Recently, Sanjay Govil, sat down with WashingtonExec to discuss the revolution of mobility in the global commercial sector. Govil is the founder and Chairman of Infinite Computer Solutions, a top public global IT solutions provider. In this interview, Govil discusses the difference between the perception of increased cyber security risk brought on by mobility and the actual potential  damage of a cyber attack. “To me, an attack might happen but that does not mean that damages will happen,” said Govil.

WashingtonExec also asked Govil about the “consumerization of IT” and how he believes it is affecting the global marketplace. Govil is involved locally with the entrepreneur non-profit organization TiE DC. We asked Govil how he believes small business and entrepreneurs should view the new business model that mobility brings to the private sector.

WashingtonExec:  Can you tell us a little about your background and your involvement in the mobility world.

Sanjay Govil: Infinite is primarily focused on the commercial global outsourcing business and specifically when you talk about mobile communications, we recently had an agreement with Motorola consequently taken over by Nokia Siemens.  We are providing services in the mobile space in terms of mobile messaging. The intellectual property is owned jointly between us and Nokia Siemens.

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“If you are a niche supplier in the mobile space then you have tremendous opportunities”

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WashingtonExec:  How do you think the cyber security risk of mobility will play into different federal agencies and different private businesses adapting?

Sanjay Govil: Very often we hear about breach of cyber security from various aspects; from individuals to organizations to even countries.  That element of risk and element of doubt when you have your applications mobile messaging enabled or residing on the cloud increases. The customer might feel that they are more vulnerable to a cyber attack because their applications are residing in an outsourced environment and hence have less control.

WashingtonExec:  You are saying it is just a perception – you don’t think there is actually a larger risk?

Sanjay Govil: There will always be a perception and at the same time risks will always be there. Customers  will always have to do a catch-up against cyber attacks but the speed of countering a cyber attack  will drastically improve. To me, an attack might happen but that does not mean that damages will happen.  I think we will always be vulnerable to cyber attacks but the issue is that will any damage happen as a result of that?  The answer is, how prepared are you?

WashingtonExec:  How do you think the “consumerization of IT” will affect federal agency and private sector implementation of mobility?

Sanjay Govil: Information technology is now a key element of every business and what is happening more and more is that businesses are looking at IT as a ROI and they are  looking at how it can be used as a way of increasing productivity. Mobile enabling these applications is an important aspect of this. This is an entirely new spectrum and will greatly enhance productivity and customer service.  That’s a big change in IT.

WashingtonExec: I saw that you are a member of TiE DC, do you think small businesses might be more equipped because they are leaner and faster in terms of mobility?

Sanjay Govil: It depends. If you are a niche supplier in the mobile space then you have tremendous opportunities.  Customers are looking for a system integrator for a complete implementation for their mobile application space. Mobile enabling consists of various parts from platforms, mobile applications, security, connectivity etcetera. Businesses need to find their niche.

WashingtonExec: Where do you see the market headed?

Sanjay Govil: Infinite is currently very active on the Enterprise Messaging space. This allows enterprise business customers to send high volume messages in the form of text, picture, video and audio messages to their customers, employees and suppliers mobile devices.

Initially these services are focused on one-way and two-way text based messaging providing wireless customers or employee alerts and requesting confirmation of appointments and authorization for financial transactions.  These services are expected to evolve into more complex and more valuable mobile business communications involving Instant Messaging Chats facilitating even more business.  Those messaging services that tangibly contribute to improving revenue capture will command higher fees for the Messaging Service.

The messaging service will be run as a hosted or cloud based business offering: consulting and implementation services, as well as managing the delivery through the various carrier networks and to the enterprise mobile customer device.

WashingtonExec:  Who is someone you admire in the technology industry?

Sanjay Govil: I admire the current CEO of Apple, Tim Cook.  There are a couple of reasons; one is that he is also from Auburn which is the school that I went. But that aside,  I think in business one of the most important things is execution. Steve Jobs was a great visionary.. But Tim Cook has been able to implement Steve Jobs’ vision for years to come.  I’ve seen companies where a powerful force like Steve Jobs departs, then the entire company collapses, and they are never able to recover from that.  If you look at Apple it doesn’t have seemed to miss a beat.  They are still coming out with new products and the vision that he had is still coming out.  There is still excitement.