In the logistics business, one of the key differentiators is the ability to keep customers notified about the status of their shipments in real time.

With mobile logistics solutions, one can track and manage on-time performance of deliveries in process and improve routing efficiencies for its Expedited Services customers. A key enabler is the ability to scan barcodes, providing more information transparency at all phases of the delivery cycle.

The application allows drivers to receive scheduled stops for a route as well as to receive unscheduled stops during the course of a day. Each stop provides account, company, address and pickup instruction information and enables the field force staff/driver to scan packages as they are picked up or to provide comments if no packages are available for pickup

The application allows field force staff/ driver to scan packages as they are delivered and collect status, recipient name, signature, and comments for each stop. The collected information is provided to the central system for proof-of-delivery and package tracking purposes.

This Proof-of-Delivery Mobile Application provides seamless user experience, validating information, receiving dispatches, recording pick-ups, receiving alerts or notifications, and customer confirmation. The information collected in the field is integrated with billing, dispatch, and the customer service portal. Now, information is accurate and actionable for other employees and customers.

By 2014, Banking and stock trading from mobile phones will become part of the daily routine of nearly 2.2 billion consumers worldwide says a study from Insight Research Corp (IRC).  According to IRC, mobile financial applications together will generate nearly $124 billion for application developers and cell phone companies providing access to their applications. Banking services can be accessed through text messaging, the mobile Web and mobile applications.  Mobile application users typically constitute a big chunk of mobile banking users—40 percent are iPhone or iPod touch users, according to Celent, a research firm. There are still lot many who use SMS and mobile web to access the services. From the early days of checking account balances, initiating account transfers and bill payments, mobile banking  has moved on. One of the recent trends in mobile banking is mobile remote deposit capture. This functionality allows bank customers to deposit the cheque using their mobile phones. All they need to do is take a picture of the front and back of a cheque to make the deposit.

Banks and financial institutions have been successful with basic services like notifications and status updates, but more opportunities lie in providing complete control of accounts from the mobile device, enabling every transaction that one could perform via the Internet or at a branch in person.

The power industry is one of the highly price competitive segment. Customers expect 100% availability, accurate billing & quick fault resolutions. Power utilities are also governed by Government regulations & Industry guidelines.

Fundamental reasons for the Power Utilities to embrace Enterprise Mobility are:

Reduced Cycle Time: Mobile applications allow repetitive and/or time‐consuming activities such as inspections, repairs, meter readings and equipment installation to be performed faster. This reduction in process cycle time brings benefit in terms of customer satisfaction and efficiency.

Facilitate Information Exchange: With mobile devices & applications the indispensible bi-lateral information flow is captured efficiently. For instance, at times of fault resolution, the quickness of the rectification depends on the correctness of the available information. This can be captured with mobile devices. By this, time is saved in knowing the nature of the event, the whereabouts of the plant or pipe and the current state of the system. By tying directly into one or several back‐end systems such as outage management, maintenance and scheduling, mobile applications can provide engineers with all historical, system and event information they need, making it easy & quick to decide how to rectify the issue.

Strict Regulations: By capturing information at the point of performance and uploading it directly to back‐end systems, companies can quickly create the necessary reports and successfully pass the strictest of audits.

Factors that influence IT decisions are needs assessment, feasibility, budgets and resources. Ultimately the motive is the return on investment.

Here are some reasons why smartphones are a smart decision for the government sector:

Mobility: Employee mobility is integral to the workings of many agencies, from land officials to local community organizers, and smartphones support that agenda. For example, federal law enforcement agencies use BlackBerry smartphones for communication and access to mission-critical applications from the field.

Government initiatives: Smartphones speak to several important government initiatives, such as telework, disaster preparedness, environmental concerns and increased use of the Internet.

Productivity: In general, smartphones represent several productivity enhancements: real-time communication, increased collaboration, presence awareness and access to Internet applications that use GPS.

Identity: A government agency can integrate cellular and telecom systems to create a single calling identity and, at the same time, preserve the privacy of smartphone users.

Unified communications: A sophisticated smartphone strategy can be the entry point to a unified communications infrastructure. By integrating telecon and smartphone systems, a government agency can bring together wireless, telecom and management capabilities to support a variety of mobile applications.

Source: An excerpt from the white paper Smartphones: A Savvy Strategy for Government Employees

David Gulian, President of InfoLogix, Inc quotes in Medical Design as how Mobility acts as a catalyst in improving the effectiveness in health care which is a growing segment. Following is the excerpt of his article.

“The biggest impact that the transition to mobile solutions has had on the healthcare industry is that of improved efficiency, from both a patient care and a financial standpoint. Enterprise mobility solutions enable an important shift in how a typical healthcare organization functions. By placing tracking information in the hands of employees at the point of activity, medical institutions are empowered with better information about their operations, in real-time.

When the prevailing technology in healthcare amounts to just a pager and pen, as it historically has been, there is a significant risk for patients due to the lack of real-time access between clinicians and genuine coordination of care.  With a paper-based information system, aggregating patient information is a time-consuming challenge. Disconnected and proprietary information systems often lead to high error rates as physicians have to wade through data from multiple sources to find what they need. The healthcare system has grappled with this challenge of compiling and sharing information in a meaningful way for years.

The emergence of enterprise mobility solutions addresses this challenge by giving the healthcare industry real-time connectivity and the ability to streamline operations and improve productivity. By allowing employees to track inventory and assets in real-time, they are able to work with the most up-to-date information and make decisions based on that information, allowing for greater productivity, efficiency, and ultimately, revenues. “