As retailers embrace digital transformation, managing countless connected devices has become both a challenge and an opportunity. IoT Insider spoke with Jon Charters, Key Accounts Manager at SOTI, to explore how Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) platforms are transforming retail operations—enhancing security, streamlining IT workloads, and supporting seamless, scalable device ecosystems.
What are Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) platforms? Why are they a good thing? What can possibly go wrong?
Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) platforms, like the SOTI One Platform, are comprehensive software solutions designed to tackle the toughest mobile tech challenges, regardless of the device type and operating system (OS) a business uses. EMM solutions enable businesses to effectively deploy, manage and secure mobile devices, applications, and data used in an organisation. It can also help to protect the type of data coming into an organisation and set alerts for unmanaged devices trying to access files on the network for example.
Businesses utilising EMM can detect and troubleshoot small device issues remotely before they escalate, such as software updates required, whilst proactively making decisions to boost device performance, based on simple things such as network access. In turn, increasing productivity, reducing manual IT management tasks, and ensuring data security across endpoints.
In the context of retail, our latest 2025 retail industry report showed that over three-quarters of consumers in the UK (78%) expect retailers to prioritise data protection and security when shopping online, with a similar expectation for in-store purchases (72%). However, recent high-profile breaches in the sector emphasise the growing challenges in meeting these expectations. EMM helps retailers by unifying the management and security of handheld Point-of-Sale (POS) devices, mobile scanners, tablets, wearables, and other devices. EMM solutions provide employees with on-the-go support for remote troubleshooting, real-time monitoring, mobile lockdown (Kiosk Mode) and POS device management.
In terms of what could go wrong, if EMM isn’t strategically implemented, there are some common pitfalls: poor integration with legacy systems and incomplete device visibility, which can lead to heightened cybersecurity risks and operational inefficiency.
How do Enterprise Mobility Management platforms integrate with existing technology ecosystems in retail, particularly where legacy systems and newer connected devices coexist?
Retail IT systems are highly diverse, often combining older systems like traditional POS terminals with more modern devices such as smart shelves, cameras, and robotics. Effective EMM solutions simplify the security, management and support of all these devices, bridging the gap to provide visibility and control while facilitating the integration of legacy technology and their modern counterparts into one system.
SOTI’s solutions are specifically designed to address this need, reducing IT complexity while minimising friction between legacy and newly operating technology, all to keep operations running smoothly.
How secure are such platforms? What do they cover? Can device lockdown and monitoring features be extended beyond handhelds and POS systems to other devices, such as smart shelves, sensors, or robotics? How do EMM platforms secure endpoints compared with traditional Mobile Device Management (MDM) solutions?
Compared to traditional MDM solutions, EMM offers more advanced, predictive and tailored security measures. It is built with enterprise-grade security to ensure data integrity throughout the full device lifecycle and covers features such as app deployment, device enrolment and remote access control, while continuously monitoring endpoints to identify and neutralise security risks. EMM solutions like SOTI also enhance endpoint security through features such as simplified device lockdown, which restricts user access to essential apps and tools in shared environments, ensuring sensitive data remains protected even during device handovers or shift changes. SOTI also offers indoor location tracking so that we retailers see how and where all endpoint devices are being used by customers and staff, adding an extra layer of security to all retail devices both modern and traditional.
Device lockdown and monitoring features can indeed extend beyond traditional handhelds or POS systems. We are now seeing customers use our software to manage a wider array of devices including digital signage screens, smart shop scanners and mobile and industrial printers. Beyond this there is a growing customer appetite to manage new technology such as smart shelves and robotics alongside historically neglected devices like IP cameras and sensors. Our EMM solution is made for any OS and any device form factor.
With the rise of Edge computing in retail, how do EMM platforms handle real-time data from dispersed devices while ensuring security and compliance?
Edge computing represents a major shift in retail, where processing happens closer to the data source rather than relying on centralised servers. For companies using remote access software, edge computing reduces latency, improves performance and supports real-time applications.
Retailers may use edge-based systems to manage inventory data directly from smart devices. However, EMM plays a critical role by ensuring that data generated at the edge is securely collected, analysed, and transmitted. This can be achieved through:
- Real-Time Monitoring: EMM provides immediate visibility into device performance and data usage, ensuring that devices function optimally.
- Secure Transmission: EMM secures data in transit through encryption and VPN integration to guard it from interception.
- Compliance Enforcement: It automatically applies security updates, patches, and compliance policies to devices.
What role do AI and automation play in reducing the IT burden for device-heavy retail operations, and how scalable is this across large, multi-site deployments?
AI and automation play an important role in reducing the IT burden for device heavy retail operations, where managing thousands of connected devices manually would be impractical. EMM leverages these technologies to automate routine tasks, predict device issues, and optimise performance and AI helps by surfacing these issues before they escalate.
Automation enables tasks such as remote diagnostics, OS updates, and policy configurations to be conducted at scale without the need of human intervention. IT teams can also set up smart alerts and remediation workflows, so issues like connectivity drops in POS systems or performance lags or battery failures are automatically resolved.
AI-powered assistants such as SOTI’s Stella also help retail workers quickly and easily access key information about their devices through simple conversations and voice commands.
Scalability is also a key strength of modern EMM platforms like SOTI. Whether managing hundreds or tens of thousands of devices across multiple locations, EMM maintains consistent performance and compliance, enabling brands and retailers such as Trek and Coop Sverige, to scale confidently without introducing operational risk.
Author biography:
Jon Charters is a Key Accounts Manager at SOTI where he is responsible for managing large UK Enterprise customers focusing on Food and Retail verticals through both direct and partner-led relationships.
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