Eight Reasons HPE GreenLake Is Growing Faster Than Public Cloud

Hewlett Packard Enterprise CEO Antonio Neri says that with as-a-service bookings up 136 percent in the most recent quarter, the HPE GreenLake on premise cloud service is growing faster than public cloud. Here’s eight reasons why GreenLake is growing faster than public cloud.

A ‘Stellar Performance” For HPE GreenLake

Hewlett Packard Enterprise added over 100 new HPE GreenLake customers in the most recent quarter at a total contract value of more than $500 million.

“We obviously had a stellar performance with GreenLake with bookings up 136 percent which is much higher than any public cloud growth we have seen,” said Neri in a conference call with partners after HPE reported results for its first fiscal quarter ended Jan. 31.

Amazon Web Services, the industry’s largest cloud provider, grew at 40 percent in the most recent quarter, while Google Cloud grew at a 45 percent clip and Microsoft grew its Dynamics products and cloud revenue by 45 percent.

HPE GreenLake channel sales were up 115 percent in the quarter compared to the year ago quarter, said HPE Worldwide Channel Chief George Hope during the partner conference call. “We’re firing on all cylinders from a partner perspective,” said Hope.

HPE’s annualized recurring revenue – a critical measure of GreenLake adoption – increased 23 percent to $798 million even in the face of supply constraints.

Among the reasons for HPE’s GreenLake sales growth are HPE’s transformation into an “information cloud” leader; a blistering pace of GreenLake innovation; heavy investments in GreenLake partner training and enablement and a stepped up drive for partners to do head to head comparisons between GreenLake and public cloud providers.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise is set to up the ante in the GreenLake edge to cloud services battle against all comers with significant “innovations and enhancements” set to be rolled out on March 22, said Neri.

The dramatic new GreenLake capabilities will accelerate HPE’s transformation to a full fledged “information cloud company” with GreenLake.HPE.com as the new seamless front end for the hybrid edge to cloud experience integrating on premise clouds with AWS, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud, said Neri.

The new GreenLake capabilities – which include the ability for partners to integrate their services in GreenLake through an Application Programming Interface- represents a “huge” moment for HPE and its partners, said Neri.

“It brings the unification of the (cloud) experience in a hybrid approach from edge to cloud and it brings the partner ecosystem into the platform with that experience,” he said.

HPE’s Transformation Into An “Information Cloud” Leader

HPE is aiming to put even more distance between itself and hybrid cloud competitors with a new unified edge to cloud experience that transforms HPE into a full fledged information cloud company through GreenLake.HPE.com.

GreenLake.HPE.com, in fact, will serve as the new seamless front end for the hybrid edge to cloud experience integrating on premise clouds with AWS, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud.

Even with all of the sales growth, Neri has told partners that the best is yet to come with “amazing breakthrough” innovation that will be unveiled on March 22 and later this year at HPE Discover

“Whether you provide connectivity through WiFi, LAN or WAN, or whether you sell compute and storage, a private cloud stack or new storage platforms with data services, they are all managed and delivered through HPE GreenLake,” said Neri. “That to me is where the future is. I think of GreenLake as synonymous to HPE. If you ask me: three years from now what product are we going to sell? The reality is we are going to sell one product: it is called HPE GreenLake. Whatever the customer needs is delivered through GreenLake.”

Even capital expenditure hardware purchases like a sale of 10,000 servers will be delivered through GreenLake, said Neri, because “the software to manage those servers” is built into the core of the GreenLake platform through a subscription model.

The stepped up pace of GreenLake innovation comes after Neri put in place last August a new GreenLake cloud services development model, making the acceleration of HPE’s as-a-service transformation his number one priority.

“This is all about going further and faster on the transformation to become that edge to cloud company, “ said Neri, who is working closely with his executive team and a transformation office to accelerate GreenLake.

“My commitment to the channel has always been to put you in a winning position when it comes to innovation,” said Neri.

A Blistering Pace Of HPE GreenLake Innovation

The new GreenLake capabilities set for March 22 build upon a blizzard of HPE GreenLake innovation that includes pioneering on premise cloud service development and a steady pace of new capabilities over the course of the last year.

The HPE GreenLake development effort has led to increased recognition of HPE as a software powerhouse with 8,300 plus software engineers now working on HPE GreenLake next generation software stack.

HPE is now releasing GreenLake code on a daily and weekly basis, said Neri.

Neri has made big innovation bets in the GreenLake edge to cloud platform and the intelligent edge with a commitment to spend $4 billion on technology breakthroughs over four years starting in 2018.

HPE’s heavy software investment includes pioneering edge to cloud leadership development including the launch two years ago of GreenLake Central, a breakthrough self service hybrid cloud portal, and HPE Ezmeral, an open source cloud native container platform.

The no holds barred innovation bet has continued at a break neck pace over the last year with additional HPE GreenLake breakthroughs including:

*a third generation cloud data analytics capabities through the edge to cloud HPE Ezmeral Unified Analytics and data lakehouse platform. HPE is billing it as the “industry’s first hybrid, unified analytics and data lakehouse platform that once and for all eliminates on premise and public cloud data silohs.

*a new HPE GreenLake SaaS (software as-a-service)-based data protection service with ransomware protection based in part on its $374 million acquisition of Zerto, along with data protection and backup/recovery service for VMware.

*a new Zero Trust security framework called Project Aurora aimed at ensuiring edge to cloud security within HPE GreenLake from the user to the application all the way to the operating system and firmware in the hardware.

*GreenLake Lighthouse which provides the ability to instantly deploy workload optimized multiple cloud services across any platform from edge to data center to colocation provider.

Channel Commitment: Giving HPE Partners An API Connection To HPE GreenLake

Hewlett Packard Enterprise – which has been working with partners in earnest on developing the GreenLake pay per use cloud service channel model for five years – is providing open APIs (Application Programming Interface) for partners to integrate their own services with GreenLake.

“We are obviously opening the platform for partners to join us,making sure you are part of that ecosystem with simple integration through APIs, unification of experiences and giving you the tools to operate in this new cloud operating environment,” said Neri.

The HPE GreenLake channel partnership extends the full panoply of HPE software and tools to partners including pay per use consumption capabilities, telemetry, billing and analytics, said Neri.

HPE, in fact, has built the as a service capabilities that will power the channel forward in the cloud services era, said Neri. “That is very hard to do, there is nothing out there that you can buy off the shelf, that is where our team organically has built amazing capabilities,” he said.

That HPE ability to work with partners to bring in their own services to the platform is a huge competitive advantage for partners, said Neri.

The HPE software transformation is being powered on the backend with a single SAP S/4 HANA cloud implementation that unites both subscription and cloud consumption and even transactional purchases into in an automated GreenLake platform from try to buy to deployment.

“We are transitioning to a more cloud oriented development (effort) and obviously building those cloud services on top of the platform much faster than ever before,” said Neri. .“To me that’s a huge differentiation,” he said.

Ultimately, Neri said, the new HPE GreenLake capabilities for partners will provide the channel with a “significant competitive advantage” against cloud competitors.

“We need you to deliver the best experience to our customers and for you to grow with us,” Neri told partners.

Strong GreenLake Adoption In The Midmarket

HPE GreenLake is gaining more traction in the midmarket with Silver and business partners driving GreenLake sales with the help of distributors, said HPE Channel Chief George Hope.

“That midmarket focus is going very well for us, thanks to some of the excellent collaboration we have had with our distributors,” said Hope.

HPE Silver and Business partner GreenLake sales represented 49 percent of orders in the most recent quarter, up 23 points in the last year, said Hope. That is the result of expanded collaboration with HPE distributors, said Hope. The number of GreenLake sales through distribution was up 112 percent year over year, said Hope.

HPE Financial Services – which is providing the channel financing for GreenLake deals – is emerging as the “secret weapon” to help drive digital transformation, said Hope. HPE FS is a “testament” to how partners of all sizes can “embrace” the HPE edge to cloud as a service vision.

“You want to leverage that, we can leverage them to create capacity for transformation,whether it is giving customers cash for unutilized assets to help fund transformation or even rolling existing assets into an as a service consumption model and then giving them a differentiated cloud experience, HPE FS is absolutely fueling a lot of this growth for us,” said Hope.

A Proven Track Record Of Success, HPE GreenLake Channel ‘Momentum’ On The Rise

With HPE GreenLake total contract value (TCV) channel bookings of $132 million in the most recent quarter, HPE has now delivered nine consecutive quarters of year over year order growth with partners, said Hope. “We’re seeing very strong GreenLake momentum with partners,” he said.

A record number of HPE partners registered GreenLake deals for the first time, said Hope. “Almost 600 partners that had never previously registered a GreenLake transaction registered an opportunity in Q1,” said Hope. “We are expanding and broadening from that perspective. That’s up 54 percent year over year in new partners added and 15 percent quarter over quarter.”

The number of HPE partners with two or more GreenLake deals is “increasing significantly,” said Hope. “The rate at which our partners are building their own ARR (annualized recurring revenue model) is strong,” he said. “So we grew the repeatable partners at 66 percent clip which is faster than the rate we are acquiring new partners. So the strategy is helping us both to go wider in the partner community and go deeper within partners as they start to build out practices.”

GreenLake channel sales were up in every single geography, said Hope.

GreenLake’s channel success is a “testament” to HPE’s commitment to help partners “win” with “our vision and your business model,” said Hope. “I think that’s a lethal combination.”

HPE’s GreenLake cloud value proposition is to provide a “consistent” cloud experience from the edge to the cloud regardless of where customers are running their workloads whether it is in the data center, edge or public cloud, said Hope.

“As we transform the way we operate to lead the market as the edge to cloud company our focus is on giving choice to both our customers and our partners,” he said.

Deep Investments In GreenLake Partner Training And Enablement

HPE is ramping up its GreenLake partner training and enablement with heavy investments aimed at helping partners adopt the as a service GreenLake cloud services model.

“Five years ago we were the first to pilot (on premise cloud services) consumption with partners and a few iterations later, we continue to make sure that we meet your expectations and needs,” he said. “We continue to invest in helping partners leverage our vision, strategy and innovation to transform again at your own pace.”

Specifically, HPE has put together GreenLake Activation and Progression initiatives that allow partners to leverage HPE GreenLake experts to power their business transformation, said Hope.

“Partners can leverage the insights of our experts and focus on their business transformation, management change and leverage best practices we have so they can develop a plan to bring as a service into their model and bring these solutions to customers,” he said.

Among the other tools that HPE has implemented to drive partner success are Quick Quote, a service aimed at dramatically increasing the time to quote for a GreenLake deal, and GreenLake Swift Sales program which provides partners with standardized GreenLake configurations for HPE ProLiant Server, Nimble all flash storage and HPE Nimble DHCI.

HPE has also developed GreenLake as a Service partner acceleration workshops, said Hope. “These workshops help the partners understand their own operating and strategic capabilities including their road map and any of the obstacles (they face) to develop business models to generate these digital transformations,” said Hope.

HPE continues to make it easier for partners to leverage the full HPE ecosystem to drive GreenLake adoption, said Hope. That includes driving synergies with global system integrators, colocation providers, service providers and even hyperscalar cloud providers, said Hope.

HPE recently launched Partner Connect, a platform that powers partner to partner and customer to partner connection, said Hope. That includes partner locator capabilities, he said.

“If someone is a consultant and they just want to recommend and not resell we can partner our partners up to drive more adoption,” he said.

The first step for partners to drive GreenLake sales growth is training and enablement, said Hope. “We’ve created a GreenLake accreditation for (partners) teams to understand what the value proposition is to customers and how to position (GreenLake),” he said.

Changing The Cloud Services Conversation, Making The Hybrid Cloud A ‘Reality’

HPE has changed the cloud conversation with its unwavering hybrid edge to cloud vision, said Hope.

“Five years ago we said the world would be hybrid,” he said. “We had a hunch that bringing the cloud to the customer’s apps and data where they are would give them more control of their data without compromising all the things they love about the cloud. Fast forward to today that vision is a reality.”

HPE’s edge to cloud platform simplifies data management and protection across the entire hybrid cloud estate, said Hope.

Hope urged partners to join HPE for the March 22 announcement where HPE will “expand its cloud services portfolio” as part of the GreenLake as a service acceleration.

“The Northstar vision for us is a unified and seamless partner and customer (cloud) experience,” said Hope. “You’ll learn more about the unique outcomes we can unlock for our shared customers through data first modernization. You will find out how we continue to make it easier and more rewarding for you to sell GreenLake.”

Taking On Public Cloud Providers With The GreenLake Model

HPE is driving head to head comparisons between GreenLake and public cloud providers.

Neri and Hope urged partners to layer the GreenLake cloud services into the same sales teams that are driving public cloud sales.

“We need to be more and more connected with your cloud teams not just through the infrastructure team because the way we are developing the services on the GreenLake platform is true cloud operations,” said Neri. “We want to make sure you can expose all your services through the platform and create pull for your services.”

As an “Information Cloud” Leader, HPE is embracing the public cloud as a means of delivering a full hybrid edge to cloud experience integrating on premise clouds with AWS, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud.

“In the context of edge, cloud and data with the world being hybrid, customers want us to be able to manage those (public cloud environments) as part of the hybrid estate,” said Neri. “So for us long term the future of this company is GreenLake. Long term everything is going to be delivered through GreenLake. The sooner you get on the platform the better it is for both of us.”

Ultimately, partners need to get customers to try the platform and experience the “unification” from the edge to the cloud, said Neri. “In the end it starts with the data and the workloads, where the data needs to be and where they need to run the workloads in the most cost effective way,” he said. “The fact is most of our joint customers are on a multi-generational IT journey. They have legacy stuff, stuff on prem, in a private cloud on prem or in the public cloud,” he said. “We can bring it altogether.”

HPE is effectively bringing partners “an entire new world from edge to cloud,” said Neri. That includes everything from connectivity with HPE Aruba to compute and storage data services, ransomware protection and high end enterprise workloads like high performance compute, said Neri.

That ability to sell high end solutions that were traditionally sold by just a few partners is a channel game changer, said Neri. “Those mission critical systems and non stop (capabilities) have been totally virtualized, making it cloud native and we are going to make it available on the platform too,” he said.

Hope for his part, said partners need to start with workload assessments that drive comparisons between HPE and public clouds. “You need to be making recommendations on what should be on prem and what could be in the cloud, having a holistic view of it, and working to uncover what are the desired business outcomes,” he said.

CPP Associates, Clinton, New Jersey, one of HPE’s top enterprise partners, for its part, is doing head to head comparisons between GreenLake and the public cloud through its Infrastructure Anywhere Assessments (IAA).

Without reserved multiyear instances on the public cloud, HPE’s GreenLake is at times coming in at time at a 50 percent cost savings over public cloud in a head to face off, said Pat O’Dell, general manager and managing partner CPP.

“There is a place for the public cloud if you are a seasonal company or you need to get up and running quickly, but if you want total flexibility in a 24 hour, seven day a week, 365 day a year production environment you are going to spend substantially more in a public cloud environment,” said O’Dell. “Public cloud without reserved instances is much more expensive.”

Ultimately, HPE is providing customers the “software and services” they need to compete in a new information data insight era, said Neri. “I’m excited because we are making great progress,” he said. “We need to continue to make it simple, simple, simple because it is a whole different sales motion. That takes IT, it takes process and programs. What I am excited about at the same time is the level of innovation we are bringing to the market.”