Closing the mobile technology gap

The Auckland-based company provides consumers and business people with one-on-one tutorials, group mentoring sessions, wireless office training, and premium support services to help them use their mobile devices effectively. As CEO and founder Denis O'Shea puts it:

“As technology becomes more complex, a gap is growing between the technology we purchase and the functions we actually use. Most adults are struggling to leverage the benefits promised by new technology.”

He does not believe the emergence of a new wave of user-friendly devices such as the iPhone will dent the demand:

“There will always be a gap. The role we play is in closing the gap between what technology can do, and what we – as laggards – actually do with it.”

It’s a simple premise, but one which is paying off for the company.

It is reporting 163 percent revenue growth year on year, with 80 percent of revenues coming from offshore customers. It was listed in the Deloitte Fast 50 as the 13th fastest growing company in New Zealand.

Already up and running in Brazil and Australia, Mobile Mentor is also looking to gain footholds in China and the United Kingdom. The company took part in New Zealand Trade and Enterprise’s Path to Market programme to enter the Australian market and is also part of Beachheads in the Americas, China and Europe.

A pilot programme is currently underway in the United Kingdom, with the company looking to break into the market over the coming months.

In China, the company has just completed a successful pilot and is now in detailed contract negotiations.

O’Shea says that the sheer size of the Chinese market, where there are around half a billion handsets, is enough to make you feel “dizzy” but he is keeping his feet on the ground:

“We approach it from the perspective that there are 31 provinces and there are three mobile operators in each province: so we’ve got 93 potential customers. We’re just focused on one at the moment.”

Language has not been a major barrier for the company’s operations in Brazil and China:

“We license our Intellectual Property (IP) into each subsidiary. We do a knowledge transfer and then once they’ve got the knowledge, we let them get on with operating it, so that language isn’t really an issue.”