Displaying key findings from the Mobility Trends in the Retail Sector research report prepared by Enterprise Strategy Group (ESG) and IBM, this infographic affords valuable context to retail organizations in planning a better tomorrow.

1. ibm.com/maas360
UnifiedEndpointManagement.com
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RETAILMOBILITY,
PRODUCTIVITY,
ANDSECURITY
Enhancementstothecustomerexperiencearehelpingmakemobilityasuccessintheretailindustry;however,security
challengesneedtobeaddressedtoprotectdataandprivacy.TheInternetofThings(IoT)maybethefarthest-reaching
futureITinitiativewiththemostpotential—alongwiththegreatestcomplexityandrisks.Thediversityofdevices(e.g.,
smartphones,tablets,laptops,desktops,andIoTsensors)requiresaunifiedendpointmanagement(UEM)platform.
Accesstocloudappsoncorporate,sharedandpersonal(BYO)devicesaretheessentialingredientstosuccess.
Theretailindustryismovingquicklytoembracethevalueofmobility
foritsemployeesandcustomersinthefaceofsecurityrisks.
Reducing
costs,11%
Improvingoverallin-store
customerexperience,11%
Increasingfoottrafficin
storelocations,16%
Developingstrategiestoensurewe
interactwithourin-storecustomers
ontheirmobiledevices,9%
Protectingcustomerdata
andprivacy,32%
Devicesneedtodeliverahigh-qualityexperiencetocreateintuitivemobilemomentsforemployeesandcustomers.
Businessesrequirean
economicaldevicethatiseasy
tomanageandreliable.
However,securityisnotnearthetop
oftheprioritylist—availablesecuritypoliciesand
biometricswerenotfrequentlycitedconsiderations.
Trainingandenforcingcorporatesecuritycompliance
policiesforstore-basedemployees,28%
Althoughcustomerandcorporatedatasecuritywerenottopbusinessinitiatives,theywereidentified
astwoofthetopthreechallenges.RetailITleadershipneedstobalanceproductivitywithsecurityto
effectivelyruntheirorganizations.
oforganizationssurveyedcitedEASEOFUSE(i.e.,intuitive)asthemost
importantconsiderationwhenitcomestothemobiledevices(i.e.,laptops,
smartphones,tablets,etc.)thattheyprovidetoin-storeemployees.
Price 33%
Easeof
management 30%
Batterylife 27%
Operatingsystem 25%
Availablesecurity
policies 16%
Biometrics 7%
Growingthecommercial
valueofourcustomer
relationships,8%
Securingcorporate
(i.e.,store)data,8%
Othertopconsiderationsinclude:
Top5MostImportantBusinessInitiatives
IMPORTANT!In-storeEmployeeAccesstoMobileBusinessApps
TopBusinessandOperationalChallengesManagingIn-storeTechnology
DiverseDevicesIn-storeEmployeesUsetoAssistCustomers
MostImportantConsiderationsforIn-storeEmployees
andtheirMobileDevices
BringYourOwnDevice(BYOD)-OKforIn-storeEmployees?
37%
50%
CURRENTLY
Toprovideabettercustomerexperience...
Althoughdesktopscontinuetodominate,retail
businessesshouldbeabletomanageandcontrolall
deviceswithaUEMplatform.
Mobileappsarepartoftheresearch,customerinteraction,andbuyingprocess.Asindicatedbelow,employeesrequire
accessfortraining,businessinsight,andcustomersatisfaction.
IoTInitiativesareStartingtoTakeOffatStoreLocations
IoTinitiativescreatevaluablesourcesofinformationtohelpbusinessescreatenewstrategiesand
executewithahighdegreeofaccuracy.IoTcanalsohelpcapturesensorinformationtoprovide
intelligenceaboutcustomerbehavior.
IoTpresentshugeopportunitiesforretail.ITneedstospearheadbusinesstransformationbysecurely
deployingandmanagingIoTprojectsatscale.
oftheorganizationssurveyedpermittheir
employeestobringtheirowndevicestowork.
Dedicatedcomputer
(i.e.,terminal,desktop) 61%
Smartphone 42%
Tablet 31%
Rugged,single-purpose
device(scanner) 24%
Sharedlaptop 18%
oforganizationssurveyedcurrentlyhaveoraredeveloping/launchingwithin
12-24months,IoTinitiativesinvolvingindividualstorelocations.
Appsarecriticalorimportant,
61%
arecurrentlyconsideringIoTinitiativesinvolvingindividualstorelocations.
13%
65%
Appsarecriticalorimportant,
58%
24MONTHSFROMNOW
IoT
AMajorityofStoresUseDigitalKiosks
TheBiggerTruth
ThemixoftabletsandIoTdevices(e.g.,LEDscreens)requiressecurityandmanagementwithUEM,
andthatincludesunmanagedandshareddevices.
Alldevices,includingthoserelatedtoIoTinitiatives,havebecomeanessentialpartofinteractingwith
customersandavaluablelinkinthepurchasingprocess.Retailorganizationsneedtoupholdhigh
securitystandardsfortheirdevices,businessapplications,andcustomerdata.Clickthelinksbelowto
learnmoreabouthowIBMMaaS360unifiedendpointmanagementcanhelpretailITleadersmanage
andsecuredevicesatscale.
oforganizationssurveyedhavedigitalkiosks/digitalsignagedeployed
inthemajorityoftheirstores.
24%
havedigitalkiosks/signagedeployedinselectstores.
34%