HP Services Vows To Use Partners To Fill Its Bench

"When our services bench is empty, we will first go to partners [for additional help," said Debbie Dunnam, vice president of marketing strategy and alliances for HP Services in the Americas.

Solution providers have complained that HP too often uses temporary help agencies such as Manpower to fill in when HP Services doesn't have enough internal resources on a project. Solution providers said Manpower often charges lower rates for its people than does the channel.

Dunnam made her comments in a question-and-answer session with HP enterprise solution providers at the Arrow SBM PowerTrain conference here.

HP, as part of the new PartnerOne environment, would use temporary agencies for help only if a solution provider services partner couldn't fill the bill, Dunnam said.

In the past, solution providers were used to augment HP Services on an "ad hoc basis," but under PartnerOne, HP would be registering solution providers as specialists to extend HP Services' capabilities, she said. "We will work with a database of partners so we will have a playbook of where to go for help."

HP will pay the same price for channel service people as it does for Manpower staff, so there will be no temptation to opt for lower-price temp agency help, Dunnam said.