Avnet Opens HP-Centric Big Data, Analytics Practice for Partners

Avnet’s (NYSE: AVT) Technology Solutions unit (ATS) has opened a new Big Data and analytics practice framed on Hewlett-Packard’s (NYSE: HPQ) Vertica analytics platform and a set of custom, on-demand implementation services the distributor has developed and packaged.

Avnet is unwrapping the new offering, called Practice + for Analytics, at its HP’s Partner Summit held this week in Chandler, Ariz. The practice aims to equip channel partners with the necessary solutions, services, enablement and go-to-market capabilities to capitalize on the rapidly growing Big Data analytics market, which researcher IDC estimates will reach some $23.8 billion by 2016.

It also enables Avnet to grow its HP analytics business and to work more closely with partners crafting information management strategies for business customers, said Chris Swahn, ATS Americas, HP Solutions Group vice president and general manager.

“As HP’s largest enterprise solutions distributor, Avnet is committed to accelerating HP channel partners’ capabilities to address their customers’ key business hurdles and extending HP leadership in software and converged infrastructure solutions,” he said.

Swahn said Avnet has made a “significant investment” in the HP analytics practice “to enable our channel partners to leverage their deep HP infrastructure expertise.” He did not specify how much money Avnet has committed to the initiative.

Here’s a list of what Avnet’s Practice + for Analytics includes:

The Avnet practice comes on the heels of an HP reorganization that opened a new business unit specifically for the vendor’s converged infrastructure technology, focused on purpose-built servers and appliances running Hadoop, HP Vertica, SAP HANA and HP CloudSystem platforms. The unit is headed by Tom Joyce, formerly HP Storage Marketing, Strategy and Operations vice president, who was upped to Converged Systems senior vice president and general manager.

“Avnet’s new analytics practice for HP partners can further address customer challenges in dealing with incredible amounts of data and leveraging that information to gain actionable and reliable business insights,” said Joyce.