The rapid acquisition of web-enabled smartphones has produced a strong demand from students and staff at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) for core intranet functionality to be delivered any time, anywhere on their mobile devices. This presentation is a case study on the development and implementation of QUT Virtual Mobile.

1. Your intranet on the goCase Study: Developing QUT Virtual Mobile Andy McBride (@andymac7)Intranet Services Team

2. What I will be talking about today? Overview of QUT and my team What is QUT Virtual? Changing face of the mobile space Choosing a mobile strategy QUT Virtual Mobile: How it all began Quick demo Lessons we learned along the way

3. Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Gardens Point Campus

4. Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Based in Brisbane with three campuses: Gardens Point Kelvin Grove Caboolture Over 40,500 students Over 4,000 full-time staff: Professional Academic Research

5. My team – Intranet Services Responsible for development & maintenance of QUT Virtual Also develop web applications & online web functions 13 staff: Managers Business analysts Application developers Web developer / user experience designer (me!!)

6. Staff screen What is QUT Virtual?

7. What is QUT Virtual? Personalised& secure web portal Available to students, staff & alumni Launched in 2001 Contains over 100 unique applications Integrates with many QUT systems (e.g. Finance, HR, Enrolment) 17,000 sessions a day (average) 6 million sessions a year (average)

8. Changing face of the mobile space http://www.flickr.com/photos/cristiano_betta/

9. “ 5.3 billon people with mobile devices (77% of world population)Source: ITU via mobithinking

10. “ By 2011, over 85% of mobile devices will be web enabled.Source: Gartner “ By 2013, mobile devices will replace PC’sas the most common device to access the internet.Source: ITU vismobithinking

11. “ Approximately 60% of organisations have NO mobile intranet access strategySource: NetJMC

12. Choosing the correct mobile access strategy Choosing a mobile access strategy http://www.flickr.com/photos/bas-boerman/

13. Mobile access strategies Native application, or Web-based application Combination of both, or Do nothing at all

14. What are native applications? Applications designed to run on a specific mobile device’s operating system & firmware. Downloaded & updated via an application store. Facebook Camera+

15. Advantages of native applications Run quicker Access to native API’s (e.g. camera, GPS) Offline access ‘Push’ capabilities Animation & graphic effects Quality developer frameworks Integration with other native applications Simple purchasing process Large marketing potential via the App Stores / Marketplaces

16. What are web-based applications? Applications or websites designed to run via amobile device’s web browser. YouTube Westpac Bank

17. Advantages of web-based applications Device independent Quicker & cheaper to develop Open development platform Immediate release of updates, bug fixes & new features (e.g. No store approval process) Content accessible to search engines Control over hosted content No 3rd party fees (Apple = 30%) + HTML5 = faster & more functional: Location aware (GPS, maps) Multimedia support (video, images) Offline storage

18. Which strategy is best? …it depends

19. Depends on what??? Time: Development, testing, support & maintenance Budget: Small vs. large Startup vs. ongoing Expertise: In-house vs. need to hire Geographical location: Single country vs. multinational Users: What devices do they have access to? Do you provide your users a particular brand of phone? Competitors Product or service

20. Considerations when choosing mobile strategy… Latest & greatest mobile device will always change Look beyond device & form factor Your business & user requirements will guide suitable mobile access strategy If developing a native app, maintain digital consistency across all channels (e.g. web, other mobile operating systems)

21. Developing QUT Virtual Mobile

22. Where it all began… Feedback from students & staff Decided to develop web-based application Started late 2010, officially launched February 2011 Took 2 developers, 3 months Staff View Student View

23. Why a web-based application? Large & technologically diverse user base: Provide access to largest number of students & staff Domestic & international students & staff Range of mobile devices Limited time & budget: Developed in spare time, no dedicated project time or budget No time or budget to develop & maintain on other mobile operating systems In-house expertise: HTML, CSS & JavaScript developers already in team

24. QUT Virtual Mobileat a glance

25. Screens: Student & Staff Home Student View Staff View

26. Screens: Class Enrolment & Unit Results Class Enrolment Unit Results

27. Screen: Campus Shuttle Bus Timetable

28. Screens: Student Messages & I.T. Service Status StudentMessages I.T. Service Status

29. Screen: Student Calendar

30. Screens: Staff Search Staff SearchForm Staff SearchDetails

31. Screens: ‘Lite’ Version & Bookmark Reminder ‘Lite’ or text-based version Dynamic bookmark reminder

32. How has QUT Virtual Mobile performed so far?

33. How has QUT Virtual Mobile performed so far? Performance since February 2010: 90,000page views in total 25,500unique sessions in total Average 300 unique sessions a day (Mon to Fri), Over 93% returning visitors Device OS Breakdown

34. Lessons we learned along the way…

35. Lesson #1: Know your users

36. Lesson #1: Know your users Helps create personal user experience & identify what functions to expose Develop thorough understanding of your users: What devices do they use? (e.g. personal, company supplied) How do they use their mobile device? (e.g. frequently, rarely) What do they access on your intranet via a mobile device? What mobile intranet functionality could make their job easier? Research methods: Contextual interviews Focus groups Creating personas Web statistics

37. Lesson #2: Research best practice

38. Lesson #2: Research best practice Helps: Learn from good mobile intranet designs Avoid repeating common mistakes Find best practice in: Competitors, industry & mobile design leaders Intranet publications Web development podcasts Mobile design websites

39. Lesson #3: Mobile is not the desktop but smaller

40. Lesson #3: Mobile is not the desktop but smaller A mobile user is: “…typically on the go in an unpredictable environment, interested in quick glanceable information, focused on discrete individual tasks, is quite often distracted.” (Joe Marini @ MIX 2010) Release functionality your users want and can use ‘on the go’ Different design considerations & requirements: Succinct & purpose written content Simple & linear navigation Larger interactive elements (e.g. pressed not clicked) Simple forms Fluid content layouts (e.g. various screen sizes & orientations)

41. Lesson #4: Progressive enhancement, not initial perfection

42. Lesson #4: Progressive enhancement, not initial perfection “Build half a product, not a half-ass product.” (37 Signals) Start with a few key functions, release new functions progressively Resist temptation to release too many functions (< 10) Progressive enhancement allows you to: release your mobile intranet earlier fix bugs / problems based on feedback kill unwanted or unused functions maintain the ‘hype’ of your mobile intranet

43. Lesson #5: Test early, test often, test always

44. Lesson #5: Test early, test often, test always Test continuously & regularly: e.g. Pull aside a colleague in the hall & test on their phone Test different: device firmware screen sizes browsers (if web-based application) environments (e.g. 3G connection, no connection) If budget permits, purchase a store of mobile devices to test on

45. Our testing for QUT Virtual Mobile

46. Lesson #6: Utilise native functionality where possible (and necessary)

47. Lesson #6: Utilise native functionality where possible (and necessary) Native functionality can enhance user experience: e.g. Field officer using camera to take photos of a fault & logging it in a incident database Must have purpose, not because ‘it’s cool’ Native functionality: Gestures (Pinch, swipe, pull, zoom) Camera Video GPS (Location based services) Gyroscope & accelerometer

48. Want to chat? Want more information? Email:a.mcbride@qut.edu.au Twitter: @andymac7 Or catch me during the conference…