HP Partners: Whitman's Calm Under Fire Bodes Well For Future

If there's one thing Meg Whitman has made very clear during her first eight months as Hewlett-Packard CEO, it is that she is not afraid to tackle tough questions about the company's past missteps.

The latest example came last week at HP's Global Influencer Summit in Shanghai, China, when a local reporter blindsided Whitman during a Q&A by asking whether she finds it difficult to work with the company's board of directors.

"We have a saying at HP: We cannot change the past, but we can change the future. We are focused on the future with what I think is a very good board, with many new members in the last year," she responded. "This board is deeply engaged, and we are all about plotting a better future for HP."

This question was simple compared to ones Whitman faced at HP's annual shareholder conference in March, where she was asked to comment on HP's policies on human rights and retirement benefits; whether HP should open retail stores; and how it plans to keep Apple at bay. One irate shareholder took the opportunity to ask Whitman why HP is slow to ship replacement printer parts.

[Related: 20 Scenes From HP's Global Influencer Summit In Shanghai ]

The thorny questions are unlikely to go away anytime soon: Whitman has hinted at possible layoffs as part of an ongoing cost-cutting and organizational streamlining campaign that has included the merging of its PC and printer divisions and consolidation of its marketing, global sales and enterprise businesses. HP reports second-quarter earnings May 23, so the extent of the job cuts could be revealed soon.

HP still faces challenges to core businesses, and Whitman has said getting HP headed in the right direction could take several years. Nonetheless, HP partners and analysts are impressed with the way Whitman has handled the assortment of problems she inherited upon taking over the CEO spot last September.

"She is direct and clear in her communication and seems to possess great leadership qualities," Brian Alexander, managing director of technology research at Raymond James, told CRN.

NEXT: Partners Views On HP Restructuring

Mark Romanowski, executive vice president of ASI System Integration, a New York City-based solution provider, sees HP's printer and PC division merger and its Enterprise Group consolidation as steps in the right direction.

"It is definitely not business as usual with Meg," Romanowski told CRN. "She is putting the right people in positions that will make an immediate impact not only on HP’s profitability but also on how HP works with the channel and end-user customers."

Whitman has made a priority of getting rid of the silos in HP organizational structure that make it difficult for partners and customers to do business with the company. The PPS and Enterprise Group moves are evidence of her resolve to do what it takes to achieve this goal, according to Sam Haffar, president and co-CEO of Computex, a Houston, Texas.-based HP partner.

"She clearly sees where HP has been deficient and is working to rectify this," Haffar told CRN.