push data onto mobile devices to allow field service technicians to access data from wherever they are working, MSC Mobile said.
Also using the Sybase Unwired Platform and SAP applications is NEO Business Partners for its NEO Mobile Suite. The suite lets customers use their mobile devices to work offline using SAP's CRM backend applications for service orders, maintenance, and sales processes, NEO Business Partners said.
European-based T-Systems is another Sybase/SAP partner that has developed a mobile CRM application for different devices, including iPhone, RIM Blackberry, and Windows Mobile. The T-Systems app also includes device management and data security in the event a handset is lost or stolen, the company said.
According to a recent study of 91 enterprise workers and IT decision makers by the 451 Group, e-mail, instant messaging, and CRM are the three most commonly deployed mobile apps, said Chris Hazelton, research director, mobile and wireless. The number one reason enterprises said they use mobility is for faster and better customer communications, he said of another finding from the June 2010 survey. Profit centers within companies are the biggest users of mobile apps; namely, the sales force, which wants to be responsive to customers quickly and know the status of what they are using, he said.
CRM and ERP applications are a natural fit for mobile devices, Hazelton said. "These are tools that give you critical information in your hands when you need it most often outside your office."
