HP has a lot in store for you
By Jamsheed Gandhi
The enterprise storage market has seen growth of over 70 percent CAGR over the last couple of years. The biggest demand driver for storage solutions has been the exponential increase in the amounts of data being generated owing to the growth of the Internet and e-mail communication, regulatory data compliance needs, and increased deployment of enterprise-wide applications across the spectrum of India Inc, including SMBs.
Direct attached storage (DAS) is making way for networked storage as the availability of real-time information for enterprise-wide applications rises. The DAS market actually saw negative growth, while network attached storage (NAS) grew by 55 percent.
The growth in SAN/NAS numbers, seen in conjunction with falling DAS numbers, only reinforced the shift from DAS to the networked mode.
Vendors also launched integrated storage appliances with SAN and NAS capabilities, backup, recovery, archiving and e-mail management at low price points, and with easy deployability and manageability, specifically to target SMB demand.
Going forward, respondents expect huge opportunity in providing storage solutions. Emerging in the list is Network Appliance (NetApp), the only pure-play storage manufacturer.
Channel relationship
Prompt decisions and regular communication with the channels ranked as the most important criterion. HP received more votes followed by IBM. Respondents said that IBM has been facing attrition among its storage team, and that this has affected continuity in relationships; not one but three account managers have been replaced in a span of one year.
NetApp has over the past few years built a good reputation as a consistent and channel-friendly company. Since it is uni-focused on networked storage, its engagement with channels is strong.
Training and certification
Vendor certification and regular training sessions ranked as the second most important criterion. Most channels value product training as it helps their staff in deploying their solutions effectively. HP is the best among the three when it comes to training. HP has more technical and sales training sessions for employees of channel partners; its pre-sales certification program has also drawn appreciation from respondents because it has helped in improving their pre-sales, an essential in closing deals in enterprise business. IBM and NetApp also conduct regular sessions but not as frequently as HP.
Service and support
Respondents polled HP first, followed by IBM and NetApp on the merit of the pre-sales and warranty support provided. HP has the best warranty service, and is also better than its peers in providing pre-sales support. Both IBM and HP have a strong remote service center that efficiently handles customer issues. NetApp delivers with well-qualified call center and on-ground technical staff.
Price-performance
HP was voted as the one having the best price-performance, which includes aspects like product features, reliability, ease of deployment and management.
It has the widest portfolio, including tape drives, integrated appliances, and NAS and SAN devices. IBM stood second. Both these vendors do a lot of storage bundling with their server portfolio.
NetApp, which was polled third, has gained the reputation of having the best price-performance in the NAS category.
Marketing and branding
In terms of brand pull, HP polled ahead of IBM and NetApp because it has a larger pool of products for the enterprise segment and thus far more opportunities to associate with a customer. HP also scored much higher on other marketing parameters like aggressive advertising, and better MDF policies for authorized partners. In short, HP is a more visible brand than its peers.
Conclusion
HP was ranked first on all parameters. While IBM polled second, it has a fair chance of upsetting HP as it did in the server category if only it gets its people-act together and ensures continuity in channel management. NetApp has managed to create a strong equity in the NAS market with a limited number of partners but a lot more focus.
Intro
l Microprocessors l Hard Disk Drive l Flat Panel Display l Optical Disk Drives l Desktop l Anti-virus l Notebook l Inkjet Printers l Laser Printer l Server l Networking l Enterprise Security |