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Mobile information and communication technology (ICT) has the capability to strategically influence and completely transform SMEs. It provides heterogeneous benefits in information sharing, collaboration and corporate interactions. However, mobile resources do not improve competitive performance on their own. Instead, purposeful or tacit strategic actions are required to combine existing resources in innovative ways, to acquire additional valuable resources or to dispose of redundant resources. Companies have to accomplish this quickly and repeatedly if they are to remain competitive. This research project employs the strategic management theory of dynamic capabilities (DCs) in a qualitative case study to analyse the transformational capacity of mobile ICT in each SME from a strategic perspective. Candidates from ten SMEs were interviewed. The data was analysed to identify: a) the DCs that are essential for mobile transformation in SMEs, and b) the practices that develop and maintain the effectiveness of these capabilities. Eight distinct mobile DCs are identified, each contributing to firm performance, profitability or strategic advantage over competitors. The results were consistent with previous research in DCs by confirming a maximised effectiveness of capabilities when they are tautly coupled with business strategy. The dissertation concludes with valuable guidelines and a conceptual framework for SMEs to strategically utilise mobile ICT and achieve mobile transformation. / Dissertation (MCom)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / gm2014 / Informatics / unrestricted

We are a few years into a paradigm shift where mobile Internet usage around the world is increasing fast. Smartphones have in Sweden become the device a substantial proportion of the population have, and companies have seen them as a new way to communicate with consumers. This thesis is a case study of four smartphone applications issued by companies in brand building purposes. The applications are King of the slope by Vattenfall, Körklar? by SalusAnsvar, McWrap Go&Get by McDonalds and Många Sträckor Små by Lantmännen. Empirical materials are gathered through semi-structured interviews with people involved in the creation of each application. Results are then analysed based on what initial goals each issuer had set for the application with the aim of obtain learnings valuable to future application issuers. Findings have shown that the mindset when creating these applications has generally been short-term. This contradicts the nature of a mobile application and its purpose of strengthening a company’s brand, which usually is a long-term process. We advocate a more long-term mindset and a consumer-oriented standpoint instead of product- oriented when creating mobile applications for branding purposes.

The problem addressed by this research is a demand for increased flexibility in access to organisational information, driven by the increasing popularity of mobile devices. Employees increasingly bring private devices to work (Bring Your Own Device, BYOD) or use work devices for private purposes (Choose Your Own Device, CYOD). This puts managers in a difficult position, since they want the benefits of mobility, without exposing organisational data to further risk. The research focuses on management (particularly information security management) issues in the design and implementation of strategies for mobile devices.  There are two objectives. The first is to identify existing information security management strategies for mobile and dual-use devices. The second is to develop a framework for analysing, evaluating and implementing a mobile device strategy. The overall research strategy is inspired by Design Science; where the mission is to develop an artefact, in this case a framework, which will help to solve a practical problem. Methods include literature review, theoretical development, and the collection and analysis of qualitative data through interviews with executives. The main result of this work is the framework, which deals with the complete process, including analysis, design and implementation of a mobile device management strategy. It helps researchers to understand necessary steps in analysing phenomenon like BYOD and gives practitioners guidance in which analyses to conduct when working on strategies for mobile devices. The framework was developed primarily through theoretical work (with inspiration from the mobile security and strategic management literature, and the ISO/IEC 27000 standard), and evaluated and refined through the empirical studies. The results include twelve management issues, a research agenda, argumentation for CYOD and, guidance for researchers and practitioners.