How to Build Tablets for Enterprise Buyers

It’s not easy for tablet makers to break into the enterprise because IT pros are fussy about what they want. Here is what the enterprise is seeking in a tablet.

Study after study seems to confirm one thing about the enterprise and mobile: It’s all about security. Companies around the globe are investing heavily in tablets, but they are staying away from products they view as less safe. That’s perhaps why they’ve increasingly chosen iOS over Android and desire more control than less. Look for security to be a major factor in enterprise tablet buying in the coming years.

For a device to be successful, a full-featured mobile device management platform is crucial. With mobile device management solutions, companies can remotely wipe devices, and ensure employees don’t access certain apps or services and only tap into the network securely. Any tablet lacking full control for IT is in deep trouble.

Software updates are obviously a concern for companies, but a good track record of deploying regular security patches that are reliable and safe is a good first step in attracting companies. The number of security issues affecting mobile platforms is on the rise. Any tablet maker that is slow to patch software will be left out of the buying process. Fast and reliable software patches are extremely important to enterprise IT.

One of the nice things about the rise of mobile has been the expansion of support for enterprise applications on tablets. However, if a platform does not support the applications a company needs to maintain business continuity, any product running the operating system will be ignored. Tablet vendors must work closely with operating system makers and developers for broad support for enterprise applications.

An increasing number of companies are building their own mobile software with help from publicly available software development kits from Apple and Google. The ability to create proprietary software is a major selling point for companies and something that should not be overlooked by any tablet maker trying to make it big in the space.

Although there are other operating systems in the world, one would be hard-pressed to find a company that would be willing to deploy a tablet that isn’t running Google’s Android, Apple’s iOS or Microsoft’s Windows 10. Those operating systems have become the go-to options for companies and will likely remain so for the foreseeable future. Operating systems such as the open-source Cyanogen version of Android have few homes in the enterprise.

Pricing fluctuations on hardware can mean the death knell for tablets in the enterprise. Companies plot out their budgets months in advance and dedicate only a certain amount of cash for new hardware. Price sensitivity is still a concern in the enterprise.

According to researchers, one of the driving forces in tablet shipments is the growth in popularity of two-in-one hybrids. The devices combine notebook and tablet functionality in one, and are headlined by products like the Microsoft Surface and Lenovo’s Yoga line. Companies looking for a quick way to get their tablets into the enterprise should consider building Windows-based hybrids.

According to the last few studies on enterprise adoption of tablets, portability is a major selling point for companies. While they’re fine buying devices with big screens, companies are not interested so much in heavy products or those that cannot easily fit into a bag. Apple, in other words, is on to something with its thin, lightweight designs.

Ultimately, success in the tablet space may come down to one thing—being Apple. The company’s iPad is the world’s most popular tablet for consumers, and in the enterprise its grip is even tighter. While it’s certainly possible to be successful in the corporate world without being an iPad—just look at Lenovo’s Yoga line for proof of that—it’s abundantly clear that the corporate world desires iPads more than any other tablet.