Accelerating growth in the market for mobile applications can be attributed to the consumerization of IT and increased employee usage of smartphones and tablets, said a recent study by Citrix Systems, Inc. – a Florida, US-based company that provides server and desktop virtualization, networking, software-as-a-service (SaaS), and cloud computing technologies, including Xen open source products. In particular, the downstream ramifications of employee interest in accessing their desktops on mobile devices have made mobile device support solutions critical for businesses. Increasingly, workers are using remote access tools and cloud services to tap into their business applications and data from any location. "Virtualization adoption varies significantly across the Middle East and Africa – ranging from high in South Africa to low in several Gulf countries," said Jyoti Lalchandani, vice-president and regional managing director of IDC Middle East, Africa, and Turkey. "However, virtualization in now becoming a must-have in all IT places across the region." In several organizations, Lalchandani said virtualization adoption has reached a state of relatively high maturity as they move from test and development to production. Adoption still lags behind in Gulf counties where system and application availability is a big concern and often overrides the cost benefits offered by virtualization, a report published in Gulf News said. Saudi Arabia and the UAE will continue to be at the forefront of adoption. South Africa and Turkey, where costs are a major driver, are seeing a rapid increase in adoption. The emerging African markets, Kenya and Nigeria, will also see higher levels of adoption this year as awareness spreads and users begin to realize benefits. "Workshifting, the practice of moving work to the most optimal location, time and resources, enables organizations to be more productive and agile, and provides people with added mobility and flexibility to move work to the most convenient and productive times, locations and devices," said Mick Hollison, vice-president of integrated marketing and strategy at Citrix. "We've long believed that workshifting is a key part of a solid business and this trend is gaining momentum. "Organizations are moving from traditional work environments and realizing cost savings by enabling mobile workstyles." As workshifting becomes a high priority for organizations, Hollison said desktop virtualization has emerged as an essential technology strategy for addressing the challenges it involves. Applications, data and entire desktops are centralized in the data-center and delivered as an on-demand service to people in any location, on any device. Survey respondents confirmed that organizations are recognizing the benefits of mobile workstyles and workshifting. "The business reaps the rewards of a highly mobile and agile business with increased productivity and lower costs while people have the flexibility to choose the ideal time, place and device for their work," Hollison said.
