HP has unveiled a new suite of software which it says is designed to rationalize, measure and improve IT performance called the HP IT Performance Suite.
"IT is one of the most strategic and largest single investments companies make," says Piet Loubser, senior director, product marketing, for HP Software. On average, Loubser says, around 3.5% of total revenues are invested in IT. And yet, he notes, it is one of the groups in organizations with the lowest visibility to the board and to the CEO in terms of the value it delivers.
Two key components of the new strategy and product suite, Loubser says, include a repositioning of the entire family of HP software portfolio under the HP IT Performance Suite in order to bring it all together into an end-to-end performance system for the IT organization. Additionally, a significnt capability is a role- or persona-based solution focused on the CIO's needs specifically called the CIO Edition Standard. "The focus of that solution will be to bring togther a mini-suite that will provide the CIO overview in terms of the finanncial performance of the whole IT organization, as well as the portfolio performance and health across the entire IT organization," says Loubser.
The HP IT Performance Suite helps IT perform better by providing CIOs insight from across a comprehensive range of solutions to manage and optimize application development, infrastructure and operations management, security, information management, and financial planning and administration. Each product in the HP Software portfolio improves the performance of the discrete IT functions addressed, while a new IT Executive Scorecard helps technology executives optimize overall IT investments and outcomes.
According to Loubser, in its work with customers, HP has found that CIOs tend to solve the problems of managing and operating the business of IT in silos. As a result, this myriad of different systems managing the different facets of IT means that if they need to put together a report, it can be a "nightmare" to produce and still may not provide a trusted, consolidated view, he explains. The difficulty in obtaining a consolidated and accurate view across the entire IT landscape can create management complexities that can slow responses to shifting priorities and changing market conditions. Add to that the challenges of the ever changing technologies such as cloud computing, virtualization, and mobile devices, and the problems are only compounded for IT, he adds.
The IT Performance Suite uses HP's lifecycle approach to software development and management, and integrates industry standards such as the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL).
CIO Edition Standard, the HP IT Performance Suite's first persona-oriented solution, includes the Executive Scorecard along with Financial Planning and Analysis, Project and Portfolio Management, and Asset Manager modules. This edition automatically integrates data from the modules to provide more than 20 best-practice KPIs covering financial and project health, enabling the optimization of IT performance from a business investment point of view.
In addition, HP's online CIO and Cloud Assessment tools will help clients evaluate their current level of IT Performance Management maturity. HP Strategic Advisory Services are designed to help clients define KPIs based on enterprise priorities and deliver actionable roadmaps to ensure maximum value from the HP IT Performance Suite. HP Solution Consulting Services use a deep expertise in HP Software products to help clients reduce costs and ease the implementation of the HP IT Performance Suite.
Many of the solutions that make up the IT Performance Suite are available as a service, according to HP.
HP has also launched a new online community called "Discover Performance" at www.hp.com/go/discoverperformance/reg. Community members receive access to exclusive content and analysis with a focus on initiatives that improve IT performance for business advantage. Members also will be invited to exclusive webinars and local events.
Loubser says that the backdrop and momentum for this initiative began about a year ago when HP CEO Léo Apothker outlined his vision for the "Instant-On Enterprise," which describes organizations that embed technology into everything they do in order to better address the rapidly changing needs of customers and citizens. At that time, Loubser says, Apotheker also made it clear that software will play an increasingly important role in HP's future and strategy, and, if one looks back over the past 12 months, there has been a business model change, new executives brought into HP, as well as a number of key new releases and acquisitions made in support of this approach. "This has been the run-up to get us to this point," and "the realization that software is a vital part of enabling IT to ready their businesses for this next generation of what the technology innovation will bring us," he says.
The HP IT Performance Suite, CIO Edition Standard, and the HP IT Executive Scorecard are expected to GA shortly.