Red Hat Survey: Mobile Investments Are Paying Off

DUBAI, UAE – 14th January, 2016– Red Hat, Inc. (NYSE: RHT), the world’s leading provider of open source solutions, today announced results from a recent mobile measurement survey, which revealed that 74 percent of respondents whose organizations use key performance indicators (KPIs) to some extent to measure mobile application success are achieving positive return on investment (ROI), demonstrating that prior investments in mobile have paid off. Red Hat’s mobile measurement survey revealed that 85 percent of organizations are using KPIs to measure mobile app success, while nine percent use other means and the remainder are not measuring mobile success at all.

Red Hat's mobile maturity survey found that 52 percent of respondents claim to have a fully implemented mobile app strategy and 90 percent plan to increase mobile app development investments in 2016. Of those with a fully implemented mobile app strategy, 96 percent use KPIs to measure app success. Red Hat commissioned Vanson Bourne to poll the views of IT decision makers from 200 private sector organizations with at least 2,500 employees across the U.S. and Western Europe regarding mobile app development, including obtaining a better understanding of how respondents with a mobile app strategy evaluate the success of mobile app programs through KPIs. Key insights include:

Respondents recognize the need to track mobile effectiveness and the majority (85 percent) are doing so using KPIs to some extent. Of these respondents that use KPIs, U.S.-based respondents are more likely to report positive ROI (79 percent) than those based in Western Europe (68 percent). Just four percent of respondents claimed a negative ROI from their mobile app programs, and one in six (16 percent) reported zero ROI. Additionally, seven percent of organizations do not know the level of ROI their organizations are achieving.

Manufacturing, telecommunications and construction are achieving the most mobile app success. Of respondents whose organizations are measuring mobile app success with defined KPIs, manufacturing, telecoms and construction industries saw the most positive ROI:

Manufacturing – 92 percent
Telecoms – 83 percent
Construction – 83 percent

This was followed by:

Retail – 76 percent
Distribution and Transportation – 75 percent
Business Services – 71 percent
Financial Services – 69 percent
IT – 66 percent
Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals – 56 percent

Responsibility for mobile app success measurement is poised to shift in 2016. Today, 72 percent of respondents from organizations currently tracking KPIs believe senior IT heads and their managers are primarily responsible for tracking the success of mobile app development, while 17 percent believe this responsibility lies with line of business (LOB) heads, and 11 percent claim it is the responsibility of the organization's chief or head of mobility. In the next year, however, respondents see this shifting, with 43 percent of respondents saying they believe the primary responsibility will stay with senior IT heads, 42 percent placing it on LOB leaders, and 14 percent to the head of mobility.

Supporting Quote

Cathal McGloin, vice president, Mobile Platforms, Red Hat

“Our mobile maturity research shows that 90 percent of respondents plan to increase investment for mobile app development in 2016. In addition to identifying respondents' commitment to mobile investment, we also surveyed how these organizations measure the success of their mobile app development, who is primarily responsible for tracking this, and what changes might be afoot. There are some positive signals of greater mobile maturity, demonstrated by the number of respondents who are not only using KPIs to track the success of their mobile investments, but reporting positive ROI as well. It is also revealing to see that this responsibility for KPIs is expected to shift towards lines of business, confirming to us the trend that we see in the market as the business comes together with IT, playing a bigger role in mobile decision-making.”

Methodology and Demographics

Red Hat, Inc. commissioned Vanson Bourne to poll the views of IT decision makers from 200 private sector organizations with at least 2,500 employees across the U.S. and Western Europe. The survey was completed in October 2015, and was carried out online.