iPads (and other tablets) have become ubiquitous in our world today. Executives and other leaders can be seen carrying them to meetings, using them in their offices, displaying nifty data revelations to crtitical customers, or then, trying to keep tabs on key company performance metrics on a fancy vacation! The iPad started out as a nice complement to the desktop or laptop, but for increasing numbers of users, it is becoming their primary, or even only device, even at work. Tablets have come into common utilization as a tool for presentations and demonstrations, and have proven very effective for social collaborations with colleagues or customers.
The greater use of tablets has spurred further software development for the iPad, thereby increasing the usage and confidence in relying on the tablet alone. For example, there are news and information services like Pulse and Flipboard, among others, that allow executives to stay current on industry and competitor activities and developments. There are also apps that permit the user to set customized filters and perform targeted searches on the latest news in business, technology, industry trends, or whatever else they choose to focus on.
The smartphone, of course, will also continue to grow (especially globally) as the other non-traditional mobile device that is augmenting or supplanting the laptop in many quarters. Its prevalence and advancing capabilities parallel the progression of the tablet, and near convergence of the two someday can’t be ruled out. (Neither can a smaller, more mobile laptop/notebook, for that matter.) With a bigger and better display for browsing, email, social collaboration, greater “cloud-enabled” memory, and a more extensive library of intuitive apps, the tablet is being increasingly favored by many executives, but the progress in smartphones is really lessening the capability differences between the two. (Of course, the raw computing power of a laptop cannot be completely replaced, either.)
Security is always an issue, whichever device you’re talking about, and storing sensitive data on the hard drive of a desktop, laptop, iPad, or smartphone, or even a thumb drive that you carry around is always a risk. That threat will have to be weighed against the inconvenience of retrieving information each time it is needed from a server or the cloud.
But, let’s take a look at tablets with regard to BI specifically. BI visionaries and leaders are looking to their iPads for capabilities in monitoring their businesses, including getting all of the relevant metrics for analysis and decision making. BI Vendors and consultants must address this reality and be prepared to respond to it (while accepting that some others will still prefer their data on a laptop, or even in hard copy).
One concern has been that specific apps are often needed for BI software to function on tablets and smartphones. A major step toward a solution will be the greater use of HTML5. This will allow BI web applications to run on mobile devices without the requirement of an installed app on the device. For analytics and other types of BI analysis, this will be especially helpful on tablets and will accelerate their use.
But, even now, statistics show that BI has, in fact, been labeled a driving source for iPad utilization (not just the other way around). The improved visual impact of standard reporting, easy access to snazzy data exploration scenarios and the ability to slice and dice critical data via deep-dive analytics on the fly – on an iPad, and greater ease-of-use and “fun” factors have made many leaders more open to recognizing the true value of mobile BI. So, it is really a synergistic situation: iPads drive more BI opportunities, and BI increases the attraction of the iPad! Either way, it is a win-win for all, and will lead to increasing demand for ever greater acceptance and use of BI.
