AirWatch, Box, Cisco, Workday and Xamarin Define Standards for Apps in the Enterprise

Leaders in enterprise application enablement today launched ACE (App Configuration for Enterprise), an open standard approach for managing and securing apps deployed via enterprise mobility management (EMM) solutions. ACE founding members AirWatch® by VMware®, Box, Cisco, Workday and Xamarin have tackled common security and usability challenges that organizations have when deploying apps, by simplifying and scaling the deployment of apps in the enterprise. These standards include:

Automating the first-time setup experience with app configuration capabilities

Securing app connectivity to corporate networks with per-app tunnel

Avoiding separate user login requirements for each app with single sign-on

Allowing access to native apps only on secure, compliant devices with access control

Preventing data leakage with a flexible set of security policies including open in and copy/paste controls

Wiping corporate data remotely from lost or stolen devices

By providing standardized app configurations and policies that will interoperate with all EMM solutions, ACE is the first solution of its kind, providing a new approach to securing apps with EMM-specific solutions. ACE leverages the latest APIs available through leading operating system platforms such as Apple iOS and Google Android, and it provides a framework that requires minimal effort for both app developers and EMM platforms to integrate, while maintaining a positive end user experience.

Developers that join ACE can benefit from a significant reduction in cost and time to build enterprise ready applications. Developers can take advantage of ACE benefits including no proprietary SDK or app wrapping, vendor neutral applications, a single app build for enterprises and no coding required for certain security settings. Meanwhile, end-users will enjoy a seamless, native device experience, the ability to leverage existing investments in EMM, VPN and identity, a plug-and-play approach with seamless auto-configuration of apps and access to company networks and a broader set of available supported apps.

“Enterprise-ready app development has traditionally been fragmented, and ACE is the first industry-wide solution that can alleviate this problem regardless of application or EMM provider,” said Eric Klein, senior mobility analyst, VDC Research. “Applications are what make mobility programs successful, and ACE is a strong step forward in enabling even more organizations with the updated, enterprise-ready apps they need regardless of their deployment structure.”

To become a member of ACE or for more information, visit appconfigforenterprise.org.

Resources:

Visit the ACE website: appconfigforenterprise.org

View the ACE technical documentation: appconfigforenterprise.org/dev-center.html

Join ACE: groups.google.com/d/forum/appconfigforenterprise

Supporting from ACE founding members:

“AirWatch is focused on driving mobile innovation and ACE enables us to work with the leading brands in mobile to deliver better experiences for our customers,” said John Marshall, senior vice president and general manager, AirWatch by VMware. “With ACE, organizations benefit from seamless and secure application delivery to their workforce and end users benefit from a more initiative business app experience.”

“Many of the world’s largest organizations trust Box to power collaboration and mobile productivity for their content in the cloud,” said David Still, vice president of mobile, Box. “We’re excited to work with AirWatch by VMware to deliver a set of standards for managing and securing the content of today’s mobile workforce. As a founding member of ACE, we hope to deliver our customers with solutions that simplify and scale security in the enterprise.”

“Cisco connects people across any device and improves how employees collaborate with chat, audio and video using Cisco Jabber,” said Steve Chazin, vice president of Cloud Collaboration, Cisco. “With ACE, we’re solving usability and security challenges many businesses encounter when deploying mobile applications. We believe this open standard will simplify IT rollout and offer more opportunities for our customers to experience better mobile collaboration.”

“Enterprise companies rely on Workday to deliver business critical financial and HR data to their employees anytime and anywhere,” said Stan Swete, chief technology officer, Workday. “We look forward to working with AirWatch by VMware because of the added value it allows us to offer our customers and their increasingly mobile workforces. With ACE, Workday customers can benefit from enhanced mobile security and ease of deployment capabilities.”

“With thousands of businesses building apps with Xamarin, we see first hand the challenges enterprises face delivering secure apps to employees and partners,” said Nat Friedman, CEO and cofounder, Xamarin. “Xamarin’s mission is to make it fast and easy to deliver great mobile apps. Our work with AirWatch by VMware as a founding member of ACE extends our mission to the secure app distribution part of the lifecycle, making that critical step faster and easier for our global customer base.”

VMware and AirWatch are registered trademarks or trademarks of VMware, Inc. or its subsidiaries in the United States and other jurisdictions.

About AirWatch by VMware

AirWatch by VMware is the leader in enterprise mobility management, with more than 15,000 global customers. The AirWatch platform includes industry-leading mobile device, email, application, content and browser management solutions. Organizations can implement these solutions across device types and use cases, including complete EMM for corporate and line of business deployments, and containerized solutions for bring your own device (BYOD) programs. Acquired by VMware in February 2014, AirWatch is based in Atlanta and can be found online at www.air-watch.com. VMware is headquartered in Silicon Valley and can be found online at www.vmware.com.