Under the terms of the contract, BT will provide global network management services, while HP will handle infrastructure functions including desktop, helpdesk, server, and database management. Approximately 90 Anglo-American staff will transfer to BT and HP as part of the deal.
According to Martyn Cordingley, strategic outsourcing director for EMEA at HP, the revenue generated through the deal will be split roughly 55:45 in favor of HP.
The agreement includes provision for a two-year program to standardize Anglo American’s desktop and server environments. Until now, the group has operated a localized IT service, with each individual operating company responsible for running its own IT.
Cordingley said that in winning the deal, the HP BT alliance beat off competition from T-Systems, EDS, CSC, and IBM, as well as a couple of network providers. It had won out against such heavyweight opposition, said Cordingley, because it was capable of providing a truly global service.
AA are pretty unique in their locations around the world, said Cordingley. They can be working in places that are a thousand miles from the nearest town. They needed a partner who could stretch that far.
HP and BT announced their alliance in May 2004, but it was not until the following September that they won their first joint contract, a five-year deal with Hertz Europe. Since then, the alliance has picked up deals with FirstGroup, Aker Kvaerner, and PepsiCo.
