HP Revolutionizes Enterprise Customer Support for the Cloud Era

Always On Support Services from HP deliver issue prevention, improved first-time resolution rates and reduced downtime

KUALA LUMPUR, May 8, 2012 – HP today announced the industry’s first IT support services architected for multivendor, converged and cloud environments, helping enterprises address problems before they occur, realize 95-percent first-time resolution rates and resolve unplanned downtime issues up to 66 percent faster.(1)

The new Always On Support Services from HP integrate the intelligent technologies built into the HP Converged Infrastructure with innovative services to deliver a modern support experience for today’s complex IT environments.

Legacy support services offer a break/fix model for an individual piece of equipment in a single technology silo. However, that equipment is likely part of a virtualized, multivendor or cloud environment with interdependencies across the IT infrastructure, adding a level of complexity to operations.

Diagnosing problems in these environments can be slow, leading to unplanned downtime that can cost the average enterprise $10 million per hour.(2) As a result, today’s enterprises need a new outlook regarding support.

According to a recent Gartner report, the definition of support is changing. Customers want and need support services that help them to avoid issues occurring far more than they need reactive services that fix problems after the fact.(3)

In instances where predictive measures aren’t enough, clients also require more streamlined support when a problem arises, such as a single point of contact that is familiar with their environment and can resolve issues quickly.

“Technology advances such as virtualization and flexible infrastructures are combining with multivendor environments to create complexity and make today’s technology environments much more challenging than in the past. As a result, customers need and expect more from their support providers,” said Rob Addy, research director, Gartner. “Legacy support models are becoming less relevant. It is time for a complete overhaul of support practices. The use of predictive and proactive prevention based methodologies is now highly desirable.”

Offering proactive support from informed experts Always On Support Services from HP provide “direct to expert” communication with a professional who already knows the client, the details of the client’s environment and what the client’s system is experiencing prior to the first call.

The recently announced HP ProLiant Gen8 Servers were built with this new service model in mind. By tightly integrating server diagnostic data with advanced HP Insight Remote Support automation tools, new support and delivery capabilities, and customer warranty information, HP can provide an economical support experience that is unmatched for industry-standard environments.

“Enterprises need to be built on a technology foundation that helps IT shift time and resources from problem resolution to innovation,” said Ramaswami Venkatesan, Country Manager, Technology Services, HP Malaysia, “The traditional reactive IT support model is no longer effective – the industry needs to change the way it delivers support to offer proactive solutions and customized service offerings – and HP is leading that charge.”

Convergence of support and HP Converged Infrastructure

To deliver an enhanced client experience along with proactive problem resolution, Always On Support Services from HP continuously monitor the 1,600 diagnostic data points collected by the HP ProActive Insight Architecture. This architecture, currently embedded in HP ProLiant Gen8 servers, will soon be integrated across the entire HP Converged Infrastructure portfolio.

Always On Support Services from HP include:

— HP Foundation Care – expedites problem resolution for optimal performance by simplifying support with a single point of contact at HP for both the hardware and software in the client’s environment. By leveraging relationships with leading independent software vendors (ISVs), HP eliminates the “finger pointing” typical of legacy support models.

— HP Proactive Care – minimizes downtime and optimizes performance by addressing problems before they occur. It also provides immediate and direct access to HP experts so clients receive the right support and guidance, when they need it. This eliminates the delay spent cycling through escalating levels of support personnel often associated with legacy support models.



— HP Datacenter Care – provides customized support for a client’s multivendor environment with a single point of contact at HP. It delivers enhanced call handling, proactive services, reactive support and relationship management enabled by HP tools and predictive analytics to deliver premium value at a cost-effective price.

HP also offers Lifecycle Event Services that augment the above HP Care portfolio with HP expertise throughout the technology life cycle of an IT project. This includes strategy, design, implementation and education services, allowing clients to select services “a la carte” to best serve their needs.

Always On Support Services from HP are available now through HP Technology Services and HP authorized partners. They can be delivered by certified HP ServiceONE partners.

HP’s premier client event, HP Discover, takes place June 4-7 in Las Vegas.