HP puts partners under One umbrella

Vendor launches PartnerOne Programme in the UK

All Hewlett-Packard (HP) partners in the UK are facing a review of their businesses in the next six months as the vendor brings its global channel together under one umbrella.

The PartnerOne Programme, already running in the US, means former Compaq and HP VARs will be reviewed by HP to determine whether they require more training. Partners will then be accredited as either Select or Premier Partners.

"PartnerOne means we will have a consistent set of contracts, Ts&Cs and accreditation. It is especially good for partners who want to upgrade their accreditation with HP," said Andy Vickers, channel SMB director at HP.

Vickers added that it was inevitable that some VARs would decide not to continue as HP channel partners.

One industry watcher, who asked to remain anonymous, said: "From a distance it would appear that HP has absolutely no idea what direction it is going in. Firms are currently setting budgets and some are being forced to structure themselves with no real idea of what is going to happen."

However, Sue Richards, managing director of HP VAR and Centre of Excellence EBM, said: "Everyone is getting confused, but it seems that it has all come at once and at the wrong time. Once everything has calmed down and partners know exactly where HP is going, it will be fine.

"HP and Compaq were two big companies and the merger was massive. But there has never been so much help and support from HP as there is now."

Neil Evans, strategic partners director at Computacenter, said: "The channel strategy is just one element of the merger, and it is going to be liable to change as HP changes direction. Relationships with the channel have to evolve. Accreditations are a crucial part of this evolution."