Frontline Mobility Edge

BlueFletch

Frontline Mobility Edge takes a look at mobility in the enterprise, focusing on workforce devices, business applications, and the technology behind them.

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October 15 · 38 min
How to Get Better at Using AI
Brett Cooper sits down with BlueFletch CEO Richard Makerson for a different kind of Frontline Mobility Edge episode: not about devices, but about the skill underneath every good IT decision, consulting engagement, and AI prompt. Richard and Brett trace the skill back through years of consulting and software work: a hackathon project for the Atlanta Food Bank that assumed users had smartphones (they didn't), the "5 Whys" method borrowed from Toyota's lean process, and the habit of stating assumptions out loud before they quietly wreck a project. They connect all of it to how people actually get value out of AI today: why vague prompts get vague answers, why the first AI response is often wrong, and why the real risk isn't bad AI, it's outsourcing your thinking to the first plausible answer. Richard shares his "CRIT" framework for prompting and his go-to closing moves ("what else?" and "what's next?"), and the two talk through how to spot AI slop, why ego is the biggest blocker to good questions, and why being present still beats being clever.
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September 8 · 30 min
iPhone vs. Purpose-Built Android in Healthcare | Will Mobley (BradyIPS) | Frontline Mobility Edge
On this episode of the BlueFletch Frontline Mobility Edge podcast, Brett Cooper sits down with Will Mobley of Brady Intelligent Productivity Solutions (formerly Honeywell PSS) to talk about what actually makes or breaks enterprise mobility deployments in healthcare. Will shares why frontline worker experience is the real predictor of a rollout's success, how to think past the spec sheet when evaluating devices, the true total cost of ownership versus sticker price, and why disinfection and ergonomics matter more than people expect. The conversation also dives into how to bring skeptical frontline staff on board during a rollout, why iPhone still dominates healthcare, and where that's starting to shift toward purpose-built Android devices.
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August 10 · 42 min
Why Companies Are Leaving iOS for Android
Brett Cooper sits down with Richard Makerson (CEO, BlueFletch) and Alan Lampa (CTO, BlueFletch) to talk through what actually happens when a company moves its frontline fleet from iOS to Android. Richard breaks down why the economics catch up with iOS over time, why device options across Android OEMs matter more than people think, and the WWDC story that nearly got BlueFletch fired from a client project. Alan covers the technical side: app lifecycle differences, Android Enterprise security, and the mistakes teams make when they try to port an iOS app one-to-one instead of rethinking the experience. Reach out to BlueFletch at bluefletch.com if your team is planning an iOS to Android migration.
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August 3 · 37 min
Ron Frieson (COO of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta) on Leadership, Legacy & AI
Ron Frieson, COO of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, sits down with Rick Makerson on location to talk about the career path that took him from BellSouth's executive ranks to running operations for a system that serves over a million patients a year. Ron talks about being BellSouth's first Black president of state operations, becoming the company's first Chief Diversity Officer, and the family legacy behind the Frieson Black Cultural Center at the University of Tennessee. He also breaks down how Children's thinks about technology at the new Arthur M. Blank Hospital, from RTLS boards replacing whiteboards to AI scribes cutting down physician documentation time. Ron explains why healthcare's slower pace of adoption isn't always a bad thing. Subscribe for more Frontline Mobility Edge episodes! #FrontlineMobilityEdge #HealthcareIT #ChildrensHealthcareOfAtlanta #DigitalHealth #HealthcareLeadership #AIinHealthcare
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July 13 · 38 min
AI Failure Rates, Vision Tech & Robots in the Warehouse | Zebra Technology's Mark Rogers
Brett Cooper talks with Mark Rogers, Director of Market Intelligence at Zebra Technologies, about where AI and frontline hardware are actually headed. Not the hype, but the data. Mark breaks down Zebra's research process, why AI project abandonment rates keep climbing, the healthcare divide between physicians and nurses on ambient AI, on-device AI co-processors, shadow IT, vision vs. RFID, and whether "robot management" becomes the frontline job of the future. → Inside Zebra's four-pillar market intelligence function: planning, customer experience, insights, and analyst relations → Why AI project abandonment rates are tracking higher than the 30% prediction from two years ago → Data governance and silo data remain the biggest blocker: 2 out of 3 retailers still operate with siloed data → Physicians are bullish on ambient AI scribes, but nurses are pushing back — same industry, different personas → On-device AI co-processors (Zebra's TC5-series, EM45) are unlocking local vision and audio models → Shadow IT is repeating itself with AI tools; employees reach for the better tool even without governance → Zebra says it's "more of a hardware company than ever" as physical devices show up everywhere from self-checkout to Dick's Sporting Goods → Vision technology vs. RFID: where each makes sense depends on the customer's tier and use case → Smaller companies may leapfrog larger ones by skipping legacy system baggage entirely → By 2030, 20% of managers will have at least one robot in their org structure
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July 9 · 35 min
Green Screens, RF Guns & AI Voice: The Modern Warehouse with Hardesty Technologies
Brett Cooper sits down with Joe Leucht of Hardesty Technologies (formerly Barcode Depot) to break down what's actually changing on the warehouse floor. Joe has spent nearly 20 years in data capture and reseller channels, and he goes deep on why green screen terminals refuse to die, how tablets are replacing RF guns and VMUs, the real cost of lost devices, and where AI, voice, and robots are headed over the next five years. → Hardesty Technologies rebranded from Barcode Depot to reflect its shift into Android, software, and emerging tech → Green screens aren't dying because they stopped working. They're dying because younger frontline workers expect touchscreens → Tablets are taking over two spaces: floor manager dashboards and forklift-mounted VMU replacements → Honeywell's new tablet/VMU hybrid mount signals where vehicle-mount hardware is headed → Virtual lockers (smart charging cradles) are replacing bulky locker systems for device accountability → AI-driven voice picking is getting more conversational and pairing with vision/camera systems → Robots won't replace frontline workers. They're bridging old systems into "rocket ships"
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June 23 · 32 min
Why Frontline Devices Keep Failing (and the Downtime Cost Nobody Tracks)
Most IT dashboards show a green light while frontline devices are quietly failing out in the field. In this episode of the Frontline Mobility Edge, Brett Cooper sits down with Gary Lee of B2M Solutions to dig into why frontline mobility keeps breaking, what it costs, and why your MDM was never built to catch it. Gary Lee has spent decades at the front of major technology shifts and runs B2M's annual State of Enterprise Mobility report. Gary explains the gap between managing devices and actually understanding them, and why that gap gets more expensive every year. In this conversation: → Why MDM and mobile intelligence are two different tools ("the difference between a hammer and a screwdriver") → The app update that reports success while devices drop into reboot loops in the field → Why frontline work stoppages climbed from 51% to 81% since 2019, and why IT ticket counts hide the real story → The downtime cost most CFOs have never had the data to see → How Honeywell, Zebra, and other OEMs fit into a hardware-agnostic, customer-choice strategy → Where AI is moving next: edge processing on the device and finding the needle in the data haystack → Gary Lee's predictions for the 2029 State of Mobility report #FrontlineMobilityEdge #EnterpriseMobility #FrontlineWorkers #MDM #DeviceManagement #MobileDEX #DigitalEmployeeExperience #ITOperations
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June 11 · 39 min
MDM vs. MTD: What Most Companies Get Wrong About Mobile Security
Most companies manage their mobile devices. Far fewer actually secure them. There's a difference, and it matters more than ever. Brett Cooper sits down with Paul Troisi, founder of Troy Mobility, to break down the gap between mobile device management (MDM) and mobile threat defense (MTD), why device count isn't the same as risk, and what a real mobile security strategy looks like from day one through day two and beyond. In this episode: → MDM vs. MTD vs. UEM: What the acronyms actually mean and where they fall short → The mobile threat landscape in 2025: phishing, smishing, quishing, and app vulnerabilities → BYOD vs. corporate-owned: The privacy policies most IT teams don't fully understand → Why "set it and forget it" is the most dangerous approach to mobile security → Zero trust and why mobile devices need the same security parity as laptops → How Troy Mobility runs a mobility assessment (and what it reveals) Whether you're running 50 devices or 5,000, risk drives the strategy, not fleet size. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ The Frontline Mobility Edge is hosted by Brett Cooper, COO of BlueFletch. New episodes explore how enterprise mobility, security, and identity are reshaping the frontline workforce.
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May 13 · 33 min
The State of Enterprise MDM/UEM in 2026 (feat. Dipesh Hinduja, Stratix Corporation)
Brett Cooper sits down with Dipesh Hinduja, Senior Director of Mobile Solutions at Stratix Corporation, to break down the state of enterprise mobile device management in 2026. Stratix is the largest pure-mobility managed services provider in the country, managing millions of devices across their Mobile Operations Center, and they've partnered with BlueFletch for over 15 years. They cover how frontline device management differs from knowledge worker endpoints, why security models built for corporate laptops are finally reaching shared-device environments, and the real operational burden most companies underestimate when deploying an MDM at scale (including those 2 AM change windows nobody wants to own). Other topics include mixed-fleet vs. single-OEM strategies, Samsung's foldable play for field workers, whether BYOD is dead for frontline teams, whether MDM is truly a commodity, and how Stratix guides enterprise customers through tiered MDM selection, from OEM-specific tools like Knox Configure up through full enterprise platforms like Omnissa, SOTI, and Intune.
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May 7 · 27 min
AI in Healthcare: What's Ready, What's Next, & What's Not
Every healthcare conference in 2026 has the same message: AI is the answer. But is it? Brett Cooper and Lee DeHihns break down what's actually working, what's still hype, and who's looking out for patients when the technology moves faster than the guardrails. In this episode: → Augmenting vs. replacing: Where AI fits in a doctor's toolkit today (and where it doesn't) → Shadow AI: Clinicians are already using unapproved tools, and the HIPAA risks are real → Patient advocacy: How patients are using AI to prep for appointments, decode insurance forms, and get second opinions → The healthcare CIO's dilemma: Where to invest limited budgets when 60% of hospitals run at a loss → Why "buy a screwdriver, look for screws" is the wrong approach to AI adoption Brett and Lee draw from months of healthcare conferences, real doctor visits, and frontline conversations to separate signal from noise.
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April 28 · 1 hr 6 min
AI at the Edge: What's Working for Frontline Workers (and What's Not) | Justin Griffith, StayLinked
AI is supposed to transform the frontline. But in warehouses, hospitals, and retail stores, the math doesn't always work. Brett Cooper talks with Justin Griffith, CTO of StayLinked, about what AI at the edge actually looks like when it hits real operations. Justin's team has spent over a decade studying technology adoption in environments that run on terminal emulation built in 1969 and still power 70% of the world's warehouses. They cover the three main edge AI use cases: vision, voice, and workflow automation, and why each one hits a different wall. Vision AI drains batteries too fast for full-shift use. Voice AI adds inference latency that warehouse workers can't afford. And workflow automation requires WMS integrations that take years and carry existential risk. Justin frames the core problem: AI right now is a solution in search of a problem. For the middle 80% of the market (i.e. companies that need technology to work and need their investment to see a return) AI hasn't cleared the barrier of viability yet. The top 10% can afford to experiment. The bottom 10% can't afford to move. Everyone else is stuck calculating whether the juice is worth the squeeze. They also dig into data ownership, the OEM hardware arms race, why memory prices have tripled, and what happens when a robotics company turns out to be a data company in disguise.
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April 20 · 17 min
MODEX 2026 Recap: What's Actually Changing in Warehouse Technology
MODEX 2026 just wrapped at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta: 4 million square feet, 6,000 exhibitors, and a clear signal that the warehouse industry is in the middle of a fundamental shift. In this episode of The Frontline Mobility Edge, Brett Cooper and Richard Makerson break down their top 8 takeaways from the show floor, covering everything from robotic forklifts to AI-powered workflows to why one warehouse manager is ripping out RFID in favor of cameras. → Why the warehouse conversation has shifted from products to systems, and why vendors that can't play in an orchestrated ecosystem are getting left behind → Same problems, different maturity levels: why there's no one-size-fits-all in warehouse tech → AI is no longer a marketing buzzword. It's embedded infrastructure driving real workflow improvement → Vision technology is advancing fast: LIDAR, drones doing shelf inventory, cameras replacing RFID for tracking → Frontline mobility is getting smaller, smarter, and more hands-free with AI on the edge → Robots are everywhere, but humanoid robots in the warehouse are still a question mark → Buyers care about stubborn operational pain, not flashy demos, and BlueFletch's agentic login demo hit that nerve → Don't boil the ocean: one warehouse veteran's advice on solving problems one bite at a time → The flexibility vs. throughput debate: is the industry prioritizing smarter over faster? Whether you run a warehouse, manage a supply chain, or make technology purchasing decisions for frontline operations, this is a ground-level look at where the industry is heading in 2026 and beyond. Learn more about BlueFletch: https://bluefletch.com Request a demo: https://bluefletch.com/book-a-demo/ #MODEX2026 #WarehouseTechnology #SupplyChain #Robotics #AIinWarehousing #FrontlineWorkers #EnterpriseMobility #WarehouseAutomation #FrontlineMobilityEdge #BlueFletch #ManufacturingTech #LogisticsTech
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April 15 · 44 min
From Barcode to Digital Identity: The Future of Warehouse Tracking & RFID (feat. Dan Quagliana)
Most warehouses still run on 1D barcodes, but the economics and regulations have finally shifted. In this episode of the Frontline Mobility Edge, Brett Cooper sits down with Dan Quagliana from Seagull Software (BarTender) to break down what's actually driving RFID adoption, how track and trace is evolving beyond simple inventory counts, and why 110 billion labels per year is now an AI-ready data asset. → Why companies are consolidating labeling systems to cut costs in an unstable economy → How FSMA, MOCRA, and the EU Digital Product Passport are forcing supply chain visibility → The GS1 Sunrise initiative and the shift from 1D to 2D barcodes by 2027 → RFID tag costs dropping below 5 cents and what that means for mid-market adoption → Real-world deployments: Chipotle's RFID food safety program with Zebra and Avery → Getting started with RFID track and trace for under $10,000 → How BarTender is building agentic AI interfaces on top of labeling data Whether you manage a warehouse, distribution center, or retail supply chain, the labeling layer is becoming the foundation for operational intelligence, not just identification. Learn more about BlueFletch: https://bluefletch.com Learn more about BarTender: https://bartendersoftware.com Request a demo: https://bluefletch.com/demo
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April 7 · 39 min
AI in the Warehouse: What's Real, What's Hype, and Where to Start (feat. Wes Coleman from Zebra)
AI is transforming warehouse operations, but not in the way most people think. In this episode of the Frontline Mobility Edge, Brett Cooper sits down with Wes Coleman, Warehouse Industry Principal at Zebra Technologies, to break down what's actually working in warehouse technology today and what's still years away. Wes brings 36+ years of hands-on warehouse and logistics experience, from loading trucks at UPS as a teenager to running operational excellence for a major logistics operation. He now walks customer warehouses for Zebra, identifying where technology can make the biggest impact. In this conversation, Brett and Wes cover: → Why replacing a warehouse worker actually costs $19,000 (not $6,000) according to a Zebra/Oxford Economics study → How poor workplace technology drives 30% higher turnover → The difference between process automation and physical automation — and why ROI timelines are drastically different → Voice 2.0: How on-device AI is eliminating the 90-day ramp for voice picking → Where AI is delivering real results today: dynamic slotting, labor planning, computer vision, and AI-powered coaching → Why "automate the constraint" is the most underrated operations principle → Zebra's own use of AI digital twins for real-time inventory placement in Kenosha, WI → Why humanoid robots in warehouses are still 5+ years out (and may not need legs) → The 3-step framework: digitize the base → automate bottlenecks → layer AI on top Whether you're a warehouse operator, supply chain leader, or IT decision-maker evaluating automation investments, this episode delivers practical, no-hype guidance on where to spend your next dollar. 🔗 Learn more about BlueFletch Enterprise Solutions → https://bit.ly/4tunRZR 📅 Request a Demo → https://bit.ly/4dxws9u 📊 Download Zebra's Warehouse Vision Study → zebra.com 📍 Come see the BlueFletch team at MODEX 2026 — April 13-16 in Atlanta, GA → Lowry Solutions Booth A2529 📍 Catch Wes speaking at MODEX 2026 — April 13-16 in Atlanta, GA → Zebra Booth B11902 | Wes speaking Wednesday in Theater B
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February 11 · 27 min
Nurses Want Better Mobile Tech. Here's What 100s of Them Told Us
In this episode of the BlueFletch Frontline Mobility Edge, Brett Cooper and Lee DeHihns break down the results of a new survey of hundreds of frontline nurses across U.S. hospitals, clinics, and home healthcare settings. They cover the top 5 mobile device frustrations nurses face, from login headaches and battery life to software crashes and lack of IT support, and explore what nurses actually want from their technology, including better system integration, advanced AI diagnostic tools, and improved mobile apps. Key topics discussed: - Why 27% of nurses say login and security make devices hard to use - The surprising stat that 52% still rely on username and password - How 98%+ of nurses say mobile devices improve quality of care - Which EHR systems nurses are using (Epic, Meditech, athenahealth, Oracle Cerner) - Why 95% of nurses are positive about AI adoption - The #1 technology improvement nurses want (it's not AI) The full white paper will be available soon on our website and social media. BlueFletch provides enterprise mobility solutions, including SSO, device security, and mobile device management for healthcare, retail, and more. Book a demo: https://bit.ly/4bP4fKu Learn more about BlueFletch: https://bit.ly/4tr0dON Listen to the Frontline Mobility Edge podcast: https://bit.ly/400a5Bs Catch BlueFletch at Booth 817 - ViVE 2026 in Los Angeles: https://bit.ly/4abzvlx Catch BlueFletch at Booth 4401 - HIMSS 2026 in Las Vegas: https://bit.ly/4abzJcn #healthcareit #Nursing #MobileDevices #HealthIT #AI #FrontlineWorkers #HospitalTechnology #HIMSS #ViVE #nursetok
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February 3 · 39 min
5 Phases of a Successful Clinical Mobility Deployment (feat. Tony Belisch from Zebra)
Most clinical mobility deployments fail before the first device hits a nurse's hands. In this episode of The Frontline Mobility Edge, Brett Cooper and Lee DeHihns sit down with Tony Belisch, Executive Sales Engineer at Zebra Technologies (Healthcare), to break down the 5 phases of a successful clinical mobility solution. This is a framework his team developed from years of real-world healthcare IT deployments. Whether you're deploying 50 devices or 5,000, this conversation covers what separates successful rollouts from costly failures. Tony shares the common mistakes he sees, like IT security teams stepping in after the fact, MDMs that can't push OS updates, and why nurses don't want to be technologists. If you're in healthcare IT, nursing informatics, or clinical operations, this is a must-watch. Book a demo with BlueFletch: https://bit.ly/4k6zCSI Learn more about BlueFletch: https://bit.ly/4qTeeTI Listen to the Frontline Mobility Edge podcast: https://bit.ly/3NNHo82 #healthcareit #ClinicalMobility #MDM #EnterpriseAndroid #FrontlineWorkers #Zebra #DeviceDeployment #BlueFletch
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January 27 · 31 min
The Top 8 Takeaways From NRF 2026
On this episode of the Frontline Mobility Edge podcast, BlueFletch COO Brett Cooper and CRO Lee DeHihns share their biggest takeaways from the top 8 trends they saw at NRF 2026. The future looks bright for retail, and Brett and Lee discuss how AI, holograms and digital signage will make a huge impact in the coming year and beyond. Book a demo with BlueFletch: https://bluefletch.com/book-a-demo/ Learn more about BlueFletch: https://bluefletch.com/ Listen to the Frontline Mobility Edge podcast: https://bluefletch.com/resources/#podcasts
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Dec 17, 2025 · 59 min
NEW Survey Results Show How to Use Biometrics to Improve Retail Experiences
On this episode of the Frontline Mobility Edge, BlueFletch COO Brett Cooper and CRO Lee DeHihns discuss the latest survey results we uncovered firsthand from 300 retail employees. The findings are especially illuminating for retailers and show how they can use biometrics to make the retail experience better for both employees and customers. Book a demo with BlueFletch: https://bluefletch.com/book-a-demo/ Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4Iz-uk4R90 Learn more about BlueFletch: https://bluefletch.com/
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S3 · E263
Jun 27, 2025 · 19 min
Enterprise vs. Consumer Devices in Healthcare
Hospitals often choose sleek consumer hardware to impress stakeholders, but these devices break down under the demands of shared usage, role-based access, and InfoSec requirements. In this episode, we highlight how our device choices can either empower or inhibit clinical teams. When nurses and physicians are given tools built for retail or personal use, they end up frustrated, overburdened, and disengaged. Enterprise-grade tools, by contrast, bring durability, session management, and identity-driven security into clinical workflows. This shift, from aesthetics to outcomes, will determine whether hospitals can reduce burnout, streamline care delivery, and develop tech strategies that actually serve those delivering care.
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Jun 20, 2025 · 27 min
Mobile-First Healthcare: What Device Downtime Really Costs
Workstations on wheels (WOWs) are outdated. They’re slow, frequently unavailable, and keep nurses tied to a scarce resource when they need to be on the floor with patients. On today's episode, we challenge the legacy mindset and reframe mobility as a vital form of essential infrastructure. Drawing from parallels in warehousing and retail, where downtime is quantified in dollars, we explore how healthcare can reclaim lost clinical hours and reduce risk by adopting mobile solutions that are resilient, fast, and frontline-centered. Especially during a staffing crisis, every minute of reclaimed time matters. It’s not just a matter of efficiency; it’s a matter of delivering life-affirming care without delay.
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