HP channel demands better service

Service issues related to HP are once again coming up with many channel
partners voicing their displeasure with the system HP has in place, particularly
the attitude of the designated service providers. The issue gained such serious
proportions that time and again in association meetings and the IT Panchayats
conducted regularly by The DQ Week, partners would complain about the vendors'
new service partners. But partners claim that, this is as far that their
complaints go and no further concrete steps are taken to resolve the issue.

Speaking about the situation in Delhi, Sunil Gupta of Nehru Place-based Alsun
Systems said, “To have a simple toner replaced we are asked to send lots of
supporting documents and a letter from the customer. The procedure is very
tedious. We have to send our office boy with the papers to stand in queue and if
there is a single mistake on the papers the service guys do not entertain
changes on a call. So our office boy has to come back to office, get the change
made and then rush back and stand in queue. There should be a facility whereby
we can send the details via fax or e-mail. This system has made it next to
impossible to get a replacement.”

Citing an example, Gupta shared that one of their customers had bought a
printer which was dead on arrival (DoA), its toner was faulty. Gupta gave the
customer a replacement and took the DoA piece. But when he went to the service
center they refused to entertain him till he got a letter from the customer. “I
am the customer in this case so a replacement should be made on my request.”

Gupta added that the staff at RT Outsourcing was not at all cooperative and
gave the feeling that they want to reject more and more cases. “If RT is not
cooperating with us who do we escalate the matter to? It becomes an ego issues
if we argue with them. Already the margins in this segment are so low. How do we
survive with such issue?” questioned a dejected Gupta.

Agreeing that the replacement procedure was a nightmare for resellers of HP,
was N Ramesh of Bengaluru-based Pentagon Info System. About 25-30 percent of
Pentagon's business comes from HP. Sometime back the partner had faced issues
with regard to replacement of an HP server during a project for Delhi Airport.
Though the issue was finally sorted out Ramesh felt there was a lot of
unnecessary hassle involved. He stated, “HP is good till it works. Getting hold
of someone to service and certify a DoA is a difficult task. Unless you know
people who can pull their weight it is difficult for a reseller. Though there is
a procedure for addressing DoA cases, called on-site warranty, you really have
to run around in circles.”

Ramesh pointed out that even though there were four-five service providers of
HP in Bengaluru it was difficult to get any of them to work. “Basically the
attitude of the service providers is wrong. I believe that the problem lies in
the fact that HP has outsourced their post-sales service. It should ideally be
owned by the principal who would for sure address these issues in a more
effective manner,” opined Ramesh.

In Jammu partners are experiencing a similar situation. “We have con­veyed
this problem to the local HP representatives but so far we have only got
reassurances and no action has been taken. In East, RT Outsourcing and Redington
are the service providers. We are facing issues especially with RT Outsourcing
as they keep stalling replacements,” expressed Sanjay Langer of Jammu-based AGM
Sales Corp. Langer shared that he is still awaiting replacement of a faulty
notebook purchased two years back.

Abhishek Poddar of Bhubaneswar-based SA Infosys felt that these negative
sentiments towards HP were being felt by partners at large across East.
Currently 20 percent of Poddar's business comes from HP but after burning his
fingers he has decided to reduce HP business. “We do everything for the vendor
and get nothing in return. Working on margins as low as 0.5 percent we cannot
afford to do business this way. I have brought our issues to the notice of the
top management in HP but there has been no response to my mail,” lamented Poddar.
He added that apart from service issues, HP was also holding back-end payments
that were over a year old. “HP will only lose marketshare if it continues this
way,” said Poddar.

Throwing light on the scene in Kolkata, Vinay Dugar of Supreme Technologies
said, “The service has gone pathetic. They are trying to make the service
chargeable to customers.”

In Jalandhar the situation seems to be no better. Just recently RT
Outsourcing was appointed by HP to provide sales and support in the region, in
place of Computer Touch. “We are getting numerous customers who are complaining
about the service time. The basic time to log a call and get any product
repaired is about 15-20 days which is too long. I don't understand the reason
for this policy change,” said Rajiv Khanna of Computer Touch. He added that RT
does not provide them with the status of the product and customers were really
suffering. “I was a private franchisee and would always deliver because I would
worry that if I didn't there would be a penalty from HP. But RT is enjoying a
monopoly in Punjab. They know customers have no choice but to depend on them,”
pointed out Khanna.

Naresh Lalwani of Cybernet IT, Pune chipped in saying that there was an issue
with customers having to make several trips to the service center, and spare
parts were also a problem at the center. According to Ashwani Kumar of Shimla-based
Ace Infotech Systems the engineers of the designated service provider in the
region were not competent to deal with the cases. “We have escalated the matter
to HP, but to no avail. The services provided are just not up to the mark,” said
Kumar.

When contacted, Ashu Batta, Director of Chandigarh-based H&H Technologies,
HP's service provider in Chandigarh and Himachal Pradesh lamented, “We provide
post warranty on HP hardware. It is a challenge, not only in HP, but across the
region. Spare parts are not readily available. But there are also payment issues
from partners. We have advised partners numerous times to take annual
maintenance contracts from their customers so that they can be clear on payment
terms, but they are not heeding this advise.”

Batta mentioned that in any case they were facing problems in the Himachal
region. Recently two laptops that had come for servicing were stolen from their
office. “We ended up having to pay for these stolen laptops. Now we are planning
on installing CCTV cameras as the number of thefts in the region are going up,”
shared Batta.

But according to Vinod Mulchandani of Mumbai-based Aar Vee Computers, the
procedure to have products replaced is very simple and all the hue and cry about
service issues was much ado about nothing. “We are a distributor of HP. We have
told our resellers that if they find any faulty products they can get it
replaced by us as we are empowered to replace products. We in turn will take it
up with Ingram Micro and have it replaced,” noted Mulchandani. He stressed that
no brand exists with zero service problems and that it was only because HP sold
in such high volumes that the number of cases was more than other vendors.

“These issues of DoA and services had come up in our association (TAIT) meet
as well with many members saying they were facing issues. I had then taken the
initiative and told all the members to send their complaints and mark a copy to
me and I will ensure the work gets done. However, at that point only two mails
came,” he added.

Despite repeated attempts by The DQ Week at getting a statement from RT
Outsourcing about the partner complaints, the service provider chose not to
respond on the issue.

When approached, Sameer Mathur, Head-Solution Partners Organization HP India
said, “We have been informed of the situation and are committed to resolve this
on priority. As an industry leader HP adheres to the most stringent levels of
quality checks for customer service. Customers are our top priority and we keep
customer satisfaction at the core of all business transactions.”

“Having the largest channel partner network across the country, HP services
its customers through a group of over 3,500 channel partners comprising premium
business partners, business partners and registered resellers which are handled
most effectively through well defined processes and policies,” added Mathur.