Meet Sam Ganga, Executive Vice President of the Enterprise Solutions Division at DMI. Ganga first jointed DMI two years ago when the company he founded was acquired by DMI. Ganga has worked with emerging technologies for the company ever since.
Ganga discussed with WashingtonExec the five shifts he predicts will occur in adapting mobility for 2012 and his thoughts on how to best implement these trends under Federal CIO Steve VanRoekel’s accelerated mobility policy across the federal government.
WashingtonExec: Can you tell us a little bit about your background and your current position with DMI?
Sam Ganga: My background is primarily in emerging technologies. I started my career in corporate research and development for commercial organizations building mathematical models, time space networks etcetera. I spent a few years with United Airlines and then I worked for CSC for several years running their emerging technology practice in the Midwest, all of this is on the commercial side. After that I started my own company and ran that for twelve years which is now a part of DMI. I’ve been with DMI for 2 ½ years now and I run the Enterprise Solutions Group.
WashingtonExec: How does mobility compare to other technological innovations like the internet and cloud computing?
Sam Ganga: Mobile computing has a deep impact in two areas; one is infrastructure and the second is productivity. From an infrastructure perspective, mobile devices like smartphones and tablets will ultimately reduce the number of devices we use — we will eventually see a convergence of end-user computing as form factor, processing power and usability improve. From a productivity perspective we get a very powerful device in the palm of our hand, that can be supercharged with the power of the Internet and the power of enterprise data and applications. The deployment of secure applications that leverage all this processing power and information enables workers to be far more productive and effective. Don’t just think of a tablet as a fancy electronic clipboard for filling out forms. Think about all the power it puts in your hand – camera, video, GPS, translation, and more, and access to information and processing that can enable faster, better decisions. For the government, this means more information to employees and contractors so that they can make better decisions – and also better citizen services. This movement has already started in the commercial market place; and the government is beginning to catch-up.
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Personal tablets, smartphones and laptops are coming into the office, regardless of IT policies or security concerns. This has been true for some time in the commercial world, and many businesses have developed the policies needed to address this trend.
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WashingtonExec: What significant trends do you see in the enterprise mobility space for the year ahead?
Sam Ganga: I see five major trends that will shape enterprise mobility and mobile culture in 2012:
1. There’s a growing recognition that a more holistic approach to mobility is needed.
As agencies do pilot deployments of mobile solutions, they quickly learn that they’ve got to do some strategic planning at the outset to address security, usability and productivity.
Security – When it comes to security, there’s no single right answer. Secure containers, dual personae, two-factor authentication… these are all viable options. What matters is understanding user profiles and use cases, and supporting them in a way that meets security requirements. Agencies should not take a “one size fits all” approach.
Usability – Simple connectivity has turned out to be a big challenge. Creating a secure wireless network will be a requirement as mobile app usage takes flight. You’ve also got to make sure you can at least match what devices like the BlackBerry have offered and also take care of functions such as printing – basic stuff to meet current expectations.
Productivity – Here’s where IT needs to think bigger. Mobile devices offer some amazing new ways to enable mobile workers to make better decisions and be more productive. The challenge here is to be more creative about leveraging the incredible power of these devices.
2. BYOD is here to stay.
Personal tablets, smartphones and laptops are coming into the office, regardless of IT policies or security concerns. This has been true for some time in the commercial world, and many businesses have developed the policies needed to address this trend. The same will be true in government. There’s an opportunity here for Government to get where they need to go quicker and avoid some mistakes by learning from commercial businesses.
3. Connectivity needs to be affordable.
3G/4G data plans can be a huge expense, but employees need connectivity all the time. To bring down costs, IT is accelerating its efforts to combine WiFi with 3G/4G. As mobile devices become more mainstream, we’ll see many IT departments further reduce costs by replacing many PCs and laptops with mobile devices.
4. Device Management is key.
In 2011, according to research firm Canalys, 487.7 million smartphones and 414.6 million PCs. were shipped – the first time mobile device shipments exceeded PCs. You can’t put enterprise information on all these devices without managing them.
But to so this, IT departments will have to move from homogeneous Windows PC environments to a world of many different mobile devices running Android, iOS, BlackBerry, and Windows. And they’re all much more vulnerable to theft, damage or loss. This will require new focus on device management, and a move by many agencies to outsource mobile device management to expert service providers.
5. Think Granular not monolithic Apps.
Consumer mobile apps are incredibly easy to use — two to three clicks to do whatever you need. This approach has to be brought to apps developed for the public sector. And, agencies need to completely revamp their frame of reference for app development. Mobile apps need to be turned around in days and weeks – not years. This is a whole new way of thinking, which will probably require a blend of custom and commercial apps to deliver functionality at a rate users demand and with the flexibility that enables apps to morph as needs change.
WashingtonExec: What are the implications of these trends?
Sam Ganga: One implication is an increasing need for tools and services to provide integrated planning and management for mobility. Our federal CIO, Steve VanRoekel, is forging ahead with the “mobile revolution of government.” This will require tools and methodologies that combine user inputs with security and business requirements. This combination delivers a solid business case, cost justification, and mobility implementation plan that drives up worker productivity and operational efficiencies.
Another very welcome implication is a significant improvement in citizen services. As mobile devices are increasingly used to serve and communicate with citizens, agencies will be better equipped to understand user needs, and move to meet those needs with far more agility and responsiveness than they can today.
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This is a whole new way of thinking, which will probably require a blend of custom and commercial apps to deliver functionality at a rate users demand and with the flexibility that enables apps to morph as needs change.
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WashingtonExec: Please tell us about DMI and your recent announcement of DMI’s Hi-Gain Enterprise Mobility Solutions.
Sam Ganga: DMI is a leading IT solutions and business strategy consulting firm. We bring together the best people, strategies and technologies to transform enterprise operations for government and business. Our solutions include Strategic Consulting, Enterprise Mobility Solutions, Managed Services, Application Development and Cybersecurity Solutions.
DMI’s Hi-GainTM Enterprise Mobility Solutions for federal and commercial enterprise customers integrate strategy, security, and application development with full life-cycle enterprise mobility management services. DMI enables IT managers to quickly take control of the entire mobile enterprise environment—easily and securely deploying and managing mobile devices and applications while realizing the highest possible return on their organizations’ mobility investments.
WashingtonExec: What is something most people might not know about you?
Sam Ganga: I’m fascinated by what makes people tick–what motivates people. What made Michael Jordan work just as hard on getting his sixth championship ring, as the first? How do these high achievers keep going and why? I don’t believe fame and fortune is the answer. But I can’t say I know what the answer is.