Gearing itself up to service the rapidly growing market for IT and business services in Malawi, HP has outlined a comprehensive end-to-end solution strategy for the country and debuted a new programme to segment and recognise its channel partners.
That was the word from Thierry Boulanger, the regional sales manager for distribution business in Africa at HP, speaking ahead of the "Africa Solutions" customer and partner road show, to be held in Blantyre on 3 October this year.
"Our intention with the Malawi road show is two-fold: to meet customers and increase the awareness of the total end-to-end IT services and solutions that we can offer; and to debut a formal programme that will segment and recognise our channel partners according to their levels of skill," explained Boulanger.
The road show is part of HP`s greater concerted drive into Africa, kick-started late last year when the company formed a division to focus purely on the continent.
For existing or potential customers, the aforementioned end-to-end solution is the highlight of the road show. Boulanger said that HP had witnessed increased demand for highly-available, scalable and powerful infrastructures driven by Windows, Unix and Linux operating systems in Africa.
"We`ve also seen an increased need for storage - from the desktop all the way through the enterprise. This is in addition to companies looking for a provider that can offer the full service - from consulting to customisation to delivery to support," he said.
"With a portfolio as broad as ours, HP is more than able to meet those stringent demands - we are a great deal more than a printer or PC company. And, when you take our partner skills into account, it`s clear that we can offer a very strong IT business value proposition for companies of all sizes in Malawi."
Existing or potential channel partners will also gain a great deal from the HP "Africa Solutions" road show. It will be this forum that is used to debut the company`s official business partner programme.
"Our aim is to evaluate our partners based on their skills, focus areas, target markets and the potential value add that they can offer to customers," explained Boulanger.
This is a simple programme and one that benefits all partners: once they are evaluated HP can give them the recognition, support, discounts, lead generation and marketing assistance they deserve.
"This programme is extremely important: our local partners in Malawi are the companies which are interfacing with the customers, carrying our brand name and solutions to market. It`s crucial that we develop their skills and offer our support," said Boulanger.
As a result, the programme directly benefits customers. "All companies can rest assured that they are dealing with a partner that is authorised by HP to deliver a defined level of service on the solutions they offer," said Boulanger.
"It also helps combat the scourge of grey market imports. By having the correct pricing, supply chain and support processes in place, the market for unsupported grey products will naturally diminish."
For more information on HP`s solutions and activities in Africa, surf to www.hp.com/country/aa/eng/welcome.htm.
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