HP turns adaptive on itself
I've previously
gone on record saying that HP should drop the "
adaptive infrastructure" tag, but I'm changing my mind. I'm at an analyst event today, where HP have been explaining how they are approaching customer engagements with a consolidated solutions portfolio, plus a services-based approach that leads with finding out the maturity of the customer, which therefore enables HP to put technologies in place that fit the customer needs and capabilities.
Essentially (and I've tested this out on a number of HP execs), "adaptive infrastructure" becomes a reflection of how HP adapts its own offerings to its customers, rather than any pie in the sky ideal about applications and infrastructure dynamically reconfiguring themselves to fit with demand. This is adaptive, but not in the way that HP initially meant. Frankly however, I don't care - as it is the approach that matters the most. If HP wants to adapt the message to fit with a mechanism that adds real value, I'm all for it.
HP decided a while back, following its
ill-fated foray into acquiring a business consulting practice and the subsequent arrival of Mark Hurd, that it would stick to its knitting - namely, to be a one-stop infrastructure platform provider for companies large and small. The strategy would appear to be
paying off - while the company still has some progress to make, notably in services, it should be applauded for finally starting to turn its own tanker around.
