Hurd promises to simplify HP for partners
Vendor opts for a more open way of working with the channel
Sara Yirrell in Las Vegas
Hewlett-Packard's (HP) chief executive Mark Hurd, has vowed to strip away layers of complexity and make HP a more predictable company for partners to do business with.
During his keynote at the HP Global Partner conference in Las Vegas last week, Hurd told partners that his aim was to simplify HP.
"We are a complex company with a lot of layers, but we are not always predictable. We need to make it a simpler company This is not going to be done overnight and there is a lot of hard work still to do, " he said.
However, he stressed that the vendor will continue with its tough approach (CRN 12 September). "We are focusing on programmes and investment on our most loyal partners. If a partner wants to leverage our portfolio they will find no better friend. But on the flip side, we have had partners buy from HP, hollow out the product and fill it with third party components. I don't like that. Loyalty is a two-way street."
Hurd also made no apologies for HP's direct strategy. "Our strategy is driven largely by customer choice - we will not cede business to the competition and we want to grow both our direct and indirect business," he said.
Jeremy Davies, senior analyst at Context said: "There are two types of partners - those that are committed to growing with HP and the other type that is more opportunistic and are only interested in a good deal rather than a long-term relationship. It is the latter type that should be worried," he added.
Nigel Wright, UK sales director at HP VAR Abtech was supportive of the vendor's changes. "They are trying to get their partner programme right and it is good to see them working with partners rather than direct, but we just hope they don't allocate by size and take into consideration focus and location," he said.
Seperately, HP announced 968 jobs would be going from the UK, as part of planning job cuts announced earlier this year.
Additional reporting by Trevor Treharne