Whitman: Why I Split HP

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The first thing HP CEO Meg Whitman did after revealing the split of HP’s business one week ago was get on the phone with partners.

Whitman said she ’just started calling partners, and in the first 48 hours, called 1,600 partners.’ She called the reaction ’really quite positive, overall.’

Whitman said markets are moving at ’lightning speed,’ and that the split will allow HP to move in more nimble, strategic manners. ’I hope we will accomplish what we have in the last three years in the next year and a half,’ Whitman said.

The HP CEO said the company’s support team will be ’on deck, 24/7’ to aid during any hiccups and bumps along the road to separating the company.

Whitman said the reasons for the split were strategic, operational and financial. ’I’ve never seen an industry move this fast,’ she said, highlighting that HP will be able to make acquisitions more quickly as two separate entities. ’We need to be able to move faster.’

’Finally, why now?’ Whitman said, ’We are strong enough now to do this. And frankly, [we] couldn’t have done this a few years ago.’

PUBLISHED OCT. 16, 2014