Apple Expanding Enterprise Efforts, Developing Dedicated Sales Force

[CYKBC]

Wonder what the comp package looks like and whether in line with market.

 

[webbuzz]

Wonder what the comp package looks like and whether in line with market.

For the Apple Enterprise Team? Most likely equal, or better.

 

[brianvictor7]

There are all sorts of ways to spin a story, but this one's a real winner. The notion that Apple cut that deal with iBM, a process that can hardly occur overnight, in response to an iPad sales curve that had flattened between 2012 and 2013, and showed a 5% drop between 2013 and 2014... Really? Really? Enterprise is so much bigger than that.

This is about Apple becoming what IBM was back when Steve and Woz were still tinkering in a garage, PLUS being the consumer powerhouse that it already is.

MacRumors has been covering the "move into Enterprise" story for a while now. Apple's been talking about it for a while. All the reporter had to say here was, "This is consistent with Apple's announced push into Enterprise," and link a dozen or more MacRumors stories to that effect.

That, of course, would be a boring, Wall Street Journal approach to the story, and is not the kind of hook that generates forum activity.

And the forum members? I'm astounded that there's hardly any mention of "ecosystem." All I'm seeing is the same, tired, Mac vs. PC in the workplace debates that have been going on for 30 years. It's not about the PC, baby - the PC is the side show.

Back in the day, IBM sold oodles of over-built, over-priced typewriters to their mainframe customers - and they couldn't make a case that the office would run better because the typewriters and mainframes would "work better together." No, they had full-time staff on the customer's site to make sure that everything the customer bought would be Big Blue. And despite the higher cost, IT had a saying, "Nobody ever got fired for buying Big Blue."

The PC should have given IBM the opportunity to be even more deeply embedded in the office ecosystem, but they blew that opportunity when they chose to unbundle OS and apps from hardware. Apple saw what happened, which is why Apple is still so institutionally driven to closed systems. And it's why Apple and IBM are now buddies. It's time for a do-over, and Apple's likely to be a better partner for IBM than Microsoft ever was.

And when Apple talks about a "post-PC" era? It's not about the PC becoming useless or obsolete. It's about mobile devices becoming the key factor in IT decision-making.

Very interesting thesis. I didn't know much about the IBM rise and fall in business. I don't know how much of a role mobile devices will play in IT decision making. Many jobs still need to be done at a desk with a couple of monitors to feed information. On the other hand, I can see several hands-on fields where having an iPad in one hand to replace a checklist of paper manual would be helpful.

 

[webbuzz]

Back in the day, IBM sold oodles of over-built, over-priced typewriters to their mainframe customers - and they couldn't make a case that the office would run better because the typewriters and mainframes would "work better together." No, they had full-time staff on the customer's site to make sure that everything the customer bought would be Big Blue. And despite the higher cost, IT had a saying, "Nobody ever got fired for buying Big Blue."

Ever tried selling a non-competitive product to an IBM Noc client? The reasons IBM gives a client are hilarious.

 

[unplugme71]

Apple failed in enterprise because they couldn't offer enterprise support. Employees aren't going to take their Mac to the Apple Store. That's not how business works. This is why Apple dropped the enterprise servers and such.

Now that IBM is a partner to provide support, Apple is ready to get back into the enterprise market.

I see the Xserve coming back. With OS X Server starting from scratch, I'm expecting 5.0 to be a big upgrade to bring back enterprise. Sure it won't have DFS and all that good stuff that MS has, but that's not what Apple wants (yet). Apple wants to better integrate with MS and Linux servers. Join in on AD domains, etc. Hosting Apple services for department groups who use Mac's like at our company and also provide better and easier iPhone/iPad/Mac management.

I give it 2-3 years. Apple will be back and stronger this time.

 

[TimelessOne]

I still see this as a hobby for Apple. Yes they can do Enterprises but it is a constant headache for it dealing with mix environment. Plus their administration of machines remotely is bad at best. Big time when you need to grant people admin power.

Apple needs to really improve their playing nice on Windows networks. Like it or not window is top dog. They have enterprise down. This means you have to play nice with them. It cost way to much to do a clean switch so you have to go threw a mixed setup no matter what.
Being better is not good enough. You have to be better enough to be worth the cost and headaches of the swap.

 

[melendezest]

When it is proven to have a lower TCO over Windows on the Desktop it does show foresight. Countless studies have shown Macs need less care and feeeding than Windows.

I work in an Enterprise. The POS Dell laptop I get costs as much as a Macbook Pro. Yet in 8 months it's already looking worn down. I bet by year 2 it will be worse than my 2008 Macbook Pro.



You really don't know much about them then. Netboot would be awesome in a corporate environment. With only 1 OS image to manage (remember you can boot an iMac from a Macbook HD, etc) your deployments would be seemless. Store your profiles on the server and have the machine re-image every day. That's what they do in the Apple Stores (with a product called Deep Freeze, IIIRC).

Apple supports OpenDirectory out of the box and you can use it as is or integrate with AD.

Remote Desktop that works well is built into every Mac.



Yup and very few companies do a true study to what to buy. It's usually someone has a preconcieved notion, they stack theirs up to some junk solution and a decision is made. Or they go to Gartner, etc. and get them to write or find some "study" to support their position.

I've seen it time and time again. Technically inferior solutions are picked out of fear, arrogance, or other reasons. Heck, it's how we got Windows - Netware was the far superior NOS back in the day. Linux is the superior server OS, and Macs are the superior desktops.

I don't think the problem is with Apple's OS (Yosemite notwithstanding--ugh), but with Apple itself.

Their inflexibility and consumer focus makes them somewhat incompatible with the Enterprise, I think.

But who knows, maybe this is a push for Apple Computer to make its way back.

 

[blacktape242]

I like the sound of this.

Our company is 100% mac and we run some things in enterprise. Its not easy but we do it.

 

[SheDeviledEgg]

Apple failed in enterprise because they couldn't offer enterprise support. Employees aren't going to take their Mac to the Apple Store. That's not how business works. This is why Apple dropped the enterprise servers and such.

LOL this is not why they dropped servers. They've been selling Applecare for IT Helpdesks for years, removing any need for a Genius Bar visit.

 

[69650]

The fact that this partnership is to develop iOS only apps further denigrates the importance of OSX to Apple's long term future plans. Wonder how long before iOS moves across to the Mac to replace OSX.

 

[aristobrat]

You do realize Apple runs Apple on SAP (on AIX, I believe) and Macs. They run their systems on AIX, Linux, and OSX with a small amount of Windows.

Do you have any more info about this subject?

As an IT guy in a Fortune 500 that's been responsible for Mac integration for the past 5+ years, the amount of information I've found about how Apple runs their enterprise has been next to nothing.

 

[Monique1]

April fools already?

Enterprise plans their IT purchases years in advance, that's why all major tech companies except Apple try to provide a roadmap of where they're going. Apple's fixation on secrecy means it's a lot more risky for enterprise to invest in them. Buy 1000 Apple Jiggers only to find next year when you're ready to expand the deployment, it's been discontinued and the new one is half the size, 1/4 the performance, 3 times the price, and totally unsuited.

How would Apple like it if Intel wouldn't tell them what chips will be available next month?

I can't wait to hear how these sales drones try to convince corporate purchases to pay the apple tax on extra memory. And explain to them that soldered memory is a good thing because they can save money on not having IT staff do the upgrades in-house.

Everything Apple has done since Timmy took over has made the machines worse for corporate. A smaller box on the desk is just easier to steal and offer no advantage to the company. Trading performance for smaller is just stupid in an enterprise environment.

And how are they going to spin the crippled iWork versions to enterprise users. Switch from Word to a version of Pages that has 10% of the features of the old version for Pages. Just magically awesome.

The above should basically end the thread discussion. I was about to point out some of these very same things. Apple in the Corporate world... this notion always makes me chuckle.

Oh well, the holidays are coming and as usual my colleagues will be bringing in their brand spankin' new Christmas iPads into the office again. They'll gleefully peck away on them for about 3 weeks then suddenly the Lenovo's and Dells will appear again. It happens every year. While MS Office has given new life to the iPad, it still uses an operating system designed for a smart phone which will always be more fitting for the consumer market. They can talk about making it bigger but it's still iOS and the Enterprise market just won't jump through all the hoops that's baked into it.

 

[octothorpe8]

Dear Apple Enterprise people: Please come to my work and convince my IT manager we need retina iMacs, thanks.

 

[MacsRgr8]

I like how Craig Federighi always points out the "couple of enterprise folks in the audience."

But seriously it would be nice to see more Macs in businesses and Fortune 500 cubicles. Or bring back the Xserve.

The reason why Macs and iOS devices are used more and more in businesses is the way they can be integrated in existing IT environments.
No need for OS X - sysadmins.

Bringing back the Xserve will just enforce the "Mac - only" environment. We don't want that anymore.

 

[ApfelKuchen]

Very interesting thesis. I didn't know much about the IBM rise and fall in business. I don't know how much of a role mobile devices will play in IT decision making. Many jobs still need to be done at a desk with a couple of monitors to feed information. On the other hand, I can see several hands-on fields where having an iPad in one hand to replace a checklist of paper manual would be helpful.

It does depend on what part of an enterprise we're discussing. When I was doing corporate IT, the biggest pain in the butt was the sales and marketing department. That's the group with the best social and political skills (and let's face it, most top management comes from sales and marketing). If they want something badly, they stand a much better change of getting it than most other departments. They're also the most mobile.

And iPads can (and are) replacing far more paper goods than checklists and printed manuals. Again, bring it back to sales - point of sales, that is. Restaurant servers' order books, menus, the retail sales floor, "cash registers" - all capable of accepting NFC payment methods... I don't know how many police departments are using iPhones for issuing summonses (maybe even collecting fines on-the-spot), running license plates, etc., but I'm sure there are plenty that aren't... yet. And so it goes. Mission-critical functions of this sort are either converting already, or ripe for conversion.

IBM's done more than rise and fall once over its 100+ year history. They gradually withdrew from the hardware business after what I'd call the PC debacle, and have been making very big money on software and services (Big Data and Cloud in particular). From my perspective, the deal with Apple is a matter of adding equipment back into the mix, and by doing so, greatly expand the range of services iBM can offer.

 

[brianvictor7]

Why don't replies get counted as posts?

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It does depend on what part of an enterprise we're discussing. When I was doing corporate IT, the biggest pain in the butt was the sales and marketing department. That's the group with the best social and political skills (and let's face it, most top management comes from sales and marketing). If they want something badly, they stand a much better change of getting it than most other departments. They're also the most mobile.

And iPads can (and are) replacing far more paper goods than checklists and printed manuals. Again, bring it back to sales - point of sales, that is. Restaurant servers' order books, menus, the retail sales floor, "cash registers" - all capable of accepting NFC payment methods... I don't know how many police departments are using iPhones for issuing summonses (maybe even collecting fines on-the-spot), running license plates, etc., but I'm sure there are plenty that aren't... yet. And so it goes. Mission-critical functions of this sort are either converting already, or ripe for conversion.

IBM's done more than rise and fall once over its 100+ year history. They gradually withdrew from the hardware business after what I'd call the PC debacle, and have been making very big money on software and services (Big Data and Cloud in particular). From my perspective, the deal with Apple is a matter of adding equipment back into the mix, and by doing so, greatly expand the range of services iBM can offer.

I should read up on IBM's company history sometime.

If sales and marketing often become the VPs of a company, we're in for improved toys in the next 10 years to do our work

I remember Apple's Life on iPad video in Oct 2013: quite a few things people used it for in there and the one thing I noticed is that they were mostly mobile activities: leading a band, walking around a conference room during a presentation, driving to a fire in a firetruck, climbing a mountain, taking inventory of foods on a small boat, taking orders from customers ... all mobile.

 

[ssgbryan]

The PC should have given IBM the opportunity to be even more deeply embedded in the office ecosystem, but they blew that opportunity when they chose to unbundle OS and apps from hardware.

That wasn't a "choice". That was due to the Consent decree. Learn your Pre-PC computing history.

 

[atzeX]

WebObjects

Bring back WebObjects.
Best AppServer ever.
Still serving iTunes and AppStore.

 

[Glideslope]

Maybe time for Apple to split itself into different divisions..?

Feel like the original customer base is being further marginalised with all the new directions Apple is going in.

Be patient. : )

 

[godrifle]

Besides, if you use SAP you will see how ugly it is, but what are that Apple alternatives? Filemaker? And who tells you Apple will drop the software like they always do? And how does SAP work if Yosemite stops our internet connection? You can' afford these games if you are in business.

Apple has the largest SAP implementation in the world. Source, an executive briefing I attended in Cupertino.

----------

Great, because, you know, the new Mac mini dual-core is such a bad-ass enterprise level server for running Apple's iOS provisioning service.

Truth is that the server app that Apple pushes is nowhere close to where it needs to be for serious consideration in IT organizations.

 

[mr.bee]

Seriously though, why did Apple ignore the business world for so long while packing every school with iMacs? Subsidies?

Influencing students to buy Apple devices for the rest of their lives= marketing

 

[brianvictor7]

Influencing students to buy Apple devices for the rest of their lives= marketing

I agree that is what they were doing with the school thing, but why ignore the business market for so long?

 

[Glideslope]

There are all sorts of ways to spin a story, but this one's a real winner. The notion that Apple cut that deal with iBM, a process that can hardly occur overnight, in response to an iPad sales curve that had flattened between 2012 and 2013, and showed a 5% drop between 2013 and 2014... Really? Really? Enterprise is so much bigger than that.

This is about Apple becoming what IBM was back when Steve and Woz were still tinkering in a garage, PLUS being the consumer powerhouse that it already is.

MacRumors has been covering the "move into Enterprise" story for a while now. Apple's been talking about it for a while. All the reporter had to say here was, "This is consistent with Apple's announced push into Enterprise," and link a dozen or more MacRumors stories to that effect.

That, of course, would be a boring, Wall Street Journal approach to the story, and is not the kind of hook that generates forum activity.

And the forum members? I'm astounded that there's hardly any mention of "ecosystem." All I'm seeing is the same, tired, Mac vs. PC in the workplace debates that have been going on for 30 years. It's not about the PC, baby - the PC is the side show.

Back in the day, IBM sold oodles of over-built, over-priced typewriters to their mainframe customers - and they couldn't make a case that the office would run better because the typewriters and mainframes would "work better together." No, they had full-time staff on the customer's site to make sure that everything the customer bought would be Big Blue. And despite the higher cost, IT had a saying, "Nobody ever got fired for buying Big Blue."

The PC should have given IBM the opportunity to be even more deeply embedded in the office ecosystem, but they blew that opportunity when they chose to unbundle OS and apps from hardware. Apple saw what happened, which is why Apple is still so institutionally driven to closed systems. And it's why Apple and IBM are now buddies. It's time for a do-over, and Apple's likely to be a better partner for IBM than Microsoft ever was.

And when Apple talks about a "post-PC" era? It's not about the PC becoming useless or obsolete. It's about mobile devices becoming the key factor in IT decision-making.

Agreed. It's a natural progression. Apple has so many deals in the works in 5 years we won't even remember how things were on 11-11-14.

 

[jscooper22]

Apple needs to understand that IT Directors and Sys Admins don't want to talk shop while standing in a crowd waiting for the Genius Bar to fix their iPhoto libraries. They (we) want to sit down, have some bad coffee, talk about our plans for the future and, understanding Apple's desire to be hush-hush about everything, at least get a wink and a nod that we're not throwing money at something that's going to be unsupported in six months.

 

[mr.bee]

I agree that is what they were doing with the school thing, but why ignore the business market for so long?

hmm, I don't think it ever was Apples main goal to conquer the business world. It never was about "ignoring" I think. They always wanted to bring the best/the right consumer experience. (more margin per device sold)

Business is about getting things done right with as few resources as possible. They can tackle the first thing, but the second is much more difficult for Apple. Can you explain to a bookkeeping company that they should buy 700$ computers/ipads instead of 300$?Those numbers are not going to be filled in faster/ more correctly because of the apple on the back

I'm not sure they know how to tackle this at the same time.

If you check the recent ipad ads it's about creating a "unique" or "on the spot" knowledge and know-how thanks to the ipad (a combination of device & developers).That's good for some business but not for most.

But that strategy doesn't translate to a bookkeeping company for example.