HP taps top print executive to lead cross-company AI strategy

Tuan Tran is stepping down from his role as president of HP’s printing and imaging business to lead the PC and print giant’s cross-company AI strategy as the leader of a new organisation

HP has tapped the leader of its printing and imaging business to lead a new technology and innovation group that will put him in charge of its cross-company AI strategy.

The PC and print giant announced on Thursday that Tuan Tran, who has been with HP for more than 30 years, will step down from his role as president of imaging, printing and solutions next month to become president of technology and innovation.

Anneliese Olson, another 30-year HP veteran, will take over as the head of the company’s imaging, printing and solutions business after serving as senior vice president and MD of North America for a little more than a year.

As the head of the new technology and innovation organisation, Tran will be responsible for “setting HP’s advanced technology strategy, including how HP will deliver HP throughout our portfolio,” according to the company.

The company announced the leadership changes a month after it held the HP Imagine 2024 event at its California headquarters, where it announced several AI-enhanced products and solutions, including PCs and video conferencing gear, that it said would improve productivity and collaboration across the spectrum of hybrid work configurations.

HP CEO and president Enrique Lores said the leadership appointments and the creation of the new organisation are part of a push to create “internal structures and processes that enable our teams to move faster and with greater agility.”

“These strategic moves will enable us to further advance our plans to become a leader in the future of work, setting us up for continued long-term success,” he said in a statement.

Tran, who has led HP’s printing and imaging business for nearly six years, said he’s “inspired by HP’s bold ambition to lead the future of work” and vowed that his new group “will be at the forefront of this transformative era.”

“Over my 30 years with the company, I’ve witnessed the incredible impact of our innovation - solving customer challenges, reshaping the technology landscape, and setting new standards in our industry.

“I’m eager to build on this legacy together with a powerhouse team of technology, software, and AI leaders from across HP,” he wrote on LinkedIn.

Olson, who has previously served in several print leadership and management roles, said she’s taking over HP’s printing, imaging and solutions business at a “pivotal moment of transformation and growth for print.”

“We’re focused on enhancing our agility, collaboration, and innovation as we respond to the evolving needs of our customers and deliver on HP’s ambition to lead the future of work,” she wrote in a LinkedIn post.

HP’s leadership moves were hailed by leaders of two major North American solution providers that partner closely with the PC and print giant.

Harry Zarek, president of Ontario-based Compugen, told CRN that HP’s move to create a new organisation that will lead its AI strategy is important because many organisations are still trying to figure out how to benefit from AI and need a vendor like HP to show the way.

“We have to aggressively find ways where we are using AI to help move our businesses forward. And I'm guessing that's what they're doing. They're saying, ‘We have a big, complex business.’

“The quickest thing for us to demonstrate value is to be that example and take all of our learnings and begin to share that across our customers,’” said Zarek.

Zarek called Tran a “strong technologist,” which he considers a critical characteristic for the new role because of the need to “knit together the various pieces” in a “complex ecosystem” of technologies and vendors.

As for Olson becoming the head of HP’s printing and imaging business, Zarek said the company veteran is a “powerhouse” and “very well organised.”

“She’s going to bring a very strong business focus, a partner-aligned focus on print, which is really still the key profitability engine for HP,” he said.

Bob Venero, CEO of Florida-based Future Tech Enterprise, said the creation of the new technology and innovation group is a “smart play” given that “AI is going to be a big piece of what [customers] are going to need to adapt to and adopt.”

“I don’t necessarily believe that the impact from a client perspective is today, but I think it's eight to 12 months down the line, once it becomes more mature and people start to trust it,” said Venero.

This article first appeared in the US edition of CRN.