But in the collection of daunting IT tasks, right now, upgrading to BlackBerry® Enterprise Server v5 might offer a silver lining. In a previous post, I mentioned a great incentive that’s currently in place for upgrading to BlackBerry Enterprise Server v5. While many customers have already taken advantage of this offer, I thought I’d touch a bit more on the details of this program to address some common questions – I’d hate for anyone to miss out because they didn’t have the information.

The offer works as follows: upgrade to BlackBerry Enterprise Server v5 before December 31st, 2011 and receive a free BlackBerry® PlayBook™ tablet! The BlackBerry PlayBook tablet is the perfect companion device for any user on a BlackBerry Enterprise Server. You can share presentations directly through the HDMI output, access enterprise web apps through its HTML 5.0 and Adobe® Flash® capable browser, and download dozens of productivity applications and enterprise tools to see how these might benefit your organization. There’s so much to explore in terms of how you can leverage tablets in your mobility strategy, and it’s a great way for IT staff to start testing the waters.

As an additional bonus, for many customers, acquiring the BlackBerry Enterprise Software v5 has no additional cost as it’s included in the BlackBerry® Technical Support Services program at the Advantage Level for small and medium sized businesses or Premium or higher for Enterprise. That said, whether you acquire your BlackBerry Enterprise Software v5 as a new one-off purchase or as a complimentary download through the BlackBerry Technical Support Services program, the free BlackBerry PlayBook tablet offer still stands.

Of course, I’m not naïve enough to suggest that acquiring software is the same as installing it – if that were the case, even I could be an IT manager! So to help you with the actual installation, participating BlackBerry resellers are offering $400 off upgrade installation services. These partners – including CDW, Insight, SHI, Softchoice, and Zones – can help install, deploy, and manage the complete BlackBerry Enterprise Server v5 installation for a fee, customized to your organization’s specific requirements.

And when everything’s done, the process to get your BlackBerry PlayBook tablet couldn’t be easier. You simply go to the Move Up To More website, register your address information and SRP ID number, and voila!

But even if you ignore these incentives (which are hard to ignore!), there are some rock solid reasons to upgrade your BlackBerry Enterprise Server. These are covered in detail on our SlideShare site and discussed in previous blog posts. In short: you’ve got enhanced monitoring and management tools, new administrative capabilities, increased end-user productivity, and of course access to BlackBerry® Balance™ technology.

So you’ve got a software upgrade that could be available at no extra charge as part of your existing services, $400 off the installation services offered by participating BlackBerry resellers, and a free BlackBerry PlayBook tablet…suddenly that daunting task isn’t looking so bad! Certainly a lot more enticing than helping your brother move (for which my back is still sore).

Have you upgraded yet? What new features have you taken advantage of? Are you still holding off on the upgrade? What roadblocks are you facing?

If you’re an IT manager considering whether to update your organization to BlackBerry® Enterprise Server v5.0, you may want to act now. If you upgrade to BlackBerry Enterprise Server v5.0 before December 31st, 2011, you’ll receive a free BlackBerry® PlayBook™ tablet! (For the terms & conditions associated with this offer, please visit www.blackberrymoveuptomore.com)

Why update your mobile environment to version v5.0? IT administrators will benefit from:

• Advanced Mobile Management through a New administrative console
• Built-in High Availability and Reliability
• Enhanced Application Deployment and Management
• BlackBerry® Enterprise Transporter Tool
• …and many more features

End-users will enjoy the benefits of:

• Remote File Access
• Email Folder Management
• Enhanced Calendar Functionality
• Synchronization of public and private contacts
• Flag emails for follow up
• Listen to Windows Media Audio (WMA) files
• And more great features that enhance end-user productivity

Many organizations have already completed various stages of testing/piloting of BlackBerry Enterprise Server v5.0, but in addition to this offer, there is one more reason why we think you should consider upgrading today: Participating BlackBerry partners are offering $400 off the BlackBerry Enterprise Server v5.0 upgrade install service. So if your staff is busy on a hundred other projects, engage one of our resellers to do the heavy lifting and perform the complete installation, customized to your organizations’ exact requirements.

With a free BlackBerry PlayBook tablet, offers of $400 off installation services by selected partners, and a list of new server features as long as my arm, there’s never been a better time to Move Up To More!

Are you using BlackBerry Enterprise Server v5.0? What features are you finding most useful? Are you still on a previous version of the BlackBerry Enterprise Server? What roadblocks are you facing in launching your upgrade efforts?