HP Inc unveils new partner training program for subscription selling

HP Inc has unveiled a new training platform to get resellers up to speed with contractual and subscription selling to future proof their businesses.

HP University will be available to members of the Partner First program in 170 countries, including Australia, and 11 languages with instructor-led, face-to-face training. The program combines education, product training and certification into one platform.

Partners can develop their sales skills geared towards solutions selling, building customer relationships and minimising wasted selling effort. HP said the program highlights the vendor's core competencies including device-as-a-service, mobility, security and managed print services.

HP vice president of worldwide channel sales strategy Thomas Jensen said the program sought to address the shift towards consultative selling while increasing partner revenue.

“HP offers partner-focused, consultative training with a thoughtful approach to drive the bottom line. Our global partner-focused HP University allows our vast ecosystem to focus on driving channel growth with relentless execution, a simple and clear education program and streamlined, effective operations to maximise growth and profitability,” he said.

HP said the program had been simplified to avoid partners having to navigate a complex portal. As an example of some of the course work, HP said its 'Strategic Solution Selling' course "would immerse attendees in realistic business problems, and provide strategies to uncover key customer business challenges, craft proposals and deliver the right messages to the right customers".

The program was revealed at HP's Reinvent partner conference in Chicago. Chief executive Don Wisler took to the stage on the first day of the conference to beat the drum on the importance the vendor places on its device-as-a-service offering, which the company announced in March 2016.

"For partners, this is a digital transformation opportunity where you can provide managed services for the device from birth to burial, all the while generating recurring revenue and improving the end user experience," he said, according to CRN USA. "Businesses are at an inflection point and our opportunity is to help them optimise their operations and their investments."