HP-Compaq merger - effects in Romania

Several months ago, the world was surprised to hear that Hewlett-Packard would take over Compaq under a “stock-for-stock” transaction. What is going to happen with the Romanian subsidiaries of the two companies?

“For the time being, we do not know who will head the operations in Romania or the changes in HP-Compaq service and product offer,” Georg Mosgan, computing systems sales manager with HP ECE, said on HP Day.

It is known however that the merger will be concluded early next year, that Carly Fiorina will top the company and Michael Capellas will be next in hierarchy and that the headquarters will be located in Palo Alto, where HP headquarters is now, Mosgan said.

As the day exclusively dedicated to HP final customers was opened, Radu Enache, general manager of the company’s local subsidiary, reminded participants that HP Romania registered 45 million dollars in turnover (in end-user prices) during 2001 fiscal year, up 12% against the previous year.

“We feel the support and the interest of the government in our activity and I hope we will achieve more during the next fiscal year. HP will join the large projects of IT infrastructure development,” Radu Enache said.

“We have a partnership with the large IT&C companies. We want to support them in investing here as much as possible provided they become involved in the development and modernisation of the Romanian society,” IT&C minister Dan Nica said.

Hewlett-Packard this year won the tender for the eProcurement pilot project, Dan Nica said. He added that the actual results of all the companies having won the tenders for the pilot projects initiated by the Ministry would be presented this month.

Other HP officials from Austria, Switzerland and Germany as well as representatives of Microsoft, Oracle, Mobifon, MobilRom, SAP and SNCFR attended the HP Day.

“There is a global strategic partnership between Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard. The real challenge in Romania is finding opportunities. The new market challenges are related to the large projects, which have been very rare in Romania so far and most of them ended in failure. Now we have resources allowing us to approach the large projects. Our plans for the near future include the identification of a project we could achieve together with HP,” said Silviu Hotaran, general manager of Microsoft Romania.