HP orders reseller shake-up

Status of current channel partners under review

Hewlett Packard (HP) is relaunching its Business Partner Programme, after removing 200 partners and adding some 300 new ones to the scheme.

Company executives said that the time had come to review the status of current partners, to ensure they still matched HP's criteria.

"If partners have not reached financial targets and star accreditation, we will have to remove them from the programme," explained Graham Long, channel development manager at HP.

Currently, Business Partners must have an HP turnover of at least £50,000 and reach a certain level of accreditation.

Sue Richards, director at reseller EBM, maintained that if HP didn't review the scheme it wouldn't be good for anyone.

"If a reseller isn't selling HP kit well, or doesn't have the skills to deliver properly, then it reflects badly on HP and its resellers," she said.

The company is also ramping up its training for partners, emphasising what it calls mobile training, where staff visit resellers at their offices, said David Poskett, director of BCSO partner business at HP.