HP (NYSE: HPQ)has developed pre-vetted solutions for virtualization, unified communications, and networking specifically targeted at the SMB.
These solutions are horizontal and pre-built for user bases of 100 or more hitting the SMB sweet spot, said HP’s worldwide leader in SMB Lisa Wolfe.
The company has forged alliances with Citrix, Microsoft and VMware to help the manufacturer ready its line up of ProLiant servers.
For example, Microsoft Lync unified communications software will be installed on HP VoIP phones which will give end users video conferencing, real time editing and collaboration capabilities.
“Right now the channel has to do this from scratch. This is a short cut,” Wolfe said. In this example, HP is producing units for 300 people, 500, 1,000 and even a 2,500 staff version. All these VoIP phones have been validated and the solution provider can go in and develop a customized solution for the customer from the get-go.
Wolfe added this is not a hard sku. “You cannot order it. What we give you is reference architecture. It’s a starting point where you can add your value. This saves the channel partner time. In a 400 employee environment there is always a starting point for Lync. This lets the channel partner expand on that and it’s really ideal because you are not giving them a closed system. They can add their value and increase their margins on this,” Wolfe said.
Wolfe wanted to assure channel partners that these solutions are not vertically-based.
Other solutions include HP Client Virtualization SMB, a virtual desktop solution for ProLiant Generation 8 servers with client virtualization software from Citrix, Microsoft and VMware.
The HP Transformation Experience Workshop for Mobility, a new service that aligns business and IT stakeholders to ensure staff has access to data while upholding security requirements.
HP Business Protection Solutions, a preconfigured reference architecture based on HP Converged Infrastructure for data protection, network security and disaster recovery.
To support these new releases HP is providing channel partners with a new financing option called Even Better than Zero. This program enables companies to lease HP equipment at a less than zero implicit lease rate. The program also takes into account a fair value purchase option.
“This is really offering pricing at the end of the lease. So 98 per cent of the total cost that is zero per cent lease would be offered by HP for qualifying hardware costs at fair market lease rates. At the end of 36 months the price is 98 per cent and if it was at zero per cent than it would be 100 per cent,” Wolfe said.
HP also announced as part of this release a new learning initiative for business owners called HP-LIFE. The new cloud-based platform hosted on HP Converged Cloud infrastructure, offers free information and courses in 20 languages to help SMBs establish or grow their businesses.
