Turning a mobile sales app gap into a new business opportunity
Christina Torode, Editorial Director   Helane SteinHelane Stein
A mobile sales app in itself is pretty common, but it's how an
app evolved at Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust (PREIT)
that landed Helane Stein as one of our finalists. As vice
president of IT at PREIT, Stein turned a mobile sales app gap
into a conversation about how to improve overall business
operations. The application inspired the company to swap out
desktops for iPads, change its software vendor partnership RFP
to include a "must have a mobile version" clause and created a
new business opportunity whereby competitors and peers asked to
use the app or purchase it. Read on to learn about the biggest
IT challenge that Stein, a finalist for our business value
award, faces today, and a common mistake she sees up-and-coming
IT leaders make.  Number of years in IT: 20-plus  Revenue: $458
million  From the judges  "Clear partnerships and ongoing
support that doesn't require c