Meanwhile, HP believes that over the next five to 10 years, the services industry will be defined by automation, which helps from both a cost and quality perspective, executives said.
"The real value to the client comes through automation," said Ann Livermore, executive vice president of HP's Enterprise Business division.
The expected savings will help HP expand its push into areas like private cloud infrastructure services and desktop-as-a-service, according to a statement.
Livermore contended that the planned job cuts aren't as severe as they may look at first glance.
She noted that they will occur over multiple years, and that average attrition rates for services businesses is "usually in the high single digits."
HP also plans to hire 6,000 workers as part of the new services initiative, she added.
HP's move is a natural one given the market forces in play, according to one industry observer.