HP Schedules Two Reinvent Partner Conferences, With In-Person Coming In March

The digital Reinvent 2021 event in September will feature speakers including Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella—while an in-person conference has been scheduled for March in Nashville.

HP Inc. has scheduled the next two editions of its Reinvent partner conference, with an online event set for September and the return of an in-person HP Reinvent conference planned for March.

The next digital Reinvent will take place Sept. 22 and will include keynotes from top HP executives including CEO Enrique Lores and Chief Commercial Officer Christoph Schell, as well as a discussion between Lores and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella.

[Related: HP CEO: Commercial PCs Rebounding With ‘Very Strong Demand’]

For HP Reinvent 2022, the conference will return in-person on March 22 in Nashville. The event will have a hybrid format with an online component offered as well, HP said.

Juan Fernandez, vice president of managed IT services at ImageNet Consulting, a major HP partner based in Oklahoma City, said he plans to attend both events and looks forward to hearing more on HP’s strategy in security and virtual computing software.

In July, HP unveiled a deal to acquire high-performance remote computing software firm Teradici. “I’m intrigued to hear what they’re planning to do [with the Teradici acquisition],” Fernandez said.

As for cybersecurity, the launch of HP Wolf Security in May was a timely move given the increased security needs for enabling hybrid and remote workforces, he said. “I’m looking forward to hearing what they’re doing next in security and any new security features for the remote worker,” Fernandez said.

The scheduled conversation between Lores and Nadella should also be interesting, with Windows 365 having just launched, Windows 11 on the way and the Teradici acquisition deal all creating new partner opportunities, he said.

“I can just see that there’s this nexus of next-generation capabilities on the horizon that are going to really enable us as service and solution providers to offer new solutions to our customers,” Fernandez said.

Along with Lores and Schell, other keynotes at the digital event in September will include Alex Cho, president of the personal systems business at HP, and Tuan Tran, president of the company’s imaging, printing and solutions business. Key themes of the event will be innovation and the future of work, HP said.

Following the keynotes, HP executives will take part in a live Q&A, which will take place twice that day in order to accommodate different time zones, the company said.

In addition, Schell will host a fireside chat during the event with Adam Grant, an organizational psychologist and author of books including “Think Again.”

The March event, meanwhile, will be the first in-person HP Reinvent partner conference in three years—with the last live event having taken place in March 2019 in Houston. The company’s 2020 partner conference had originally been scheduled in-person for March 2020, but was postponed and shifted into a digital format amid the coronavirus outbreak.

While HP is doing the right thing for health and safety by hosting the September event online, Fernandez said, “I am looking forward to the in-person event in March. I love connecting with people in real time and building those relationships.”