Johannesburg-based telecommunications solutions company Du Pont Telecoms has been appointed as a BlackBerry Alliance Associate after meeting all the support and service competency requirements of the global BlackBerry organisation.
With qualified BlackBerry Certified Support Specialists and BlackBerry Certified Server Support Specialists, Du Pont is now equipped to provide corporates with an end-to-end mobile work solution based on the BlackBerry platform.
Du Pont CEO Graeme Victor points out that BlackBerry has become the de facto mobile handset in the corporate market because of the efficiency increases it offers. Over 26-million BlackBerry devices were shipped during 2009 and there are an estimated 25-million active BlackBerry subscribers around the world.
“A BlackBerry is far more than a cellular phone. It’s a complete mobile communicator. While anywhere-anytime e-mail access is usually the key driver for organisations to go the BlackBerry route, quick access to a user’s calendar, contacts or other organiser data is also vital to achieve an immediacy benefit – and that requires integration of the BlackBerry smartphones with an organisation’s messaging and data network.
“Du Pont is equipped to help corporates to integrate BlackBerry effectively into their enterprise environment, as well as to manage the whole environment,” he says.
In addition to supplying, installing and maintaining the BlackBerry environment, Du Pont will train employees to use their BlackBerry smartphone effectively rather than just as an expensive cell phone. A study conducted by global market research group Ipsos Reid in November 2007 found that the average BlackBerry device user recovers 60 minutes every day that would otherwise have been unproductive downtime. That represents an extra six working weeks per employee per year.
Du Pont will also host the BlackBerry Enterprise Server for the customer should this be required. BlackBerry Enterprise Server is enterprise-class server software that acts as a secure, centralized link between BlackBerry smartphones, enterprise applications, PBX environments and wireless networks.