HP’s acquisition of Samsung’s Print business was completed in November 2017 and the shape and direction of HP’s entry into the A3 space is becoming clearer. HP executives made their goal clear from the outset: the Palo Alto, CA-based OEM was keen on taking a big chunk out of the $55 billion market, and its simultaneous unveiling of 16 new PageWide-fueled A3 machines further underscored that initiative.
John Whidden, VP,
HP Specialty Print Channel
With the deal being finalized last November, HP is now in the process of vetting and bringing Samsung dealer partners over to the HP fold and is working diligently to organize its infrastructure. One of those tactics includes the naming of longtime HP employee and executive John Whidden as its vice president of the HP Specialty Print Channel in the U.S.
Shown from the left are the HP LaserJet Managed MFP E82560z with external booklet maker, the PageWide Managed Color Flow MFP E77650z and the PageWide Managed Color Flow MFP E77660zs with optional external finishing
While Whidden had a mere six weeks in his new role, he took some time to speak with ENX Magazine about the Samsung integration process, the role PageWide technology will play in helping HP take a commanding share of the A3 pie, and the road ahead in enabling HP to capture mindshare among the dealer community. HP is hoping that its reputation for high-quality technology will translate into successful penetration of the BTA space.
Tell us about your career path leading up to your current position at HP.
Whidden: I’ve been with HP for close to 30 years, in and out of the print business in different roles. I was in the MPS business for several years, along with the Supplies business. I moved over to our A3 dealer Specialty Print Channel about a month ago as a vice president to run that for HP in the U.S. I’m excited; the experience so far has been good. The conversations with partners have been positive. While we have a very strong brand in the network printing arena, I think the dealers expect us to prove ourselves in the MFP copier space. There is a lot of positive momentum. It’s an exciting time for me personally and for everybody within the group.
What does the Specialty Print Channel entail?
Whidden: The Specialty Print Channel is our dealer channel specifically dedicated to A3 and A4 managed products. It includes previous partners that had been with HP, selling A4 and A3 solutions in addition to the new partners we have recruited to tackle the A3 MFP challenge. All partners, as well as new and traditional dealers, must meet criteria around service, support, and machines in field. These partners have access to the new A3 portfolio of products, including A3 PageWide. These products are powered by disruptive technologies such as Smart Device Service platform (SDS), and are backed up by unique channel support and programs.
Can you talk about the integration process, both from the Samsung side as well as moving dealers over to HP?
Whidden: Initially, we looked at all the Samsung partners and brought some into our program right around November. After that initial onboarding, we had the chance to evaluate the other partners as well as time for them to assess what a partnership with HP could do for their business. We continue to onboard partners. It seems to be a good fit both ways. We’re still in discussions with the remaining dealers, and we’ll continue to make decisions about which partnerships make sense in the U.S.
Tell us a little about HP’s strategy in moving to the BTA channel. How has Samsung assisted in the process of learning about its nuances?
Whidden: Well, we had a number of partners we brought over initially that were traditional HP Print Partners. Many at the outset were existing HP partners, with the Canon-based A3 and A4 line. Then we added new partners, copier channel partners—some of them Samsung dealers, some outright new partners for HP. For us, it’s about finding the right partners in each market—both with the partners we have that are traditional HP partners on the A4 side and adding in the Samsung partners that make sense, plus with the new strategic BTA dealers. The Samsung acquisition did accelerate the move and we’re looking at other partners to make the full dealer base that we’ll go forward with.
How has the process for vetting Samsung dealers progressed in terms of bringing them into the HP Partner First program?
Whidden: We’re going to continue to evaluate the ones that have not signed yet as we look to add more resellers this year. We’re talking to partners and they’re getting a feel for what we bring to the table.
Can you talk about the vetting criteria HP uses to bring aboard not just Samsung dealers but other dealers as well?
Whidden: They all have to meet similar criteria: The number of contractual machines in field, how many units are sold per year and their service capabilities and coverage. In the U.S. it varies by region, depending on which major metro or secondary market they’re in. Understanding a dealer’s ability to service its customers, bring on our product line and really own that service relationship is important. We require two techs per branch as a start, and there’s a five-day, hands-on HP training program for them to go through before they can be onboarded. Other areas include sales and demo capabilities, solutions—a lot of the traditional criteria one would expect from this channel. Security training to understand the role of printers and copiers for overall cybersecurity as well as what HP is building into our products is also a key part of our training for this channel. It’s a critical differentiation point for the HP print portfolio and part of what we expect dealers to embrace. There are sales minimums required to be on the program with HP in terms of units per year. It’s a highly competitive process, and it comes down to having discussions with each partner to see where we fit within their business, and ensuring they have a good understanding of our products and solutions.
Understanding a dealer’s ability to service its customers, bring on our product line and really own that service relationship is important.
At the 2017 Samsung dealer meeting, Tuan Tran discussed the desire to garner double-digit market share in the A3 space. How has this progressed?
Whidden: The focus is on our 2020 share goal, because we know that with many of the partners that are in this channel, HP is going to be new to them. We know it’s going to take time and there will be changes we’ll have to make as we go through certain aspects of growing with them. From the big-picture standpoint, Europe and Latin America are both performing well. The U.S., which I’m managing, is doing well in some areas, and we are looking for consistent growth nationwide across our broad portfolio. Our goal is to have all products operate as one HP portfolio offering to our partners. If you look across the different platforms, between the A4 and A3 products that we’re selling—including the Canon-based products, the legacy Samsung, now HP products and the PageWide offering—we’re seeing results across each that are encouraging.
The HP PageWide Managed E77660zs with an in-cave finisher
How else will HP parlay its strength in A4 products and technology to bolster the A3 offerings?
Whidden: We see PageWide as a strong differentiator for HP. We know we must bring value and differentiation, obviously, for partners to look to HP as an alternative. One of those areas is the A4 line, but with the added benefit of offering solutions and common user experience across both the A4 and A3 lines. HP security solutions span our enterprise portfolio, as does our Smart Device Service (SDS) platform, our back-office proactive support solution. Our goal is to have our offerings span both product lines to give partners and customers total end-to-end solutions. For us, A4 is certainly a part of it; those products are typically well received by most customers in their IT organizations. We think that’s a benefit for partners to penetrate a full print-and-copy solution.
At Executive Forum 2018, HP announced the expansion of its A3 MFP line to include PageWide A3 SKUs for transactional and contractual channels with external finishing. What are your expectations in terms of market impact?
Whidden: We think PageWide is a positive disruptive technology. It is a key part of our overall market share goal. We know that it will be mixed in with the other A3 and A4 products that we offer. It’s a new technology for many partners and customers, so as we work through our five-step activation process, PageWide is a big part of that training. The solution itself, the environmental benefits of the product, the cost effective color technology, and the overall differentiation it brings are critical. We’ve seen good results with it so far. That said, the technology needs to be designed into the environments to align with the user needs. We find that once the technology is better understood by partners and customers, we’ll continue to see positive movement toward the PageWide technology.
As HP is fairly new to the BTA space, what changes in this channel are influencing your go-to-market strategy, and what variables will play a role in your strategy going forward?
Whidden: There’s a lot of consolidation going on in the channel and this could be a great opportunity for HP. There are changes at our competitors, just as there were changes with HP since we split the company. It creates an opportunity for inroads with this channel, and while we are investing here, not all of our competitors are, so it’s giving us a chance to work with these partners. That extends to not just the A3 space, but the A4 line and our graphics portfolio. We have DaaS (Device as a Service) solutions, which a number of partners are showing interest in as an opportunity to grow their revenue. Between DaaS, graphics and 3D printing, we feel like there’s a lot we offer partners. Partners are all looking to grow with new revenue streams, and we’re positioned to take advantage of it at HP. Having said that, we need to recognize we need to change how we do business to be successful here. We are going to have to earn share to meet our goals. We’ve seen over time how some of our competitors have grown in this channel. It takes time to build the business relationship and you must be able to differentiate what you are offering over competitors. We’re committed to that investment.
The HP PageWide Managed P77750z in an office setting
How does 3D figure in to HP’s overall market approach?
Whidden: We’ve seen it as an area of interest for partners as a possible opportunity to work together. Our 3D offering has been out to market for a year and a half now. DaaS, 3D and the graphics solutions are all areas we’re talking with partners about to see if they want to invest and grow in those markets.
Obviously, HP’s overall reputation in the market should strengthen the A3 foray.
Whidden: For sure. I think our brand has been well maintained over the years through a lot of hard work by all of our employees worldwide. Having said that, while our brand is generally strong with IT managers and we think that there’s a familiarity that will help us with the A3 line, we know we still have to figure out how to do business with the dealer channel. That’s a big challenge, but it’s one we’re committed to.
What are your goals for 2018?
Whidden: Our Smart Device Service, the SDS platform, is already driving savings around support and maintenance. Between the A3 products, the A4 products, SDS, our Partner Service Network and other elements of our programs, we do believe we can drive savings around support for partners and improve their overall profitability. We want to continue the momentum as we shoot to reach our goal for share by 2020. We’ve got our dealer channel organization settled and in place now in the U.S. Now it’s about the day-to-day work, the partnering, and making sure we’re adding value and differentiation across all the areas we discussed. We’re trying to earn that business every day, and making sure we’re on track.
