HPE 'absolutely gunning' for Dell EMC's storage crown - UK Channel VP
Mark Armstrong says programme tweaks will help partners win higher-margin deals
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) is "gunning" for Dell EMC's storage crown after introducing partner programme updates across a range of technologies.
HPE's programme modifications are part of a slew of changes that the vendor has made in the past year as it reshapes its strategy towards higher-margin areas.
Mark Armstrong (pictured), UK channel VP at HPE, told CRN that the changes will help partners take advantage of the solutions that the vendor has created through acquisitions and internal innovation - particularly in the storage space.
"Are we gunning for that market? Absolutely," he said. "We are creating a portfolio to do that by making interesting acquisitions such as Nimble Storage, and investing significantly in R&D to take really innovative and unique intellectual properties (IP) and make them available across our portfolio of storage," he stated.
Armstrong added that the integration of Nimble and SimpliVity - both acquired last year - has been successful and that the vendor has "doubled down" on those companies' pre-acquisition success by implementing their capabilities across HPE's portfolio.
"We are shifting to a broader mix of higher-value technologies and investing in the IP surrounding them to create stronger value propositions for our customers," explained Armstrong.
Focusing on partners
HPE is seeking to increase its share in certain high-growth market areas, including hyperconverged solutions, storage, software and consumption services.
To do this the vendor has tweaked its partner programme, offering what it claims to be a simplified rebate model for selling its services.
Resellers could earn up to three times the standard rebate on products, including the SimpliVity and Nimble lines, and five times the regular rebate on software, including the OneView IT management platform.
"The higher rebates are specific to those high-value products and services," explained Armstrong. "The rebate aspect is designed for all our partners and is centred on high-growth, next-generation infrastructure technologies and their accompanying services."
The channel exec said these changes are being implemented to encourage partners to invest and grow in these markets and to take advantage of the opportunities it offers.
"It's about helping our partners to focus; these are more complicated solutions that potentially require a different kind of sales investment, but they do create higher-value outcomes," he added.
"Our partners see the value of our solutions and that these are new areas that can be more complicated and can require different selling skills, but these changes will help them in their journey to software-defined selling into the enterprise."
James Hardy, deputy MD of HPE partner CCS Media, said the changes are part of the vendor's evolution.
"As an organisation, their strategy is very clear and not just about people saying the right things on stage," he said.
"The investment and changes they are making in the organisation are really clear and cohesive and have a positive impact."