![]() ![]() Upon entering office in 1969, President Richard M. Bill and Dave then immediately began working on a design Hewlett had outlined in his master’s thesis, creating an audio oscillator, which they dubbed the “HP200A.” Designed to test sound equipment and tune harmonicas, Walt Disney bought eight of the devices while at work on Fantasia, the iconic 1940 classic film that was the first to use a stereophonic sound system. However, for our digital heroes, initial failure means nothing. Although it was ingenious, the product really had no market, and ended up being a dud. The duo’s first venture was an automatic foul-line indicator for bowling alleys. ![]() Their first product was an audio frequency oscillator sold to Walt Disney Studios for use on the soundtrack of Fantasia. The name Hewlett-Packard was determined by the flip of a coin HP, or PH. In his book, The HP Way, Packard mentions how the duo decided the order of the acronym that would become the name of the iconic company. As young hustlers, Bill and Dave began discussing forming a company in August 1937, and officially founded the Hewlett-Packard Company as a partnership on January 1, 1939. The two first met while attending undergraduate classes at Stanford University. It is very difficult to argue against HP’s success. It also became a major producer of calculators, computers, and laser and inkjet printers. The company grew into the world’s largest producer of electronic testing and measurement devices. Only a dream to many in the labor force, today, we can all stand to benefit from their employee-centric business model. True visionaries, Bill and Dave understood that to be successful, one must focus on the health, humanity, and empowerment of their employees. But what really sets HP apart isn’t technology, but the visionary management style created by these founders. From its early days in 1939 right up to the present, HP’s growth has been fueled by one technological breakthrough after another. Over the years, the name Hewlett-Packard (HP) has become synonymous with high-tech innovation. Bill and Dave’s success transformed the landscape and the culture of the area. ![]() In the 1930s the valley was largely agricultural, with orchards and farms dotting the hills. Bill Hewlett and David Packard first solidified their partnership in a small garage in Palo Alto, the city that is now historically landmarked as the “Birthplace of Silicon Valley.” You know the place now home to major tech companies like Facebook, Apple Inc., Twitter, Netflix, the list goes on… Intertwined with the history of Silicon Valley, California, Hewlett-Packard Enterprise (now differentiated from HP Inc., which became a separate entity in 2016) transformed the landscape and the culture of the area. ![]()
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