“What’s next?” is the big question at the Mobile World Congress (MWC), the world’s leading event of its kind, bringing together the top companies and professionals in the mobile telecommunication sector.
What’s next for me personally is my new job as Global EVP and GM of Mobility Solutions at SAP. There could be no better time or place for meeting my team and expanding the mobile experience for our customers and partners. We are on the cusp of a connected world in the wireless industry, and “what’s next” needs to be about seamlessly connecting and mobilizing people, places, content and things like never before. I see enormous potential ahead. Mobile is the key enabler of the cloud -- they are integrally connected, and SAP is the industry leader in enterprise mobility with a very comprehensive mobile solutions portfolio.
I really love MWC because it’s more than just a great opportunity to meet colleagues at SAP. It’s a chance to get familiar with future plans on software and services; hear from customers and partners on their experience with SAP; and learn and exchange ideas on what’s next. As one of the advisory board members of Mobile World Capital, which hosts the Mobile World Congress, I also have a unique perspective on how the mobile market is evolving.
During my many meetings with customers, partners and influencers at the event, I heard the same thing over and over again. All stakeholders -- customers, partners, influencers and industry experts -- agree we have an enormous opportunity. They say no one else is better positioned than SAP to support customers and partners on their journey to mobilizing the enterprise. It’s indisputable that every enterprise, regardless of size, will require help with security, applications, application development, analytics and messaging on their journey to mobilizing their business -- and enterprise customers know this. We can debate the order in which enterprise customers will embrace these solutions, but not the speed at which it happens or whether it will happen at all.
I also heard that the transformation in our industry is happening faster than anyone expected. Enterprise customers know that the mobile industry is consolidating, and the time for experimenting with initial spot solutions is drawing to a close. Enterprise customers are now looking to invest in mobile platforms that can seamlessly support all the business requirements of their organizations. SAP is in the recognized leading position to deliver on this because we can effectively address all the necessary elements and ensure they work together.
I’m really impressed by what I’ve seen at SAP’s MWC stand, which invites visitors to Experience the Future. I’ve experienced the future of football with technology that can improve a player’s performance by analyzing cognitive skills in real-time 3D visualization. I also learned how technicians can repair a machine through augmented reality and gesture controlled services with the help of connected glasses, and tested the hands-on mobile wallet at a vending machine that enables people to purchase items with their mobile phones -- not only for themselves, but their friends at other machines as well!
Thanks to this kind of innovation and future vision coupled with the best mobile solution in the world, I’m leaving Barcelona fully confident I’m in the right place at the right time with the right team.
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