All posts by [x]cube LABS

[x]cube LABS is a leading digital strategy and solution provider specializing in enterprise mobility space. Over the years, we have delivered numerous digital innovations and mobile solutions, creating over $ 2 billion for startups and enterprises. Broad spectrum of services ranging from mobile app development to enterprise digital strategy makes us the partner of choice for leading brands.

Enterprise Mobile Center Of Excellence: You Need It To Take Your Mobility To Next-Level

Enterprises are rapidly adopting mobile solutions to unlock the opportunities offered by mobile to boost efficiency, streamline processes and be more agile and responsive to customer needs. However, the invasion of mobile device and applications in organizations is also leading to many major challenges like:

  • One hand often doesn’t know what the other is doing: Most of the mobile initiatives are siloed. In most cases, the processes, procedures and policies for mobile implementation are confined to a team or a function and is rarely disseminated across. Enterprises would need a broader coordination and strategy to spread it across the organization to optimize returns and benefits out it.
  • Overload on IT department: Mobility adoption has also put enormous responsibilities on the IT department in terms of development, deployment and management of enterprise mobile apps & devices, handling user expectations, creating mobile security mechanism, and adopting to the swiftly changing mobile landscape.

However, as mobility invades deep and wide into the enterprise ecosystem, organizations now need a comprehensive mobile strategy to organize, execute and evaluate a wider roll-out of mobility. Establishing a central entity as an enterprise mobile center of excellence can help organizations move to the next-generation of mobility implementation in addition to building a cohesive, standardized and collaborative mobile environment. The MCoE can be a fulcrum around which the entire mobility of an enterprise revolves.

When you need a MCoE?

Of course you don’t need a mobile center of excellence for your first mobile app. However, if you have 3 or 4 mobile solutions and are planning an enterprise wide roll-out of mobility then you would need a MCOE to define standards and architectures, spell out mobile governance model, facilitate collaboration across stakeholders, promote and disseminate best practices in the organization.

What is a Mobile Center of Excellence?

One size doesn’t fits all. There is no standard structure to a MCoE. As organizations vary in their mobile intent and maturity so as their centre of excellence. In some companies, a mobile centre of excellence exists as an informal group responsible for mobile while some companies have put in place a formal MCoE. However a well-defined MCoE with a strong mandate and executive endorsement is essential for its success.

How to Build an Effective Mobility Center of Excellence?

  • Give your MCOE endorsement: A MCoE cannot be successful without the management endorsement and participation. Put MCoE as part of your organizational structure to help it gain visibility and authority across departments. Empower it with decision-making and execution responsibilities.
  • Clearly define the MCoE scope: Your team will need a clear, well-defined charter right from defining the scope, leadership, budgets, measurement metrics and goals. A MCoE not only handles the architectures and procedures for mobile but also engages with the mobile experience and customer needs.
  • Bring in diversity to the team: The MCoE will collaborate the technical and business part of enterprise. You would need people who are technical experts as well as people who understand the business and customer well. Bring together people with different skill sets and subject matter expertise to foster broader synergy.
  • Start small, build big: As with any business process, an MCoE would also need time and experience to get going. Start with a project or a business unit, roll out the process, evaluate and review the impact. Once the entity gains sufficient tractions, let it encompass wider responsibilities to align with the big picture.

Mobile Center of Excellence has a big and impactful role in the enterprise mobility environment. Not only to address technical challenges arising due to proliferation of mobile devices and apps but also to answer business strategy challenges poised in the existing environment.

Image courtesy of Sujin Jetkasettakorn / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Android Maintains Its Leadership In OS Market, Windows Phone Posts High YOY

As per data released by IDC Worldwide Mobile Phone Tracker,the smartphone market crossed a major milestone in 2013 as worldwide shipments surpassed the 1 billion mark. In the smartphone operating system market, the race is clearly between Android and iOS with the latter holding the lion’s share at 78.6% in the fourth quarter of the last year. However, in terms of year-over-year change, it’s Mircosoft’s Windows Phone that grabs the headline with a 90.9% growth. RIM’s BlackBerry gets further marginalized in the market with a negative year-over-year change.

Mobile For Hotels: Driving Revenues Via Self-Servicing Mobile Applications

In an industry where “Service is King”, a positive guest experience is a critical factor to succeed. Happy customers become loyal customers and are the best brand ambassadors. More so in the current social media age, where a customer can immediately share his reaction on your services with his friends and the rest of the world.
Image courtesy of KROMKRATHOG / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
However, the new-age, mobile armed customers are hard to please. Their expectations are soaring with no room for compromise. Long waits in check-ins, in-accuracy or delay in room servicing or non-availability of mobile booking facility can be a big turn-off. Hotels, on the other hand, already reeling under the financial pressure due to economic downturn are finding it tough to match up to the expectations. This is where mobile self-service apps can play an impactful role in delighting guests by  giving them more control in meeting their stay requirements and also help hotels boost revenues and profitability.

Self-service apps benefits

Self-service mobility tools like mobile check-ins, mobile keys and service request apps can help hoteliers improve their guest experience, get more guests, optimize resources, improve staff productivity and ultimately cut expenses and improve margins.

Taylor Short of Software Advice says “Mobile apps are essential self-service tools for hotel brands who want to add revenue through strategic up-selling, convenient room service ordering, pushing targeted offers to specific guests or direct messaging with customers—all on the smartphone the traveler carries everywhere.”

App-oppurtunities in hotel guest cycle

Whether it is pre-sale, point-of-sale or post-sales, there are ample opportunities for hoteliers to use mobile self-service solutions and improve comfort and convenience of their guests. Agrees Taylor, “Mobile apps can replace the typical in-room menu and list of services that clutter the desks or nightstands. Travelers are constantly on their smartphones or tablets anyway, so give them access with the app to anything they would want during their stay, like spa reservations, concierge recommendations and information about local hot spots.”

  • Check-ins: Mobile check-in apps can enable guests to check-in via the app available in their smartphone from airport or any other place before his visit to the hotel. This will keep the hotel informed about the arrival time of the guest helping it keep the room ready.
  • Mobile Keys: Once the guest check-ins using his mobile app, an NFC (Near Field Communications) technology based keys can be sent over-the-air on his mobile device. The guest can then bypass the check-in line and head straight to his room, unlock the door using his smartphone.
  • Guest Servicing: While he enjoys his stay in the hotel, he can use his mobile device to access various services like ordering food and drinks and room servicing etc. Location-based functionality in mobile apps can be used to guide guests to various facilities in the property like gym, spa, saloon and casinos etc.
  • Check-out: Just like the check-in experience, the check-out process can be made easy and quick, eliminating the front desk stop. The guest can use the app to initiate check-out process, get the bill amount on his device, pay the bill using card swiping machine or other payment methods available, connect with the service staff if required and book a cab or a ticket for his/her onward journey.

As we have discovered, self-service mobile solutions can play a huge role in driving more revenues by streamlining operations, improving guest experience and getting more customers. There are several other benefits as Taylor points out, “Hotels should encourage guests to interact with them directly through the app with comments, concerns or questions. Not only is it a convenient way to engage customers on a personal level and increase satisfaction, but it can be an incredibly valuable source of feedback and criticism that hoteliers can use to improve operations.”
Our latest eBook ‘5 MUST HAVE MOBILE SOLUTIONS FOR THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY‘ dwells further on the role of mobile customer engagement solutions in detail. Download it to discover how mobile can help you delight guests, boost productivity and improve profitability.

3 Ways Mobile Apps Help Motor Insurers Simplify & Expedite Claims Process While Reducing Claim Expenses

Claim servicing time is a key factor in the buying decision and insurer-customer relationship.  For insurers, a streamlined and speedy claims process not only means reduced costs but is also an excellent way to boost market reputation through competitive differentiation. As per World Insurance Report 2011, for every dollar collected in premiums, insurers, on average, spend 61 cents on claims pay-out and 13 cents on claim expenses. The advent of mobile devices and apps provides new opportunities for insurers to improve customer convenience, reduce time and costs via claims self-service mobile apps.
Mobile solutions for insurance claim management can help insurers in-

1. Easing claim servicing

A study by AXA UK shows that only 34% of the motorists, participating in the survey, knew exactly what to do in case of an accident while 54% remembered taking photos from the accident site. A smartphone app for claims servicing available in the consumer’s device will be able to guide customers through the claim report process, shoot photos of the accident scene and instantly report to the insurer. Insurers can add more value to the app by providing breakdown services, hospital and garage information and improve the customer experience through value-added services.

2. Reducing costs

Mobile app for claim processing can also help your team handle more claims as reporting claims gets self-serviced. It will also reducing customer servicing calls and visits of your team thereby helping you optimize resource utilization and expedite claim settlement helping you reduce claim expenses.

3. Boost efficiency

Mobile solutions for claims processing can also boost productivity of your staff by helping them gather data, collaborate and communicate in real-time. Moreover, accurate information from accident site ensures prompt response leading to speedy quicker claim processing.

Mobile apps can play a critical role in speeding claims servicing for motor insurers. apart from that, they also help insurers build long-term relationships with customers through personalized communication, build loyalty through frequent engagement and earn revenues through up-sell/cross-sell.
To know more on how mobility can help insurance companies, download our ebook ‘5 MOBILE OPPORTUNITY AREAS FOR INSURERS‘ here.
 

Enterprise Mobility: 5 Simple (But Often Ignored) Tips To Create Compelling Mobile Experiences

A good customer experience is central to attracting customers, earning their loyalty and more business. And it’s no different when it comes to mobile apps. Enterprises who are developing apps without putting mobile experience at the centricity of their overall strategy or those who are not measuring app satisfaction of customers are hitting in dark.

Mobile is different and so are mobile users. Mobile has its share of limitations and content consumption pattern and so enterprises building apps must compensate these limitations with functionality so as provide an optimized engaging mobile experience to the users. Here are 5 simple tips to designing awesome mobile experiences:

1. Keep your app simple

Don’t overwhelm your users with numerous features. Adopt a simple and clean layout. Arrange the workflow in such a manner that your user can perform desired tasks easily. Make navigation smooth and seamless.

2. Add value to your app

Why should your users download your app? It should be of value to them. Value can be information, performing tasks like banking or shopping or getting entertained via games. While it is tempting to add more value to an app but remember not to loose sight of your key objective.

3. App performance is key

Ensure that your app works properly across devices and platforms. Make sure that pages load faster and buttons are responsive. These are little things but often act as a block against good mobile experience.

4. Personalize experiences

Remember, mobile is a personal device. So your targeting should be precise to the users needs and behaviors. Mobile app provides excellent analytics support to understand buyer behavior and shopping history. Use it to engage with them through personalized content.

5. Encourage users to come back

Give reasons to your users to keep using your mobile app. Regularly update your app with new features and fresh content. Run loyalty programs on mobile and use push notifications to inform users of any new events and happenings in your company.

With studies suggesting, more people using mobile than desktops for shopping activities, it is essential for brands to ensure higher app satisfaction. The more engaging your mobile app will be, the more your users will return and use them.

Mobility In Insurance: 5 Reasons Why Mobile Is The Right Tool For Your Agents?

Mobile technology is changing the face of insurance business. While a significant population of insurance consumers want and use mobile solutions for their insurance needs, the portability and form-factor of the devices makes it tailor-made to cater to the on-the-fly requirements of an insurance agent.

As per a survey by research firm Celent, 27 of the top 100 life insurance companies have apps for producers. This is more than double the number of insurers that offered apps to producers in 2011.

Smartphones and Tablets powered by apps are helping insurance agents boost his productivity, better manage his time and help him reach out to his clients better. Here’s 5 reasons why every insurance company must have a mobile app for its agents

1. Deliver Value Messaging

Insurance buyers are well informed today. Most of them do their reasearch online before contacting a company. The time-starved but savvy buyers wants specificity in the discussion and not a generic sales pitch. Mobile can help your agents tell compelling stories by personalizing the presentation according to the buyer needs, back it up with facts & figures and engage your client better.

2. Provide instant quotes

Price is a big differentiator in the insurance industry. A tablet armed agent can instantly generate quote using his mobile insurance app while interacting with the client to better argue his case. For motor insurance, the agent can instantly shoot an image of the vehicle, send it to the office to get the right quote in a few minutes.

3. Closing the Deal

With the intense competition in the industry, its better to close the deals in one meeting. Insurance mobile apps can help your sales agent get quotes on-the-spot, and if the client agrees get the policy document on his device, get it signed using digital signatures, swipe the card using mobile card reader and close the deal.

4. Sales Enablement

Mobile sales enablement solutions can help your agent remain connected with the office all the time, do his little work in between meetings or travelling, manage his leads and get access to office legacy systems like CRM and sales automation tools at the time of need.

5. Training

Tablets and smartphones are also excellent tools to train your agents. The training department can put all training materials in an online depsoitory which can then be accessed by all concerned. Your agent can watch videos, view presentations and listen to podcasts while he is travelling or is waiting for a client.

Mobile is not only an excellent tool for agents, but can also encompass other processes of an insurance company to bring efficiency, cut costs and improve profitability. To know more on mobility in insurance, download our ebook ‘5 mobile opportunity for insurers here.

Mobility For Hotels: 5 Excellent Benefits Of Serving Guests With Mobile

hospitality-hotel-mobile1

Picture this: Mr. Anderson, a businessman, is on a work trip to NewYork. Outside LaGuardia airport, he pulls out his smartphone, opens the hotel’s (where he has a reserved room) app to check-in to his hotel. Within seconds, he receives a notification that his room is ready. With the hotel nearby, he decides to stroll down and again taps into his phone to get directions. As he steps into the hotel property, Anderson receives a welcome notification with the room number and mobile key details in it. By passing the reception, he heads straight to his room, unlocks the door with his smartphone. He then instructs the room attendant through video chat facility in his app to order dinner and book him a car for the next morning.

Easy, isn’t it?

Mobile devices and apps are redefining the guest experience in the hospitality sector. For an industry where service is king, smartphones are playing a critical role, be it in attracting and engaging the customers or to improve the service delivery mechanism. Hotels, both branded and individually owned properties are now arming their staff with smartphones and Tablets to go nimble and innovative in their services, cut costs and create a winning impression on their guests. And the hotel apps are not just limited to booking reservations or loyalty programs but are moving beyond that. Hotels are endeavoring to be innovative in using mobile and get more out of their mobile investments.

So, what’s making hotels, big and small, to embrace mobility? Here are the 5 benefits that’s alluring, compelling and pushing hoteliers to go mobile-

1. Delight Guests

The guest today is expecting world-class standards. He wants cleaner floors, pristine rooms and agile services. If you deliver, he will comeback and recommend other too. If you don’t you loose them. Mobile apps help you standout of the competition by improving service levels.

2. Get More Customers

Mobile apps have become a must-have tool for travelers with a large population using it to search and book rooms. If you are not on mobile then you will miss out targeting this significant group.

3. Boost Staff Productivity

Mobile is a perfect companion to your on-the-move staff. It helps them receive requests on their device, address them faster and significantly improve their efficiency.

4. Better Manage

Mobile dashboards ensure that your manager always gets the top-level as well as detailed view of the entire operations helping him intervene and resolve issue when required. And keep a firm grip on the entire operations. Moreover, analytics help you understand specific needs of your guests based on his history and deliver personalized services.

5. Engage to Retain

A mobile app not only helps you pull customer but also help you engage with them personally. Mobile loyalty programs and gamification techniques can help you keep your brand name at the top of the mind of your customers. Mobile loyalty programs are not only cost-effective in comparison to paper or plastic cards but are also helpful in boosting customer participation as it resides on their device and can be used anytime.

Adoption of mobility in the travel and hospitality industry is significantly contributing to enhanced guest experience and it will continue to do so in the times to come. Apps surely makes for ‘appy’ customers.

15 Insightful Stats On Enterprise Mobility

Mobile has emerged as the biggest disruptive force in the last decade. Enterprises, from Oil & Gas to retail, are embracing mobility like never before. Here’s a stats guide that provides you with rich data and insights on enterprise mobile apps. Know them before you get down to plan your next mobile strategy.

1. Mobile is a top priority for enterprises

Enterprises believe mobility is a top priority while 63% believe it to be the biggest factor in helping them gain a competitive advantage.

Source : Citrix

 
2. Enterprise Mobility Market is Growing

The global enterprise mobility market size is expected to be $140 billion by the year 2020, growing at a CAGR of 15%.

Source : Nasscom

 
3. Mobile’s pie in IT expenditure is expanding

The spending by businesses on mobility is expected to increase from the present 5% to 10-12% of the total IT expenditure by 2020.

Source : Nasscom

 
4. Businesses investing in mobile apps

7.6% enterprises have built more than 20 apps while 38.5% have at least one mobile app built for their business.

Source : Appcelerator

 
5. Enterprises use both internal and outsourced development strategies

41.1% enterprises procure and integrate mobility solutions internally, 29.4% use an outside service provider while 29.5% use both internal and external support.

Source : CurrentAnalysis

 
6. BYOD is the right strategy

81.9% enterprises across the globe believe BYOD is an appropriate strategy for their business.

Source : CurrentAnalysis

 
7. Enterprises are using MDM and MAM in a big way

48% enterprises are using mobile device management (MDM) and 47% are using mobile application management (MAM) to manage their mobile assets.

Source : Citrix

 
8. Apple rules, Android catching fast

Apple’s iOS is the most supported OS with almost 65% of the enterprises who claim to support this OS. Google’s Android is on a small distance with 55% of the supporting it.

Source : CIONET Mobility Survey 2013

 
9. Platform fragmentation is still a pain point

Top reported hindrance to mobile app development is building for multiple devices and platforms. 62% of enterprises support 3 or more operating systems.

Source : Appceleartor

 
10. There are Bottlenecks

3 main barriers preventing mobility initiatives – lack of security controls for new devices and clients (38%), legacy systems unfit for mobile purposes (37%) and challenges supporting multiple mobile operating systems (36%).

Source : Citrix

 
11. Security and Privacy is a Concern

77% of survey participants said that data security and user privacy concerns are the biggest challenge they face when they build and implement a mobility strategy.

Source : Dimension Data

 
12. Businesses reasons mobile

Enterprises point out that business reasons (47.8%) is the main driver for mobility initiatives, followed by the IT department (25.18%) and the employees (17.27%).

Source : CIONET Mobility Survey 2013

 
13. Enterprise mobility offers multiple benefits

Employee effectiveness (79%), cost savings (74%), customer relations (72%), increasing sales (63%) and new product and service offerings (66%) are the top reasons for a business to go mobile.

Source : CIONET Mobility Survey 2013

 
14. The Consumer is on Mobile

Consumers spend 15+ hours researching on their smartphone. 93% of people who research on mobile go on to buy a product or service.

Source : Neilsen

 
15. Branded Apps bringing more sales

45.8% of customers feel that branded mobile apps cause them to visit the stores, buy more of the products and services (40.4%), spread the word about their experience (35.8%), and even encourage friends to visit the store (30.8%).

Source : ABI Research

Mobility For Financial Advisors: Show, Don’t Tell And Get More Business

Smartphones and Tablets, powered with apps, are transforming the way financial advisors do business and engage with their clients. The advisors, these days, are snapping up mobile devices as they hit the roads.

Take the case of Mr. Bryne, an advisor with a leading company in Dallas. He swears by his iPad for work. He uses his sleek device to run presentations, showcase benefit illustration of various investment products pulling tools available in his iPad, takes notes and even executes trades from the client’s place using his firm’s recently developed app. His clients use a similar mobile app to keep track of their investments and get anywhere, anytime access to their portfolio.

Bryne says “I’m able to meet more clients in a day, better respond to their queries and provide a clear and concise view of their investments. The difference is clearly visible. I’m connected with my office all the day and can work while travelling or waiting for the client. And I’m travelling light these days.”

Client engagement is changing

A financial advisor arrives at a client’s place lugging an overstuffed suitcase. After exchanging pleasantries, they get down to discuss the client’s investments. The advisor takes out a stack of printouts and pulls her laptop. While waiting for his laptop to start, she glances over the printouts to realize that these are not updated with the latest product information and performance results. She then gets to her laptop to access various data and information and finally starts her presentation. By then 15 of 30 minutes appointment is already over and she now runs down her presentation quickly leaving the client unimpressed. This incident would have been a normal experience a few years back. But, in the current real-time information driven environment, it’s a threat to survival. And a reason enough to loose clients.

Mobile’s competitive edge

With better informed but time starved clients, customized presentations packed with valuable information are important to win their trust and business. The client engagement experience has become a key differentiators and mobile devices are offering the solution. Today, advisors armed with Tablets and access to latest data and digital assets like videos, online assessment tools, graphics and ROI calculators, are engaging more productively with clients and offering them superior services. Moreover, mobile devices are also helping them get more productive by automating various administrative paper-based works, upgrade their skills by accessing training videos and reference materials and help them be updated through real-time access to research insights and news. More and more financial firms are leveraging mobile solutions to give a competitive edge to their advisors.

There’s an app for that

From data visualizations, analytics, retirement planners, paperless document transfer with digital signatures, remote access to PC to trading platforms- there are hundreds of apps available for financial advisers. And, slowly yet steadily, investment firms too are joining the bandwagon with their custom in-house apps that provide a wealth of information to their clients as well as allow financial advisers to access all critical data from their device. And, as advisors are on the road, meeting clients they keep getting notifications and alerts which help them take necessary action on-the-fly and better manage their client’s account.

Mobile is Essential

The benefits of using Tablets and mobile apps are clear. With client expectations changing and shifts in the industry, the way financial advisors relate with their clients and do business is no longer the same. Financial advisors, wherever they work, have to quickly adapt to the changing scenarios. Mobile has become a necessity for future success in the industry. It’s time financial advisory firms leverage mobility to ensure superior client service than ever before.

 

5 Simple Steps Towards A Lean Mobile Strategy

lean-mobile-strategy

What is lean? Simply put it is the practice of deriving more value for customers from fewer resources while minimizing wastes and being flexible to changes. Lean, with origins in production plants, has travelled a lot from being a buzzword to a best practice employed across the globe. And, now with enterprises embracing mobility in full steam, the big question is- Can lean be applied to a mobile strategy and, if yes, then how? Many enterprises across the globe are employing lean mobile strategies to offer more value to their customers and get more from their mobile investments. And you too can. Here are the 5 easy steps towards a lean mobile strategy to plan your 2014 mobile investments right-

1. Identify and specify

Specify value of your mobile initiative from the end-user point of view. Understand your organization’s mobile experiences. Identify your business objectives. Align value specified for customers with your business goals to get your mobile strategy and goals.

2. Map the value stream

Imagine your enterprise at one end and your customer at other end linked by a value stream. Now map the set of activities you would need to get the value delivered to your customer with your mobile app or game. Your road map for mobility is ready.

3. Create a MVP

The MVP or minimum viable product should be created with just enough features to able to provide you with authenticated learning on customer engagement. Your goal should be to test key business hypothesis.

4. Chase actionable metrics

What are the factors that will define the success of your mobile efforts? Is it downloads or user engagement? Clearly define quantitative metrics and goals.

5. Launch, iterate and perfect

Launch your mobile app or a game within a small customer group or a market for a pre-defined cycle. If developed for internal usage, then launch it for a single process or a function. Track your defined metrics and evaluate results. Based on the customer feedback, you now know for sure what the customer wants. Now develop the product to serve them.

The goal of a lean enterprise mobile strategy is to apply scientific methods to better understand customer needs, reduce risk, cut wastes and improve success rates of your mobile investments.

Key Success Points

  • Understand the end-user point of view and behavior by listening to users through validated feedback.
  • Don’t try to get perfect from the start. Ideate, implement in short cycles, and iterate to get perfect.
  • Constantly review to ensure consistency in delivering valuable mobile experiences to your users.

To integrate mobile into your business with a smart mobile strategy, download our enterprise mobile strategy guide.
 

Leanstartup Twitter Contest: And The Winners Are…

On the sidelines of 2013 Lean Startup Conference, [x]cube LABS ran a Twitter contest with the hashtag #leanstartup wherein we asked participants to tweet us their view, opinions and takeaways from the event. You responded in huge numbers and most of the responses were well-reasoned and insightful. And the reactions came from both sides (for and against) of the spectrum making the interaction truly engaging and meaningful.

Our esteemed panel of Jury consisting of Dr. Mureen Allen from UHG, NYT Bestselling Author Mr. Brant Cooper from Moves the Needle and Ms. Diana Kander from Kauffman Foundation had really tough time picking the best from your tweets. The jury debated and deliberated long and hard over the week and finally we arrived at the list of winners.

But there’s more…

It’s the holiday season and we at [x]cube are in the spirit of giving. Instead of 2 we are giving 3 prizes for the contest as an appreciation to your encouraged response.

And the winners are…

1st prize

Name: Brett Marl

Twitter id: @brettmarl

Winning Tweet: I learned Lean can be like Ikea stuff- looks good in the store, but hard to assemble when you get home #LeanStartup @xcubelabs @leanstartup

“Shocked. First contest I’ve ever won. All the credit goes to Steve Blank though for the Ikea quote.” – Brett Marl

2nd prize

Name: Karen Gates

Twitter id: @KEGates

Winning Tweet: @xcubelabs.com Intuit’s Brad Smith: “Meritocracy means death of Power Point, politics, and persuasion.” #LeanStartup

“The prize makes me feel extra grateful for all of the stimulating ideas and people there are to learn from. That includes gratitude for your idea of this contest, which added a truly special element of value to the conference. Thanks, and hope you repeat next year!” – Karen Gates

3rd prize

Name: Kojo Kitchen

Twitter id: Twitter id: @KoJaKitchen

Winning Tweet: At the #LeanStartup #LeanStartupConference, KoJa Kitchen learned how to NOT suck horse crap and call it a pivot cc: @leanstartup @xcubelabs

“WOW!! Thank you so much for selecting us as a winner!! WE ARE SO STOKED!” – KojoKitchen

Mobility In Oil & Gas: The Mobilized Oil Fields

The Oil and gas industry knows better than most to leverage technologies to make major breakthroughs. Sugar Loaf Field in Brazil, Ghawar Oil Field in Saudi Arabia and all other big and small oil field discoveries have been possible thanks to significant progresses in technology. With sites in remotest of locations, assets spread over hundreds of miles, and people working across geographies, the industry is always in look for technology that can best cater to their requirements. Moreover, ever-increasing data gathering and analysis, real-time collaboration and operability needs constantly push companies to explore newer technology options. In the last few years or so companies engaged in oil & gas industry is increasingly banking on mobile technology to manage its complex system, smoothen information flow from remotest location and be connected all the time. Mobile devices and apps are becoming a big enabler in the industry.

In an Oil & Gas CIO survey, over 73% of CIOs consider mobile as their top priorities with 55% believe mobile technology will greatly enhance operations. Moreover, by 2015, it is estimated that $8 billion will be spent on oil and gas mobile apps.

Mobility adds value to the industry by

One of the major drivers behind mobility adoption in Oil & Gas industry is necessity of data and information flow. The field personnel can capture and send data from remote locations using their handheld devices, enable analysis at workstations and ensure regular information flow across the chain. Mobile also supports real-time operability thereby providing greater visibility across the processes and infrastructure and helping decision makers react to an evolving situation. Mobile technology also enables location based information which is a prime necessity in an asset intensive industry stretched over large areas. Smartphones and apps also help collaboration between a large numbers of people dispersed across geographies.

Areas where mobile apps are making an impact

  • Production Control: Oil and Gas are using mobile apps for well-testing work flows. From identification of oil-wells, capturing & analyzing data for drilling and pulling to helping personnel conduct physical measurements and production analysis, mobile applications are enabling on-the spot decision making for field personnel.
  • Asset Management: Mobile apps for asset management in oil & gas industry are helping companies in better tracking and scheduling of deployed assets. The store asset information is accessible to employees on the move on their mobile device. The application also allows employees to update inventory records, view locations of items and plan maintenance for it.
  • Field Maintenance: Mobile apps for field maintenance are easing the jobs of inspection and maintenance. With the application on their device, the maintenance team gets access to maintenance tasks and work order, raises alerts, report defects and problems and register completion of work.
  • Security and Compliance: The industry requires stringent, regular security & compliance audits to conduct. Oil & Gas companies are using mobile apps to quicken-up and well-coordinate the audit process. From checklists, planning schedules to assigning work-orders, incident reporting and preparing reports, mobile is considerably easing the entire process
  • Retail Operations: Mobile applications are not only used in explorations and productions but also in retail and distribution. Oil & gas companies are building apps for dealer engagement and management. On the customer-facing side, most companies are using mobile apps for meter reading, bill generation & payment and outage reporting.

In future, with the more pronounced usage of other mobile enabling technologies like M2M and Augmented Reality, the industry will have more to do with mobility. The miniature devices are set to play a crucial role in the industry in times to come.

Mobility In 2013: Year In Review

The mobile landscape in constantly evolving. With each year, mobility is expanding its horizons bring more users within its ambit, packing more power and bringing more possibilities. 2013 was no different as it witnessed many steps forward and churns in the marketplace. At the start of every year, [x]cube LABS does a mobility recap infographic that summarizes the last year movements in the mobile ecosystem. In continuation with the practice, we present to you our latest infographic ‘Mobility in 2013’ that recaps all the major highlights, up and downs and market share swings in 2013 in the world of mobile devices and apps.

M2M Applications: The Next Big Thing In Enterprises

Machine to Machine or M2M is catching the attention of businesses across the globe. Analyst Mason, in a study, predicts that M2M device connections will rise to 2.1 billion by 2021. A Vodafone survey reveals that 78% of respondents were of the opinion that M2M will be at the heart of successful businesses in the future. The study further highlights that 55% of participants rank M2M as a key priority for their organizations while 9% consider it as their number one priority.
Various research insights clearly show that M2M is evolving and is set to drive the next big thing in business.

What is M2M?

Simply put, Machine to Machine or Machine to Mobile (M2M) technology connects various machines like cars, appliances, computers with mobile or other fixed assets over networks and facilitates real-time data exchange to monitor and control either of these machines or their surrounding environment.

Drivers behind M2M

There are many motivations behind organizations embracing M2M including new revenue streams, cost savings, competitive advantage, process and productivity improvements, operational efficiency and speedy decision making capabilities etc. In short, the potential of M2M technology to encompass every function and its quantifiable business impact is making enterprises seriously consider M2M and put it at the core of their business.

M2M applications in business

From healthcare, manufacturing to retail; industries across the spectrum are using M2M.

  • Healthcare: M2M applications have broken the barriers of distance by remotely connecting healthcare providers and patients. Remote monitoring solutions are allowing physicians to monitor their patients anytime, anywhere; seek critical data and capture images for condition management and home care. M2M healthcare solutions have not only improved quality of patient care but are also reducing costs.
  • Retail: Retailers are using M2M enabled automated inventory tracking system wherein the legacy inventory management system is communicating with billing systems, mobile devices, RFID and sensors in the stores to report the consumption rates of products in the stores. The reports are then accessed by store managers and other relevant people on their mobile devices facilitating accurate inventory positions and store replenishments. From Kiosks, parking management to remote surveillance, M2M solutions are playing a big role in retail industry.
  • Automobile: The automotive industry has been one of the early adopters of M2M solutions. From connecting infotainment systems, the dashboard with drivers mobile device to enrich superior driving experience to its use in vehicle diagnostics, accident prevention and telematics; M2M is speedily evolving in the industry.
  • Consumer Electronics: All kinds of consumer appliances are communicating with other connected devices using M2M solutions. From smart refrigerators, ovens to remotely controllable equipments; the opportunities for M2M in the industry are just limitless.
  • Energy & Utilities: M2M applications can also be found in power, oil and gas industry. Smart grid is being used to gain control over electric transmission and distribution networks while M2M supported metering solutions are helping companies to provide improved customer services. In the Oil and Gas industry, sensors and other connected machines are bringing accuracy and agility in exploration work.
    Other sectors like industrial automation and monitoring, transport and logistics and utilities too are leveraging M2M technology to become more agile, responsive and innovative, and to outsmart the competition.

In future

One of the major hurdles behind M2M adoption is the high costs associated with it. But as the technology evolves and the costs associated with it falls, we will see M2M play a wider role in business and personal space. Similarly, as results of adopting machine-to-machine technology becomes more visible and clearer in the future, we will see the technology gain higher traction. The surge in consumer demand will also push M2M in mainstream further driving the adoption by businesses. With Strategy Analytics predicting the global M2M communications market to reach close to $30 Billion by 2014, M2M is set to grow big in the future.

[x]cube LABS CEO To Participate In CES 2014

CES2014

The biggest electronics show CES 2014 is scheduled on January 7th to 10th in Las Vegas. Like every year, the CES 2014 is expected to be the biggest gathering of giants and newbies from the electronics industry and a platform to contemplate and showcase the latest consumer technology innovations. At [x]cube LABS, we see it as a perfect occasion to interact with various stakeholders from the mobile industry, share opinions on the trends and practices and explore new business opportunities. Our CEO Mr. Bharath Lingam will be attending the event. If you too are attending the event, then please drop by to say “hello”. It will be a great pleasure to meet you all!

You can connect with Bharath on his twitter account @bharath007 or reach us @xcubelabs.

Enrich with new ideas & experiences at 2013 Lean Startup Conference; Get a chance to win an iPad!

Lean Startup has travelled a lot from being a buzz word to a movement that is sprouting new ways for product developments and business processes. The 2013 Lean Startup Conference is yet another opportunity for all of us to learn new success stories, fresh case studies and read into the minds of business leaders, entrepreneurs and practitioners from other walks of life.
Our CEO Mr. Bharath Lingam will be attending 2013 Lean Startup Conference along with other members from the [x]cube management team. If you too are attending the event then we look forward to meet you all. You can connect with Bharath on his twitter account @bharath007 or reach us @xcubelabs.
But there’s also an opportunity for you to win an iPad!
[x]cube LABS is running a #leanstartupco Twitter contest where you have a chance to win an iPad on each day of conference by sharing with us your thoughts and key takeaways on the conference. Here’s what you need to do to win an iPad

Step 1

Tweet your thoughts/ key takeaways on the conference @xcubelabs. and use the hashtag #leanstartupco

Step 2

We will monitor and collect all such tweets @xcubelabs. with the hashtag #leanstartupco and send them to our judges

Step 3

An eminent panel of judges will select the best tweet of the day and the sender will be awarded an iPad.

tweet-to-win

Contest Rules

– You can tweet as many responses as you want.

– The contest will run for two days i.e. on December 9th and 10th.

– Winners will be decided by a panel of eminent judges.

– Winners will be announced on twitter as well as officially informed by the conference organizers.

Enterprise mobile strategy: 9 steps to success

Many enterprises are still implementing mobile in a piecemeal manner and therefore are not able to fully realize the gains and better ROI from their initiatives. A holistic mobile strategy can deliver maximum value to businesses, help them drive profitability and transform them into a proactive digital enterprise.

strategy

Developing a long-term business mobile strategy involves playing devil’s advocate, involving others in an argumentative discussion process, testing the quality of reasoning and then deriving insights that will seed your mobile strategy and implementation. Here’s how to go about it –

1) Define your goals:

What are your mobile expectations? How the outcomes correlate with your overall business vision? What form of mobile presence will help you realize your goals? What are your customer expectations and how going mobile can cater to it? Look within and outside your business to identify mobile opportunities. Just don’t look at what they are doing. Find why they are doing it.

2) Prepare a mobility road-map:

 Once you have defined your business goals, the next step is to prepare a roadmap by finding appropriate mobile solutions that will take you to your destination. Do you need a mobile website or a mobile app? Is smartphone best suited to your business or a Tablet? For each mobile solution, build a case summary that lists important benefits, functions and target audience etc. Prioritize the mobile solutions based on your goals and your mobility roadmap is ready!

3) Analyze your exiting process:

Any mobile solution implemented within your organization will impact the existing workflow. It is therefore pertinent to go in for a comprehensive analysis of your current process before mobility execution. This will help you identify mobile implementation opportunities in the process, measure the impact of mobilizing it, gauge the user experience, justify the costs involved and calculate ROI.

4) Draw a technology blueprint:

Get into the specifics to draw a technology blueprint which entails decisions on mobile platforms, OS, devices- BYOD or company owned, app development and security policy etc. After this stage, you will have a clear idea on the mobile architecture to be integrated with your business.

5) Set a budget:

Many enterprises commit the error of clubbing mobile budget with the overall IT budget. This leads to confusion in ownership, authority and budgetary prioritizing. Create a separate budget and draw a clear picture of detailing out your investment strategy for investments- today, for the next 6 months and if possible for the next couple of years? Break-down the overall budget department and process-wise for better clarity.

6) Lay an implementation roadmap:

The implementation roadmap should spell out work process with specific tasks and the time horizon for each specific task. Identify risks and dependencies of the mobile project and base your projects on it.

7) Create a center of excellence:

A COE involving people from diverse domains and expertise will aid you in promoting collaboration across varied groups, institutionalize best practices, monitor and evaluate mobile projects, define policies and procedures to bring consistency into your mobile adoption initiatives etc.

8) Test deployment:

Implement your mobile plan in a single process and activity. Determine success and failure areas, document and analyze the deployment experience. Hone your strategy based on the test deployment experience and then go-ahead for an organizational rollout.

9) Assess and review:

Prepare an evaluation calendar and set metrics for your mobile strategy. Gather inputs and feedback from various sources on the mobile experience. Look for mobile adoption rates and engagement metrics to determine usage. Identify discrepancies and disturbances and take corrective action.

Eric Schmidt, Executive Chairman of Google, says “Mobile is so important; put your best people on mobile. If you don’t have a mobile strategy, you are no longer relevant.” Yes, it’s that important.

[x]cube LABS to unveil Adbient & Instasense at TechCrunch, Bangalore

TechCrunch is hosting its first event in India! The two-day event, scheduled November 14-15, will focus on how to build companies in India that will go global and will feature keynote sessions, startup pitch presentations, startup exhibits and a hackathon. The event is expected to draw an amazing lineup of startups and thought leaders and will be an excellent platform to share new ideas and exhibit new products.

Instasense-xcubelabs
[x]cube LABS will unveil its two new intellectual properties Adbient and Instasense at the event. InstaSense is a comprehensive context aware platform that offers many interesting functionalities like managing your app’s Event-Partitioning model, geo-fencing capabilities, customized mobile gesture-based functionalities and enables contextual actions against multiple phone orientations. Adbient, on the other hand, is our latest media & marketing planning solution focused on helping developers acquire high quality users and monetize their apps.

[x]cube’s Team led by our CEO Mr. Bharath Lingam will be present at booth #10 at the event. Please feel free to stop for a demo of our latest mobility products Adbient and Instasense or to learn more about our enterprise mobility consulting services.

You can reach out to us on twitter @xcubelabs.

Nasscom Game Developer Conference (NGDC) is scheduled on Nov 15-16. Our COO Mr. Ravi Korukonda will be representing us at the event. If you too are attending the event then we look forward to meet you all. You can connect with Ravi on his twitter account @Ravikorukonda or reach us @xcubelabs.

Moreover, we are also participating in Devthon Collaborative Hackathon in Hyderabad on November 16-17 and India’s largest Android conference Droidcon India scheduled on 28 – 30 November. Our COO Mr. Ravi Korukonda is actively involved in setting the vision and successful organization of ‘Droidcon India’ in his role as member of Program Committee (Gaming Track). You can know more about it here.

Idea to 1 million app downloads; our CEO speaks at Nasscom Conclave

NPC

[x]cube LABS CEO Mr. Bharath Lingam was a key speaker in the NASSCOM Product Conclave, Bangalore attended by “who’s who” from the Indian IT industry. Bharath spoke on the idea to get 1 million app downloads and shared success secrets with the participants. According to him, there are 2 main success factors, one, building a great app that identifies the right space, promotes engagement and solves a problem big enough to have a bigger user base. The second factor is data driven, precision marketing. And he believes both should complement each other to reach the goal. The discussion is laced with actionable insights, practical tips and case studies and will help every app developer or a brand in getting a million users. Listen to him in this video-

[x]cube LABS COO encouraging force behind India’s largest Android Conference Droidcon India

Droidcon is back! The 3 day annual event this year aims to engage the finest minds from the Android community, contemplate on new ideas, best practices and trends and give a platform to developers & designers to showcase platforms, APIs and apps.

[x]cube being a leading enterprise mobility consulting firm considers it as its responsibility to encourage learning, ideation and community collaboration particularly in the area of mobile technology. As part of our continued efforts, our COO Mr. Ravi Korukonda is actively involved in setting the vision and successful organization of ‘Droidcon India’ in his role as member of Program Committee (Gaming Track).

Droidcon is India’s largest Android conference, and is part of worldwide series of Droidcon conferences organized in London, Paris, Berlin and many other prominent cities across the world. The event is organized by HasGeek, a team dedicated towards organizing technology events for learning and providing discussion space to discover new opportunities for like-minded people.

The annual event this year will focus around Gaming, Business, Systems, UX, & App Demos and will bring together the best of industry experts and technology minds as featured speakers on a range of topics. The 3 day conference will be marked with in-depth sessions and workshops culminating with a full-day hackathon.

The Droidcon India is scheduled on 28 – 30 NOVEMBER 2013 in BANGALORE. For more information, please visit www.droidcon.in/2013/.

Meet [x]cube LABS at GITEX 2013, Dubai.

GITEX- the technology gateway to Middle East and other neighboring regions is in its full swing. The event attracts the biggest and the best names from the technology world from across the globe and is wonderful opportunity to showcase your work, discuss industry trends and network. [x]cube being a leading enterprise mobile consulting company finds GITEX 2013 an excellent opportunity to not only witness the amazing display of technology products but also to meet some of the finest minds in the industry and keep abreast with the technology trends. The [x]cube LABS team will be led by our COO Mr. Ravi Korukonda.

If you too are attending the event then we look forward to meet you all. You can connect with Ravi on his twitter account @Ravikorukonda or reach us @xcubelabs.

Infographic: The Mobile Movement

The mobile app economy is getting bigger and bigger. With iOS and Android coming closer to each other, leaving other platforms far behind, the mobile app landscape is governed by the movements in App Store and Google Play. Here’s our latest infographic that brilliantly captures the key trends in the mobile app ecosystem. Our infographic takes you through-

# App downloads figures for 2012 and 2013.

# Increase in revenue over the last 2 years.

# Revenue from in-app purchases.

# Monthly download numbers for Apple and Google.

eBook: 5 Ways to Rock Your Sales with Mobile Sales Enablement!

Do you know 61% of companies that use mobile sales tools improved their customer retention rates in comparison to 47% of companies without any mobile tools?

Driving sales effectiveness is every CSO’s concern today!

As per CSO insights 2012, for CSOs across the globe, driving Sales Effectiveness is their top priority followed by increasing revenues and improving up-selling/cross-selling.

What has made driving sales effectiveness more challenging is the shift in sales engagement process with today’s savvy but time-starved customers demanding a relevant, personalized engagement that “shows, not tells,” and “helps, not sells.” Plus they also demand financial justification before taking a buying decision.

Do you know 56% of reps from companies that use mobile sales tools attained their sales quotas, while just 39% of reps from companies without mobile tools did so?

Mobile sales enablement is helping sales teams in better engaging clients, increasing productivity and winning more deals. From customized digital assets, collaboration tools to data driven decision support, MSE is arming sales teams with the right tools to meet the demands of new age sales cycle.

Our latest Mobile Sales Enablement eBook tells you-

  • WHY TO USE MOBILE SALES ENABLEMENT
  • BENEFITS OF MSE
  • 5 KEY SALES CHALLENGES THAT MSE CAN ADDRESS
    1. – BETTER INFORMED, TIME STARVED BUYERS
    2. – SALES QUOTA ATTAINMENT
    3. – NEW CUSTOMER ACQUISITION IS TOUGH & EXPENSIVE
    4. – IMPROVE SALES PRODUCTIVITY
    5. – SALES TRAINING IS NOT YIELDING DESIRED RESULTS

This eBook also helps you take the first step, by providing actionable insights and practical tips, on implementing MSE in your organization and optimally benefiting from it.

You can download your free copy of the ebook here.

Happy Reading!

5 Simple Augmented Reality Integrations For Retail Mobility

Apple has left an undeniable impression on every technical designer and strategist.
It has altered the perspective on solution-design forever by demonstrating the strength of ‘simplification’ in driving product adaptability. Augmented Reality has been viewed as a trending technology, and like all technologies might lose its X-factor pretty soon.

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Gaming for Business

xcubegames

Mobile games has been our passion since Apple launched its app store. Over the years, we have established our expertise as a leading mobile game development company by creating awesome mobile gaming experiences for people across the globe. Today, we have a specialized division in [x]cube GAMES where we deliver end-to-end services to businesses in leveraging mobile games for their internal and external usage. Watch our latest video where Imitiaz Hussain takes you through our mobile journey.

[x]cube LABS COO Marks Major Milestone with HR LEADERSHIP AWARD

Ravi Korukonda, with his endless dedication and passion, has molded [x]cube LABS into a great work place to work. Ravi has an affinity for people and it is reflected in the ethos of the organization, where the employees are not just a part of the processes but also have a say in modeling them.

The HR Leadership award, conferred by the IPE Asia Pacific HRM Congress is another feather in the cap of this illustrious COO, known for his dexterity and precision in setting up departments, defining HR processes and talent management to create people-centric environments.

This is an annual award jointly instituted by the Institute of Public Enterprise (IPE) and the Asian Pacific HRM Congress to honour individuals and organizations for their best practices in the field of human resource development.

The theme for this year’s Congress is “SUSTAINABILITY & GROWTH IN CHALLENGING TIMES” wherein prominent HR leaders and experts from public, private and social sector are expected to gather and contribute to the discussion.

We are indeed proud and privileged to announce that our COO will receive the award from an esteemed Jury and Council of Board members in a special ceremony scheduled on 5th September, 2013, at Taj Vivanta Bangalore.

Here’s to the [x] factor!

iOS 7 Background Execution and Multitasking

Multitasking has always been a smart way to switch between apps. Multitasking allows apps to continue running in the background even after the user switches to another app. Multitasking has been supported in iOS since iOS 4, but it was quite restricted, operating only with music, location and voip. This becomes very frustrating when we need to download some content for an app in the background, but it isn’t supported. With iOS 7 Apple provided multitasking for almost every app. Now we can perform lots of task when an app is in the background.

ios7

By integrating the new multitasking APIs in iOS 7, the app can keep the content up-to-date. The new service allows your app to update information and download content in the background without draining the battery unnecessarily. The updates can happen at opportunistic times and are intelligently scheduled according to usage, so your app can update content in the background only when your users need it.

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Indoor Positioning Seems To Have Come Of Age

Startups have this theory—The First Mover Advantage—it is the advantage gained by the initial significant occupant of a market segment. Sometimes first movers have huge profit margins and a monopoly, case in point, Twitter and Foursquare. Other times, the first mover is unable to capitalize on the advantage, for example, look at what happened with Indoor Positioning Systems. Most web and social apps are dominated by one or two early players due to the First Mover Advantage. With Indoor Positioning Systems (IPS), however, these startups squandered away their golden opportunity, thus, leaving no clear leader and a cat fight out there.

Indoor Positioning Systems have been an area of interest for more than two decades now. But it is only recently that some major breakthroughs have happened to possibly accelerate the availability of such technology to the masses. Analysts predict that by 2017, the Indoor Location Market will reach revenues exceeding $5 billion in total and will represent over 200,000 installations of infrastructure equipment, including WiFi hotspots, Bluetooth antenna and over 800 million branded application downloads. Those are big numbers.

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Decode Your Enterprise Mobile Strategy In 6 Simple Questions

mobile-strategy-3

Every enterprise will benefit from a unique mobile strategy. Understand how you can have all the information needed to define a mobile strategy through 6 simple questions.

“What is the mobile strategy which fits my business like a glove?” that’s the booming question in the board rooms of every enterprise, both big and small. This comes in the wake of companies realizing that mobile is the consumer’s most preferred medium. A simple way to understand mobile’s impact is to check the percentage of traffic that your website derives from mobile.

Despite the mantra that the consumer is the undisputed king, it is interesting to note that only 16% of companies worldwide have a mobile strategy in place. A majority of these companies are still optimizing their website for mobile, and most of those still approach mobile in a piecemeal, tactical way, rather than utilizing it to transform their businesses.

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And a dashboard to rule them all …

Take the 2006 STARTECH Chrysler 300C dashboard. Let’s do an approximate count of switches/buttons on it. My tally comes to approximately 40. That includes CD changer controls, AC controls, radio, maps etc. That’s a lot of controls to handle and to use, especially if you are using your vehicle for the 20 mile drive between your home and office. You might not even use some of these controls for years together. Most of the time, you don’t even know what to do with the data that these OnBoardDiagnostic systems (OBD) generate. So, is their space on the dashboard justified? Well, your car isn’t the BatMobile and you definitely can’t get a custom dashboard.

What if I were to tell you that the next battleground for mobile is the dashboard of your car? Unbelievable? Impossible even?

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Part 2- iOS 7 Beta review: Apple just made everything interesting again!

(In the first part of this three-part blog, we reviewed Apple’s latest mobile software iOS7 from design perspective. In this post, we will discuss new software features in iOS 7 and improvements from iOS 6. You can read the first part here)

Software features and improvements

iOS 7 brings following new software features and improvements to your iPhone:

All new multi-tasking

iOS 7 brings in a new card based multi-tasking screen wherein the user can scroll through a carousel of thumbnails to switch between the apps. The app icon is displayed for the corresponding thumbnail for the user to identify the app. To switch to an app, the user has to tap on one of the thumbnail or icon. To quit an app from the background, the user has to swipe-up the thumbnail. The new multi-tasking screen works in the landscape orientation as well.

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Mobility in Automotive Industry: The new app-o-mobiles on the road

Mobility in Automobiles

Are you ready to drive the change?

Our cover story this week gives you insights on mobile innovation in the automotive industry.

How mobile is altering the automotive landscape?

How in-vehicle apps are propelling the new advancements in the industry?

What are the challenges in integrating apps to cars?

And, the road ahead for in-vehicle apps.

A study conducted by Juniper Research reveals that 20% of consumer cars in Western Europe and North America will be app-connected by 2017. The report further highlights that, by 2016 there will be 92 million Internet connected vehicles on the road. Through their embedded connectivity and Group telematics (fusion of telecoms and information technologies in vehicles), intelligent cars are supposed to create revenues of $14.4 billion by 2016.”

The vehicle industry is on the cusp of a very big change. As car makers grapple with the multiple challenges presented by innovations in technology, radical shift in lifestyle demands influenced by the mobile revolution and a challenging business environment, there are compelling signs that the industry is set for a major shift. In the process, the central focus, ‘the car’ itself, is set to move beyond being a vehicle of conveyance to being a ‘digital hub’ offering an extended experience by converging devices and technologies. Download the cover story to get more insight.

No One Reads My GDD?

The problem with writing a well-defined and articulate game design document is that the only one who ends up reading it is the one who wrote the document to begin with – the game designer!

Being repeatedly questioned and asked about game features clearly outlined in the GDD is not exactly a great way to jump start development, if not downright irritating and many times, wildly infuriating.

Since people aren’t going to start behaving according to our game rules (i.e. read the GDD!) any time soon, it is up to us to design creative alternatives to cross this particularly hard level. Here are some pointers that effectively communicate game design and ensure relevant teams are on the same page even if they scored an F on the GDD.

Get a mood board

Put up a mood board and start pinning images. Since pictures speak louder than words, make use of pictures to communicate your design; tag them correctly and structure it in a manner that the viewers can form the relationship between images and understand the game. Let those involved with the game pitch in too with their images, making the entire exercise symbiotic. But ensure it is about the game as it is or is being designed.

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Mobile Strategy- The Why, What And How In Creating Your Enterprise Mobile Strategy

In a recently published survey by Accenture of over 400 global executives 1/3rd of the participating executives cited mobility as one of their top two priorities, while 75% put it among their top five. The same survey further highlights that 59% participants say that their company has implemented a centralized company-wide strategy, while 58% say that their mobile strategy is moderately developed.

strategy

Mobility has become very big. It has transformed how businesses interact with customers and is now disrupting the way people, processes and the technology infrastructure interact within the ecosystem. What is really compelling though, is the speed and scale at which mobility is being adopted and its emergence as a key strategic initiative. Businesses, at whichever adoption stage they are at, know that there is massive potential with mobility ready to exploit. But, they need a clear mobile strategy that can provide solutions that best fit their needs and can help them realize their business goals, transforming them into a lean, agile and proactive digital enterprise.

But where to begin?

Read our cover story to know-

The need for mobile strategy.

Key elements in designing and implementing a long-term strategy for your enterprise.

Steps towards a successful mobile strategy.

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    Consumer-centric Gamification – Make Gamification work for your consumer (Part 2 of 2)

    (This post is written in two parts, this being the second one and addresses the concerns that any Retail Enterprise faces while gamifying a consumer-end process or an element of the process.Read the first part here )

    gamification-concept

    Many of my friends check-in via Foursquare religiously. On quizzing them about this preference, I realized that each one of them started checking-in for fun, but doing it constantly has turned it into a habit. The convenience of application design only made it easier for everyone to nourish this habit. “It’s not just about the convenience, though. It is also about having easy access to other users of the application. After I started using Foursquare, my friends were interested in knowing the reviews of all the restaurants I try. They knew that I was a foodie, but it was difficult to keep updating all of them about where I’ve been regularly,” added another Foursquare enthusiast. That brings me to:

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    Yes! We will be attending WWDC-2013

    WWDC2013

    Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) is surely an iOS developer’s rock concert. How else will you describe an event where tickets get sold out in just two minutes? The WWDC-2013 scheduled to be organized from June10-14 in San Francisco is witnessing a crazy rush from Apple aficionados and developer community to participate in the event. Surely, luck was on our side during the on-sale time as we managed to get tickets for the event and are raring to be a part of it. [x]cube LABS will be represented by a delegation led by our COO, Mr. Ravi Korukonda.

    If you too are attending the event then please drop by to say “hello”. It will be a great pleasure to meet you all!

    You can connect with Ravi on his twitter account @Ravikorukonda or reach us @xcubelabs.