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What it's like to be swallowed by a $120bn monster

Aruba executive describes the pros and cons of being acquired by HPE, 18 months after the deal

Being acquired by a far larger company can risk a firm getting lost in among the bureaucracy and myriad other products and departments that come with large enterprises, but it also exposes organisations to a far wider pool of potential customers.

With 2015 proving to be a record year for acquisitions, this year is keeping pace, with a huge number of smaller deals peppered by the occasional mammoth, such as Microsoft's $26.2bn cash acquisition of LinkedIn in June.

But what is it like for the smaller firms as they suddenly find themselves needing to integrate with the culture and processes of a far larger team? Eighteen months ago, networking firm Aruba was acquired by HPE, at the time a $120bn firm.

Chris Kozup, VP of marketing at HPE Aruba, described the pros and cons of the deal, now that the dust has well and truly settled.

"Things were different at HP at the time of the acquisition," began Kozup. "At the time it as a $120bn company. Now it's been split, with the Professional Services group on one hand, and with the HPE software portfoilio going to Micro Focus. So Aruba came in just as other parts were downsized or spun out."

He continued: "It's all under [HPE CEO] Meg Whitman's strategy to define a clear focus for HPE, to be the leader in secure hybrid IT infrastructure, and to own the network edge. That's where the Aruba portfolio is very strategic for HPE. We provide the edge connectivity, including security and Internet of Things technologies. It's a huge growth opportunity."

He explained that one of the big benefits has been the scale brought to Aruba by its integration into HPE.

"The size of the deals that we've seen has been phenomenal, and the interest for enterprises is that they're now able to come to HPE and get a complete end-to-end solution. It's been eye opening for the Aruba team; seeing the breadth and scale of penetration into larger accounts."

But Kozup admitted that it hasn't all been plain sailing, with initial fears that Aruba would get lost in the midst of the larger company, especially as HPE was undergoing its own radical transformation.

"Initially we saw some of the downsides of being acquired by a large company. It's easy to get lost in the shuffle. But now with the focus that Meg has on secure, hybrid IT, we are a very strategic part of HPE's portfolio, so we've lost those initial worries as we've followed through Meg's vision. We're bullish about the opportunity," Kozup concluded.

What it's like to be swallowed by a $120bn monster

Aruba executive describes the pros and cons of being acquired by HPE, 18 months after the deal

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