Going back two weeks ago I wrote a blog about how some work can get done using a smartphone via mobile work applications. Wondering who actually uses these applications and what they can really accomplish, I decided to pursue it a little bit further. I chatted with Mark Ringer, Rally's product line manager for integrations team, about its new Rally for the iPhone application for project management. Although never intended to take over Rally's software for project management, the application is a nice compliment to it, he said, and estimates about 50-75% of work can be done using the mobile app. 

Approximately three-quarters of what you can do in the desktop application is available in the mobile one, he said, with emphasis on features for checking project updates and statuses, navigating through the backlog, and adding and editing tasks. Due to "limited screen real estate," features such as the planning screen remain on the desktop application. The planning screen, used to drag and drop stories between iterations and release buckets, is also only used approximately every two weeks, unlike checking statuses on a daily basis, Ringer added.

"We don't see this replacing our entire app, and we're focusing on the things that people do a lot and are reasonable to do on a mobile device," he said.

One user of Rally's app, Kevin Madill, chief product officer at Miovision Technologies, said he uses the app at least one time daily. As CPO of three product managers, "I make sure projects are in line with one another and can provide updates and reports," whether in a management or customer meeting.

"It really comes in handy for quick and timely tasks," he said. He also thinks the app makes his customer and management meetings more productive because statuses can be checked quickly and feature ideas can be added to the backlog when requests are made.

Also a beta tester for the app, Madill said, "It serves my purpose for sure and what I'd expect to do on it."