HP, Compaq To Draw On Lessons Learned From Digital Deal

The merger, should it be approved by shareholders, will most notably draw upon lessons learned from Compaq's less-than-successful integration of Digital Equipment four years ago, said Jeff Clarke, Compaq CFO and the head of Compaq's integration team.

Clarke, who came to Compaq from Digital, said Compaq was not clear on issues relating to product road maps, organizational and go-to-market structures, and financial plans stemming from the acquisition.

HP, with its enterprise focus, should do a better job of integrating Compaq than Compaq did with Digital, said Don Richie, president of Sequel Data, an Austin, Texas-based Compaq solution provider that is already in the process of gaining HP certification.

Richie, who also had been a Digital solution provider, said he was used to making the necessary investments to work in the enterprise space but suffered "shell shock" when he started to deal with Compaq and its PC mentality.

"I hope the HP people learned the lesson," Richie said. "Otherwise, they will end up with a company used to selling PCs at very little margins."

Clarke, along with Webb McKinney, president of HP's Business Customer Organization and head of HP's integration team, reiterated in a conference call that the combined company will have integration plans and product road maps ready to go if the merger is approved, and will communicate those plans shortly after the approval.