What's Up With Wi-Fi?

By  Lori Castle
This is the headline I really wanted to use for our lead story this month about “Keeping it Covered” (Page 10). When you say “what’s up with...”[ fill in the blank], it often serves as rhetorical question with no one answer.

Such is the case when it comes to coverage and capacity of the corporate wireless network. How much an enterprise needs to keep mobile users connected depends on the number of users and devices (and device types) — and, as we know, that number keeps changing.

While some analysts predict that  a single device type will one day reign supreme (a single type per user that is), until that day comes, enterprises will need to continuously address the bandwidth issue derived from demanding devices.

Speaking of connecting, there’s more than just bandwidth in question — as an instant and always on expectation is the norm, employees will connect virtually anywhere they are and, as you will see in the Security section, “Connecting With Coffee” can be a risk. (Page 27)

Furthermore, if you think managing secure connections in your organization is tough, imagine if your enterprise is 3.4 million square miles and that the “customers” you serve are the citizens of the United States. Such is the case for Rear Admiral Robert E. Day Jr., Assistant Commandant for C4 & IT; Chief Information Officer; Director, Cyber Command, Pre-Commissioning Detachment; U.S. Coast Guard. In our CIO Q&A – security takes on a whole new meaning in his line of work. (Page 8).

What’s your top Wi-Fi or security challenge? Let me know. LoriC@MobileEnterpriseMag.com