2006 New Zealand Mobile Business survey – could do better
New Zealand's businesses are geared up for mobility, but are yet to make the most of the functionality and services available, according to the 967 respondents to New Zealand's first mobile business survey. There are, however, some notable exceptions with certain technologies, industries and organisational sizes...
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Results of a recent survey of almost 1000 business leaders has delivered a revealing snapshot of the usage patterns of 'Mobile' products and services by New Zealand business people. Sponsored by HP and Dexterra, the survey had 967 respondents and was conducted via MOBILE Business Magazine and the iStart e-newsletter. The bottom line result, says iStart managing director Marty Verry, (pictured) was that while New Zealand business people had been quick to purchase mobile hardware such as laptop computers and PDA/Smartphone, they are still not making the most of the equipment they own. For example, while 80% of respondents said they had a laptop computer (which Verry says indicates laptop penetration is reaching saturation point in New Zealand) only 31% were using data cards (which allow laptops to access email and the internet while on the move). Alternatively, only 36% said they had logged on to a wireless hotspot when in an airport, hotel or café etc. This was particularly interesting, however, given that 44% percent of respondents said they did have a WiFi network in their workplace. Sexy new communications services like Push To Talk and Photo Messaging had also proven slow to capture the interest of business people, with only 8% having used Push To Talk, and 20% having sent or received a Photo Message. Other areas of interest were cell phone car kits and "working mobile". Verry says despite all the current debate around the use of mobile phones in vehicles, only 25% of respondents actually had a hands free carkit fitted (with the majority of them working in the transportation sector). And, although 44% of respondents said they used a PDA for business, only 34% of them had ever used their PDA or mobile to open a Microsoft Word or Excel file. In terms of the battle between the phone networks, Verry says while there were slightly more respondents on Vodafone than Telecom Mobile (51% vs 44%), the differences in the profile of the two network's customers were marked. Telecom, for instance, provided mobile services to the majority of organisations with over 200 staff, and in the agricultural, governmental, educational and transport & distribution industries, while Vodafone had the majority of small to medium organisations and in the energy/utilities, IT/technology, manufacturing, retail, media/marketing/communications and import/export industries. Of interest was the high intended update of mobile access for staff to CRM and service applications, at 17%, with 25% already having such functionality in place. "This dovetails with the increasing interest and uptake we have been seeing for CRM solutions," says Verry. Overall Verry says the survey reveals that much still needs to be done by both network providers and device manufacturers in terms of communicating the benefits of mobility to business managers. "With the New Zealand labour market being as tight as it is," he says, "and motorways clogged with people trying to get from one place to another, it's imperative that business people are working efficiently - wherever they happen to be. I would say these results show while most already have the hardware to do so, unfortunately they're not yet making the best use of the software they're carrying and connectivity services that are available to them." Related Reading |
May 2006
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