HP has launched an array of new products aimed at the small and medium business marke, claiming the offerings would help firms get to grips with an increasingly mobile workforce.
The tech giant's Communications & Collaboration (UC&C) Solutions are an industry first as they integrate Microsoft Lync with voice over IP (VoIP) phones, networking, servers and storage on one platform, UK and Ireland channel manager for HP's Enterprise Server, Storage and Networking (ESSN) arm, Kevin Matthews, claimed in an interview with IT Pro.
He said that the new platform would help small businesses get enterprise-class features and capabilities without the higher overheads and pointed to Gartner research that suggests by 2016, at least 50 per cent of business email users will rely primarily on a tablet or mobile client instead of a traditional desktop. As a result, he claimed there was "an increasing need for IT infrastructure solutions geared toward mobile clients."
HP also unveiled its Client Virtualisation SMB virtual desktop. This includes reference architecture for Citrix, Microsoft or VMware and protects company data by storing user profiles and information on a centralised server. This enables SMBs to provide secure access to/from applications from thin clients, laptops, tablets and smartphones even if the device is lost or stolen.
Matthews also touted HP's Client Virtualisation, Analysis and Modelling offering. This is a pre-packaged service that analyses the existing IT environment to simplify and speed deployment of virtualisation for medium-sized organisations to help them better embrace mobile technology.
HP is also launching a new Business Protection Solution using a pre-configured reference architecture directed at helping SMBs construct risk mitigation projects for a growing mobile workforce.
These new offerings would help small business customers keep an "eye on costs, while simplifying infrastructure and embracing mobility," Matthews said.
