Apple is to set up an alliance with Hewlett Packard Enterprise to reach more suits in the corporate world, The Register can reveal.

Similar arrangements are already up and running between Apple and IBM, Cisco, SAP, GE and Deloitte. Apple said in 2015 its enterprise business turned over $25bn in sales. HPE is to be added to the list, a recruitment ad has indicated.

The ad on LinkedIn is for an enterprise strategic partner manager for HPE, Dimension Data and GE. The role is based in London.

“At the end of the day, we are here to grow Apple’s enterprise business through our Strategic Partner’s team. We’ve partnered with experts in enterprises around the world, to change the way people work.”

The position includes working with the global partner, regional sales and channel marketing and systems engineering teams, both inside and out of Apple.

Business development, creating enterprise sales and training programmes are also listed as tasks for the successful candidate. These plans are then “embedded” in Apple’s major account teams, industry sector teams and among resellers that sell the kit, the ad continued.

The ideal applicant will have a BA degree, a track record as a Strategic Partner Manager, be an “expert at presenting”, and bring “integrity, honesty and accountability in all that you do, every day. You are a trusted advisor who does what you say you’ll do - and always do what is best for Apple.”

The last is of note, given the long-running dispute between MacBook owners and Apple over the temperamental butterfly mechanism used in it keyboards that can fail when dust blocks the keycap from pressing the switch or disable the return mechanism, as pointed out recently. Apple has relented and will provide replacements for free for those that qualify.

Back to the ad, Apple then reminded us of the fairy dust and ground unicorn horns that are used to produce its shiny stuff. The ad stated:

The people here at Apple don’t just create products – they create the kind of wonder that’s revolutionised entire industries. It’s the diversity of those people and their ideas that runs through everything we do, from amazing technology to industry-leading environmental efforts. Join Apple, and help is leave the world better than we found it.

Indeedy.

Apple’s B2B division in the UK and Ireland is run by enterprise director Matt Key. The new hire will report to him. He has been in situ for less than a year.

The job ad for the enterprise strategic partner manager for HPE, Dimension Data and GE was listed in late May and according to LinkedIn – at last count – 21 people had viewed it.

It is not clear which HPE products Apple wants to use but will likely include the Aruba edge kit, an area that HPE is set to invest in further with $4bn of R&D spend lined up for the next four years.

The HPE alliance manager isn’t the only enterprise role up for grabs at Apple UK. Others include an SMB leader for EMEIA, strategic partner manager for IBM, and Apple Premium Reseller business manager.

However, the list doesn’t end there: others range from business development manager for finance and leasing, strategic partner technical consultant EMEIA, enterprise pre-saes engineer, enterprise financing sales executive, enterprise account exec and a deal desk manager to shape pricing and strategy.

Apple sources – yes, we have a few – told us the firm is in phase one of its Enterprise Accelerator Programme. Apple’s enterprise branch was a $25bn global operation at the end of 2015.

The focus of phase one will be the UK, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland. The push, which will widen to the Nordics and central and Eastern Europe from 2018, has “executive sponsorship” from Apple CEO Tim Cook, we are assured.

Apple did not respond to call for comment and HPE declined to comment. ®