‘We are working closely with our distribution partners to try to recruit new partners especially in the security area and also around data center networking,’ says HPE Aruba Worldwide Channel Chief Lene Skov.

With Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s blockbuster $14 billion acquisition of Juniper Networks on track to close later this year or early in 2025, the HPE Aruba networking business is recruiting data center and security partners.

“We are working closely with our distribution partners to try to recruit new partners especially in the security area and also around data center networking,” said HPE Aruba Worldwide Channel Chief Lene Skov in an interview with CRN.

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The data center and security focus comes with Juniper poised to bring its robust position in the data center and security markets to HPE.

Skov, who is scheduled to address HPE Aurba partners at the first ever Aruba Atmosphere conference hosted at HPE Discover this week in Las Vegas, said she will emphasize the new total addressable market (TAM) opportunities available to partners.

“We want partners to understand there are growth possibilities expanding into the data center,” she said. “It is the growth possibilities around SD-WAN with or without security. That includes the SASE (Secure Access Service Edge) solution SSE (Security Service Edge). This is about making sure partners join us on that transformation journey focusing on capturing the new TAM.”

The data center and security networking drive comes with a “softness” in the classic wireless networking access points and switches, said Skov. “There is definitely opportunity in the new areas we have invested in,” she said. “It is about having that conversation with the partners about their transformation and expansion into new markets.”

Skov said there is a “huge” amount of enthusiasm among HPE Aruba and Juniper partners for the potential of the combination.

“I see a lot of our partners being very keen in understanding what will happen and absolutely also the other way around,” she said. “I also see partners already now planning for what they will do when they get access to one portfolio to the other portfolio.”

Skov said at this point she cannot advise partners on what will happen post-acquisition with the Aruba-Juniper integration. “There is a lot of excitement,” she said. “It is excitement about the strength of the new portfolio.”

Skov said she will also address at her Atmosphere keynote the ”large” AI opportunity for partners. “The AI opportunity is out there, it’s big, it’s a large opportunity, but there is still time,” she said.

Michael Vencel, president of Comport, one of HPE’s top enterprise partners, Ramsey, New Jersey, said Comport delivered 109 percent growth in 2023 on the Aruba product portfolio.

“Aruba is one of the fastest growing segments for us,” he said. “We are seeing customers that are deploying Aruba and moving from wireless to wired switching. That has really helped us grow the business.”

HPE Aruba’s broad and deep networking product portfolio along with a single management platform across the campus and data center environments is resonating with customers, said Vencel.

“Many customers are working on multiple legacy networking platforms and tools,” he said. “We see that in a lot of different industries. There is absolutely a desire among customers to streamline the number of OEMs they do business with and simplify.”

As for the security market opportunity, Vencel said that it remains “absolutely the number one topic” for customers. That has led to triple-digit sales growth in Comport’s ComportSecure service provider offering, said Vencel.

“We see very few of our competitors that have that capability,: he said. “What we are trying to achieve with ComportSecure is give our customers choices. It is a fully managed solution delivered to them in a flexible consumption model.”