Smartphones have been used in corporate environments for quite a while and, since the advent of Apple’s iPad, tablets have also flooded the enterprise environment. Sometimes, adoption is driven by users under the bring-your-own-device (BYOD) phenomenon; other times it is the corporation that starts the process. After studying the corporate use of iPad and iPhones, the German consumer goods group Henkel (HNKG_p.DE) has been ready to adopt Apple’s devices throughout its subsidiaries since the third quarter of 2011.
Henkel’s headquarters held a pilot project, which took place in Germany between the third and fourth quarter of last year. Its IT executive committee studied Apple’s devices’ technology, its securities issues, usability, support needs, and costs, plus how to embed corporate applications. “They studied several topics, including how to integrate the device with Henkel’s IT systems, because it must be able to access and be in compliance with our ERP, CRM, other sales tools, and more,” Adriana Bianca, Henkel’s chief information officer (CIO) for the Mercosul region, told RCR Wireless News .
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Like many other multinational firms, Henkel runs a global operation and shares best practices among its units, which are located in 55 countries. Its IT executive committee is responsible for homogenizing technologies for the company to use globally. The executive committee includes technical people from all the regions where Henkel operates. They also evaluate future trends.
The Latin America unit has conducted trials using iPads during the first quarter of this year. In June, the company aims to provide iPads for those who need the device for doing their work. In Brazil, the focus on mobility began in 2006, when its IT department unveiled RIM’s BlackBerry for its sales force, manager team, and C-level executives. Currently, there are 360 BlackBerry smartphones in use. In 2007 and 2008, the company implemented 3G modems.
Bianca does not believe that all of the company’s BlackBerry devices will be replaced by Apple’s devices in a short period, but she believes the strategy is to provide employees with a single device, which could be a smartphone or tablet, depending on the application. “We want to avoid each person having two or even three devices with similar functions,” Bianca said.
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