Mobile Computing

You'll learn pretty quickly that I'm a gadget guy, and a bit of a geek. Things like the upcoming Chrome OS netbooks, Apple tablet, and the new LG Projector Phone (shown here) have confirmed for me that 2010 will likely see a revolution in the world of mobile computing. I'm also firmly convinced that mobile computing presents small and medium business owners with a tremendous opportunity to leverage technology for a competitive advantage. If your business has a well-defined strategy for utilizing mobile computing technologies, and your competitor does not, you win. So what can mobile computing technologies do for a business? Here are a few examples.

• Netbooks are a great option for enabling a mobile workforce IF they fit with your existing IT infrastructure and roadmap. They're ultra-light, ultra-cheap, and pre-wired for mobile broadband access. They're not as powerful as regular laptops though, and they pose unique security concerns, so they're not for everyone
• Smartphones, including the iPhone, are also powerful tools for remote/mobile workers. Google's Android phone OS is brand new and it already has 20,000 applications, many of which are free. It reaches a broader audience than the iPhone and is already used by 5 times the number of devices, so I'd expect that in the coming years the Android store will pass the iPhone store in total number of apps.
  
• Cloud computing options such as Amazon web services, Google Docs and Salesforce.com (hosted Customer Relationship Management or CRM) allow businesses to get the maximum value for their IT dollar by leveraging infrastructure provided by a 3rd party. Why own the hardware or even the software when all you need is the functionality and the data? Again, not perfect for all businesses, so do your homework.
  

I'm not even going to begin to attempt to discuss all the possibilities for reaching out to new or existing customers using mobile computing technologies. We'll save that for another day.

Who is this guy?

That's a fair question. I'm a professional consultant with over 10 years experience. I've worked for 4 major consulting firms and one boutique firm. Since 2000, I've delivered projects for over 25 different clients, most of them in the Fortune 500. My consulting work has taken me all over the United States and Europe. The projects I have delivered range from IT strategy and systems integration to process improvement and custom software development. I have a bachelor's degree in business and political science (Miami University), and I'm working on my MBA at Indiana University's Kelley school of business. I'm a "big picture" guy, and I love solving problems.

The next logical question might be "who the heck is Floyd?" He's a sort of alter-ego. I picked Floyd as my bowling name a few years back when my wife and I joined a league. Floyd is my own version of "The Dude" in the movie "The Big Lebowski." If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it.

Welcome!

I am creating this blog as a platform where I can offer my opinions and insights about tech trends and how those trends impact business people. There are of course plenty of "tech trends" resources on the web and an even greater number of "business advice" resources as well. These resources each serve an important purpose, and I will provide links to the ones I find most helpful. What I find lacking is a good set of resources for the small and medium sized business owner that merges these information sets to make them relevant. As the lines between business trends and technology trends continue to blur, many business people are asking questions such as:

• "What does this new [gadget/software/technology] mean for my business?"
• "Should I be investing in _____ and/or moving away from ______?"
• "Is my business well positioned to capitalize on the _______ trend?"

These are the types of questions that I hope this blog will help you answer for yourself. I welcome your comments and feedback on how well (or poorly!) I am doing at meeting this objective.