Tech Insights editor, Kate Whalen, recently had an opportunity to sit down and talk with Domenico Convertino, Vice President of Product and Portfolio Management for the Communications Technology Group here at HPE. They discussed the Telco portfolio, HPE’s differentiators, and the rapid evolution of the Telco industry. Domenico also shared his insights on the recent HPE Communications World event, held in Alicante, Spain, and HPE Discover 2022, which was held in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The business landscape
Domenico: I currently lead portfolio and product management in the Communications Technology Group. That is the Hewlett Packard Enterprise organization fully focused on the telco, media, and communications industries. It is an exciting place to be because we are focused on and involved in delivering continuous technology innovation to our customers, with the goal of connecting people – and businesses – to each other and to more opportunities. I take pride in the fact that these opportunities have enabled people to have better, more connected lives, thanks to the solutions we deliver.
Domenico: I will answer that question from two different points of view. The first is a pure business focus that deals with the very real technology complexity that Communication Service Providers are facing today. With inflation and the cost of investments driving business decisions, technology solutions must simplify and support their operational costs so they can derive more profit from services delivered to their customers.
The second view involves the technology itself. With innovation comes change in how technology is delivered and applied to business problems; many times, disruptions drive requirements for completely new skillsets. In today's market, it is a struggle to find qualified resources who understand rapidly evolving technologies. Customers look to us for technology and software that can automate their processes and do more – without the need for constant human interaction that requires new training and skills.
Kate: In the United States right now we are facing a shortage of skilled labor – across the board, in every industry.
Domenico: And it is not just an issue in the US. In Europe, we face the same challenge. And many recently graduated engineers find that cloud vendors provide more exciting opportunities. Telecommunication players in many countries are considered – by younger employees just entering the workforce – to be like a slow-to-move elephant. And the young people prefer to work for businesses that are much more agile and dynamic, giving them the opportunity to explore – or even develop – the newest technologies. It is a big challenge for CSPs today to hire and retain young talent.
Tailoring the portfolio
Kate: Domenico, let's switch gears and talk about the HPE portfolio and products for our telco customers. Without pre-announcing anything, what are some of the upcoming product and portfolio highlights that you're most excited about? Obviously, we just talked about staffing and hiring skilled resources as a big customer challenge today, but what are some of the other issues that the portfolio will be addressing in the coming months?
Domenico: We are going to continue to have a strong focus on the topic of automation.
We want HPE be our customer's trusted advisor and partner. One of the best ways we can help our customers is to automate their operations by leveraging software coupled with artificial intelligence and machine learning. We look to expand these types of capabilities within the portfolio.
Another area that I find very exciting is the work we are doing in private 5G. HPE is making big contributions to the digital transformation of our society, as a whole, as we make the next generation of connectivity available to enterprises. This digital transformation will enable our customers to leverage data insights across the enterprise for real time response. So these are the areas, I believe, where we will have the most impact on our customers’ ecosystems.
Kate: Our broadband or fiber, our wireless and mobile phones connect our family and friends, our work, schools, and our communities. This was especially true when we were all facing shut-downs and quarantine during Covid-19. It's an important role that HPE is playing in bringing people together.
Strengthening customer relationships at face-to-face events
Kate: Let's talk about the two large customer events that you just attended. You were at HPE Communications World – I believe that was in May – and then three weeks later, in June, you were traveling again to HPE Discover in Las Vegas. Could we talk about your experiences at each?
Domenico: These are two very different events.
Communications World was an industry-focused event that took place in late May in Alicante, Spain and because of continuing travel restrictions for Covid, the majority of the customers were EMEA-based. But it was a fantastic event because, once again, we had the opportunity – after a three year hiatus – to have face-to-face interactions with our customers.
The event was dynamic and important for attendees because we added user forums at the same venue. This gave the people who regularly use our technology the chance to really explore our portfolio of telco and communications-related solutions, and hopefully they had good news to share with their peers when they returned to their home offices. The event strengthened our position among key players in the telco community.
We were also able to discuss future plans with a number of our customers and talked about how they could have more time for innovation by leveraging our HPE solutions. We had particularly fruitful discussions with Telefonica, one of our largest telco accounts, about their plans to automate their business operations.
So, events like Communications World are very valuable for us because we get to know our customers better. Telco is a small industry and the people who are passionate about the work are a small, tight-knit community. Business relationships are very important because many transactions are based on those relationships, and on our reputation for consistently delivering value to our customers.
The very good news I have to report is that people – our customers and partners – are once again choosing to travel and participate in our events. That demonstrates strong motivation to do business with us, to work with and collaborate with HPE.
It seems to me that people are more willing to talk about their challenges and business needs in a 1-to-1 situation. It is also so valuable to us, as we look to the future development of our portfolio, to hear about the business pain points that need to be addressed in their organizations. This helps us to better understand what we need to do to create solutions that will address real customer problems.
The strong reputation of Hewlett Packard Enterprise is reinforced each and every time we have these dedicated HPE events. Our customers and partners are with us for multiple days, with many opportunities to meet with our executives, account managers, and subject matter experts. What an amazing opportunity to create engagement and form lasting, trusted relationships.
Of course, the venue is very beautiful, too, at the Venetian Resort complex in Las Vegas. It is a special honor to be invited to participate in Discover.
Kate: Were there any big surprises for you at Discover this year – over and above the number of attendees and the enthusiasm expressed by the customers you spoke with?
Domenico: The big surprise for me was the content and level of customer conversations.
Customers know about and are excited about our HPE GreenLake strategy. Many expressed a high degree of interest in what Telco solutions might be available through HPE GreenLake in the future.
Kate: So, Domenico, do you have solutions in the portfolio today that are unique and could potentially be delivered, as a service, in a consumption model?
Domenico: Yes, we do. HPE has a unique approach to automation and orchestration, which is a true differentiator for us. I could speak for two days on these topics. (laughs) Do you have time?
Operational support systems, or OSS, preceded orchestration and automation, and is an area where HPE has significant brand recognition. This dates back, historically, 25 or 30 years to Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) and HP. So, the HPE telco story is more than 30 years old; we were right there in the beginning of the rapid evolution of the industry. We have a very large installed base of over 200 customers who look to us for OSS. Our innovations in this space enable us to manage even software defined networks. But how does OSS relate to automation and orchestration? Basically, we coupled these heritage OSS technology products with orchestration, which is a more modern offering.
Today, we focus on the automation of customer business processes – and this means we are no longer selling just products; we are focused on delivering better business outcomes. And industry analysts have acknowledged our superior technology and solutions; we have received a number of awards, including recognition in the Gartner Magic Quadrant.
In conclusion
Kate: It has been great talking with you today, Domenico. Are there any final thoughts you would like to leave with our readers?
Domenico: Looking to the future, I cannot stress enough how important digital transformation will be for our customers. HPE is prepared and well-positioned to be the partner who can help Telco organizations take the next steps in their transformation journeys.
I think the key to winning for many will be in leveraging our business process automation solutions; another area where HPE can make a significant contribution to their success lies in how they leverage 5G solutions – at the core, edge and in the cloud. And we cannot forget that HPE can also provide the right IT infrastructure to support growing and varied telco workloads.
So – there you have it. Our focus in the immediate future will need to be on automation, 5G, and infrastructure optimization to enable customer success, and drive our leadership position in the industry.
Kate: Thank you again, Domenico. You have shared some unique insights into the Telco industry and how HPE technology and solutions have contributed to and will continue to make an impact on the industry.
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Hewlett Packard Enterprise
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