HP/HPE's COVID-19 Response: Relief, Resources and Recovery
Relief initiatives and expanding products and services for remote workforces were just the start.
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The end of Xerox’s takeover bid for HP Inc. was an unexpected result of the COVID-19 pandemic. A persistent suitor, Xerox had made repeated bids for the company, apparently undeterred by HP’s increasingly stern rejections. In mid-March, Xerox said the pandemic accomplished what HP itself could not: halting its attempt to acquire the company. Xerox said it was taking a break in its pursuit of HP to turn its time and attention to the health and safety of employees, customers and partners.
Less than two weeks later, Xerox announced it would end its takeover bid for HP.
Economic turmoil ended Xerox’s attempted takeover of HP, but it also created havoc for HP’s clients. As cities around the world went on lockdown, those businesses that could transitioned their employees to remote working. Two new HP ProBook Laptop models — the HP ProBook 445 G7 and the HP ProBook 455 G7 — debuted in April. They are designed for SMBs and remote workers. Both models include multilayered security protection, a must-have for newly minted telecommuters.
The week before, HP addressed SMBs’ security needs by offering them a free download of its Sure Click Pro. The service, which protects users from browser-borne malware, works with HP and non-HP PCs. Available through channel partners, users get it for free through Sept. 30.
Also in April, HP rolled out a variety of COVID-19 relief initiatives for customers and partners. The short-term global programs address financial solutions and leasing options for end customers and incentives for channel partners. In addition, HP University is offering online, on-demand education and certification. Agents who provide customer support are getting cross-training to manage the increased demand.
“As a global company, we understand the importance of acting globally while executing at the local level,” said Christoph Schell, HP’s chief commercial officer. “Rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach, we are taking a customized approach specific to the unique and evolving dynamics at the market and country level, depending on a variety of factors.”
The increase in remote working caused by COVID-19 has spurred demand for HP’s Chromebooks. In response, the company announced earlier this month that it will roll out new enterprise Chromebooks and thin clients.
One of the two, the HP Chromebook 14G6 for frontline workers, is available now, starting at $399. The three other systems will arrive this summer. They include the high-end Project Athena-based HP Elite c1030 Chromebook Enterprise.
Andy Rhodes, HP’s global head of commercial systems, said HP had shipped thousands of Chromebooks to companies that suddenly needed to equip their employees to work at home.
“Business resilience is what it’s all about,” Rhodes said. “And it’s going to continue to be as we move forward.”
Over on the enterprise products and services side, HPE’s COVID-19 response was quick and comprehensive. In early April, HPE Financial Services (HPEFS) said it would make available to customers and channel partners more than $2 billion in relief financing.
HPEFS’ Payment Relief Program targets liquidity and cash, and concerns of utmost importance to business customers during the pandemic.
“This is a challenging time to lead a business,” said Irv Rothman, president and CEO of HPE Financial Services. “Today more than ever, IT leaders and CFOs play a central role in ensuring financial health while continuing operations. At HPE Financial Services, we are committed to helping businesses align their priorities from an IT economics perspective and provide them with concrete solutions so they can move forward.”
Two weeks later, HPE announced additional relief initiatives in the form of program changes and offers to help partners get financial footing and reduce financial pressures. HPE made changes to its Partner Ready program, addressed partner liquidity, offered several hybrid IT partner propositions for customers and offered partner enablement virtually.
“We’re taking action to relieve financial pressure for all our partners, while helping them focus on expertise and differentiation,” Paul Hunter, HPE’s worldwide head of partner sales, wrote in a blog.
Earlier this month, HPE expanded its remote workforce products and services, which provided partners with a net-gain opportunity. HPE SimpliVity and HPE Nimble Storage dHCI overcome the limitations of traditional infrastructure with intelligent management, easier scalability, cloud data protection and the performance to support remote workers, the company said.
“As an edge-to-cloud platform-as-a-service company, HPE is here to help our clients bring together the right expertise and technology solutions to meet their most immediate challenges and unexpected demands,” said Patrick Osborne, HPE SimpliVity’s vice president and general manager. “With these challenges, customers are looking to rapidly unleash mobile productivity and desktop virtualization.”
Just as the pandemic forced businesses to accelerate their plans to create telecommuting opportunities, so has it caused HPE to accelerate its transformation to an edge-to-cloud platform-as-a-service company.
Antonio Neri, HPE’s CEO, said the company’s executive committee will shift so that its seven business group leaders report directly to him, along with its five global function leaders. There were also changes in the leadership of labs, technology and software, as well as the leadership of sales and operations.
“In the new world that is emerging, business continuity will depend on technology that advances IT resiliency, empowers remote workforces and creates new experiences,” Neri wrote in a blog. “Through the power of technology, we can reinvigorate customer engagement and help customers reimagine their business models.”
Like other companies, HP and HPE had live events scheduled for what turned out to the lockdown period.
HP Reinvent, initially slated for March 24-26, in Anaheim, California, was rescheduled for early April 2021.
HPE Discover has been reformatted to the HPE Discover Virtual Experience. The ongoing virtual experience will kick off on June 23 with a live keynote from CEO Antonio Neri, followed by live and on-demand sessions, demos and training designed to help participants and their companies now and into the future.
Available live and on-demand, HPE Discover Virtual Experience will continue to feature content in the weeks following the June 23 opening event.
Like other companies, HP and HPE had live events scheduled for what turned out to the lockdown period.
HP Reinvent, initially slated for March 24-26, in Anaheim, California, was rescheduled for early April 2021.
HPE Discover has been reformatted to the HPE Discover Virtual Experience. The ongoing virtual experience will kick off on June 23 with a live keynote from CEO Antonio Neri, followed by live and on-demand sessions, demos and training designed to help participants and their companies now and into the future.
Available live and on-demand, HPE Discover Virtual Experience will continue to feature content in the weeks following the June 23 opening event.
HPE’s response to COVID-19 is in keeping with a company that promises to “advance the way people live and work.”
Hewlett Packard Enterprise announced its fiscal 2020 first quarter financial results just as COVID-19 was escalating from a rumble to a roar.
HPE’s Antonio Neri
“HPE’s first quarter results demonstrate continued progress against our strategic priorities to shift our company to higher-margin and more recurring revenues against a dynamic market backdrop,” said Antonio Neri, president and CEO of Hewlett Packard Enterprise.
HP/HPE’s overall revenue declined for the quarter, primarily due to its compute business, Neri said. But it grew ARR by 19% and “saw profitable growth in key areas of investment,” he added. Those areas include intelligent edge, high-performance compute, hyperconverged infrastructure, big data storage and operational services orders.
That “compute business” is HP Inc., the IT giant’s printer and PC arm. At the time, it was fighting off an attempted hostile takeover that Xerox launched in November.
“We delivered EPS and gross margin improvement, while making important investments for future innovation,” Neri continued. “Faced with continued macro uncertainty, I am confident we are managing our business with discipline and focus. [We are] taking the right actions, and advancing our pivot to deliver unique edge-to-cloud experiences as a service. We believe the combination will drive long-term profitable growth and strong returns on investment.”
Since then, the pandemic has tested “discipline and focus” for the companies. So how did they do? Click through the slide show above for a recap of their COVID-19 response.
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