dell inc case study

How Dell’s strategy transformed it from a doomed player to leading the data revolution

Table of contents, here’s what you’ll learn from dell's strategy study:.

• How to sustain your company’s growth beyond its initial success.
• How a sober bet for the future fuels your conviction to win.
• How to think long-term and not sacrifice your future for short-term benefits.

Dell Technologies is a multinational technology company that designs, develops, and sells a wide range of products and services, including personal computers (PCs), servers, data storage devices, network switches, software, and cloud solutions.

The general public owns 58% of Dell Technologies, while private equity firms and institutions own the rest. Michael Dell is the founder, chairman, and current CEO.

Dell's market share and key statistics:

• Brand value of $26,5 billion
• Net Worth of $28.7 billion as of Jan 13, 2023
• Annual revenue of $105.3 billion for 2022
• Total number of employees: 133.000
• Total assets worldwide: $93 billion in 2022

{{cta('e9abffcd-5522-40c9-be83-0e844633a49a')}}

Humble beginnings: How did Dell start?

The story of every company starts with the story of its founder.

Usually, a great company has a great founder story behind it. And Dell Technologies certainly has one. Michael Dell’s story goes hand in hand with the story of the company he founded. By understanding the story of Michael, we can understand the company’s initial advantages and opportunities it pursued.

And like every great tech company story, Dell’s story starts in a college dorm room.

From stamps to startups: Michael Dell's early years and the birth of Dell

Michael Dell founded the company in college, but his entrepreneurial journey started much earlier.

He had an early interest in technology and business, and by the age of 12, he was already buying and selling stamps and coins to make extra money. As a teenager, he worked summer jobs where he learned by trial and error how demand and supply worked, how to be efficient, how to segment the market, and determine the most profitable persona to sell.

By the time he graduated from high school, he had saved up enough money to buy his own BMW and his first personal computer, an Apple and later an IBM.

But he was curious about the inner workings of these machines and, to his parents' horror, he took them apart, learning about the different components and how they worked together. He soon made a crucial discovery. IBM DIDN’T manufacture its own parts. Instead, it sourced them from other companies. This sparked an idea in Michael's mind - he could build his own PCs using the same components but at a lower cost and higher quality.

That idea didn’t come out of the blue.

Michael Dell was constantly educating himself on computers, how to build them, how they worked, and how to code. He followed all computer magazines at the time and attended every event in his neighborhood to network and learn the latest about the industry. In high school, he was already an expert, modifying his own PC and, once the word spread, customizing the PCs of professionals.

His first customers were friends and acquaintances who were impressed by his knowledge and expertise. Michael quickly realized that there was a demand for customized computers that were not available in the market. He began assembling machines with increased storage capacity and memory at a fraction of the cost of buying from big brands like IBM.

Doctors and lawyers were among his early customers, and word-of-mouth about Michael's high-quality and affordable PCs spread quickly.

He eliminated the middleman by buying components directly and assembling the machines himself, which allowed him to offer lower prices and better performance. By the end of his first year in college, Michael had a vendor's license, he was winning bids against established companies in the industry, and he incorporated his first company, “ Dell Computer Corporation .”

Dell’s direct-to-consumer strategy & how its corporate culture was formed

The company was growing frightfully fast, forcing the team to constantly change and evolve its processes.

Before the company had its second birthday, they had moved to bigger offices three times to accommodate its increased inventory, growing telephone needs, and physical or electronic systems. However, the company was still a high-risk venture and had a small capacity for expensive mistakes.

In those early days, the challenges Dell faced formed its processes and the core traits of its culture that are present to this day:

• Practicality and reduced bureaucracy. They did some things unconventionally, like having salespeople set up their own computers. That way, they gained first-hand knowledge of the technology and the customer’s pain problems (customers and salespeople were uneducated on the technology, so they shared the same problems).
• A “can-do” and “I’ll-pitch-in” attitude. Employees took substantial liberties with their “responsibilities.” Engineers would help with the overloaded manufacturing line, everyone would answer phone calls, salespeople would fulfill orders while taking new ones, etc.
• A sense of making a difference. Money was tight, so Dell employees wouldn’t mind solving secondary “needs” with cheap solutions like using cardboard boxes to throw their trash because they didn’t have trash cans.
• Direct relationships with the customers. Maybe one of the most important aspects of Dell’s culture and strategy. The company was talking at the same time with prospects and current customers on the phone. That way, it got first-hand feedback on what the market was currently asking for and was enjoying or not enjoying. That gave birth to Dell’s  “Direct Model.”

The company went to great lengths to build and maintain the direct model because it was one of its most important sources of competitive advantage. Where other companies had to guess what to build next, Dell was already on it because their customers were telling them.

There were clear advantages to the Direct model:

• Closed feedback loop. Dell was talking directly to prospects – no dealer costs – and had no need for inventory. Lower costs = lower prices = more customers. And with every new customer, Dell had another finger on the pulse of the market.
• A single salesforce. Focused solely on the end customer. There was no need to have salespeople to sell to dealers and then additional salespeople to sell to the customer.
• Specialization in sales. Dell sold to large corporations, and smaller customers, like SMBs, educational institutions, and individual consumers. But selling to these two different buyers, large corporations and SMBs, was incomparable. So, the company had different salespeople for different customer segments and thus offering the best customer support and experience.

But the model wasn’t without its disadvantages:

• The model wasn’t irreplicable. Dell was making IBM-compatible PCs and selling them directly to customers. This model wasn’t hard to replicate, and the market’s conditions favored the birth of competitors with the same model.
• Lack of credibility. It’s hard to make a $5,000 sale when the customer has never heard of you and you lack a physical store.
• Incompatibility. Dell’s PC had to be compatible with IBM’s. But they had multiple suppliers for their components and sometimes those components were incompatible. Designing high-quality machines that were outperforming and compatible with IBM’s was a challenge.

But these disadvantages didn’t stop the team. The company doubled down on customer support and service and developed a strong reputation around them. It advertised a 30-day money-back guarantee and educated its suppliers to make components based on Dell designs. They even started their first R&D attempts that gave them a  12-MHz  that was faster than IBM’s latest model, cheaper, and got them on the cover of the most prestigious magazine in the industry, the  PC Week .

Dell’s strategy was so effective that phone calls started coming in, urging them to accept capital and go public.

Only three years after the company’s birth in a college dorm room, Dell went public, raising $30 million with a market valuation of $85 million.

Key Takeaway #1: Build a coherent strategy beyond your initial differentiator to sustain growth

Most companies enjoy initial success due to an untapped opportunity in the market, from addressing a niche market to exploiting the weaknesses of major players.

But no company succeeds at growing beyond the limits of the initial opportunity if it doesn’t evolve and expand its competitive advantage. So when evaluating your next move, ask yourself:

• What is our current competitive advantage?
• How easily can our competition replicate it?
• How can we make it harder (if we can)?
• How can we expand our capabilities to strengthen our current competitive advantage?
• How can we develop new competitive advantages?
• What are the market trends and how can we adapt/take advantage of them before others?

The occasional bold move doesn’t hurt, either.

Recommended reading:   6 Competitive Analysis Frameworks: How to Leave Your Competition In the Dust

How Dell’s privatization led to a strategic triumph

In the first decade of the new millennium, the PC business was growing rapidly.

Computing power followed  Moore’s Law  and innovation cycles in hardware were less than 12 months long. At the same time, a new generation of software was spreading and the World Wide Web was expanding globally. Being a part of a growing industry, like the PC business back then, was lucrative. So naturally, many companies did well.

Dell was one of them. In 2000, the company became the world’s largest seller of PCs, having enjoyed a decade of skyrocketing sales.

However, in 2011, things changed. The PC global sales reached their peak and the next year was the first of an 8-year streak of decline that lasted until the pandemic hit.

That decline impacted Dell severely.

Navigating decline: Dell's strategy for a shrinking market

Dell was in deep trouble at the start of the previous decade:

• It had lost its position as a top PC seller in the US to its main competitor, HP.
• It came third in the global PC market share, behind HP and ACER.

Many believed that it was a dying company that would perish like Kodak or Motorola.

The PC market was shrinking and some experts were saying it was the beginning of its end. Dell was expected to be among the first casualties. The truth was that the PC industry wasn’t dying, but it was evolving – it was losing some of its traits and gaining new ones. The difference is subtle but also key. In a competitive arena, every alert player is aware of the market changes: declining sales, emerging trends, and other important facts. But how each player interprets them determines whether they’ll  formulate a winning strategy  or not.

The more substantial the changes, the more important the interpretation.

In 2012, the fact was that the PC business was declining. Every major player could see it with a single glance at their balance sheet. In Dell's case, the decline was even direr since its PC sales were down by double digits. The company desperately needed to turn things around. And only a bold strategic move could do that.

The company tried to bounce back up with some obvious but desperate moves:

• The introduction of the Streak “phablet.” An embarrassing attempt at creating a new product category between tablets and smartphones. Its design was bulky and its Android software unsuitable for the device, while its purpose was unclear to the consumer.
• Making Windows 8 its default operating system. Dell and Microsoft have been longtime partners, to the benefit of both companies. Unfortunately, their growing interdependence meant that when one failed, it dragged the other one down. Windows 8 failure dragged down Dell and further decreased its PC market share.
• Attempts to enter the tablet and smartphone markets: the “Venue” debacle. Dell was always viewed as a PC company, not a technology company, making it harder to expand to new categories. Its first smartphone, the  Venue , ran on Windows Mobile and it never got any traction. As a result, the company abandoned the categories and, even today, it has less than negligible presence in these markets.

But where people saw a vulnerable company, Michael Dell saw an opportunity.

He had an assumption, a vision attached to it, and a plan to make it a reality. But he had no way to execute it with the company’s organizational structure at the time.

The obstacles to implementing Dell's competitive strategy

Dell’s strategy was to go on the offensive. He wanted the company to be highly aggressive by:

• Becoming competitive in the PC business again.
• Expanding its services and software solutions.
• Increasing its sales capacity.

Dell aimed to achieve these goals by investing heavily in R&D, gaining tighter control over its PC and server prices, and expanding its sales workforce. The idea was to fund new business capabilities in the software and services space from Dell's PC segment. That was a bold plan that involved a lot of changes and, thus, a lot of risks.

Dell’s strategy was essentially a  business transformation  proposal.

And although a lot of public companies have successfully gone through a transformation, none did it in such a short period of time without sacrificing the short-term faith of its shareholders. And that was exactly the problem.

The strategy was inherently risky – like every  good strategy  is – as it promised capital expenditure and an immediate decrease in profitability due to increased operating expenses. Things shareholders hate. And if shareholders aren’t happy with the company’s near-term returns, they start selling their shares, and the company loses its value and a good portion of its funding capabilities. 

Short-term risk = lower share prices = less funding for the company

Thus, the strategy was impossible to execute without the support of the shareholders. So the company had only two options: gain the support of the shareholders or go private.

Dell chose to go private.

Dell's game-changing decision was based on a strategic bet

For a gigantic public company with a market cap of nearly $20 billion, going private is a tough decision and a complicated process.

But it was an unavoidable preliminary for the successful execution of Michael Dell’s plan. And the first step was to convince the board of the necessity of the transformation. After announcing his idea, the board started discussions with experts to evaluate the move, i.e. top consulting agencies and other independent third parties.

JP Morgan , Boston Consulting Group, Evercore, and Debevoise were some of the names involved. And they all shared the same view:

• The PC is dying.
• Funding a business transformation from a declining business is a bad idea (despite such successful attempts from  IBM  and  BMW  in the past).

The experts had a lot of facts and strong arguments to support their case. However, all of them were based on a single assumption:  tablets and smartphones will replace the dying PC . The growth in those categories would entail a decline in the PC business. They believed the PC was about to be cannibalized.

Dell’s CEO disagreed. What was his assumption?

He believed that tablets and smartphones wouldn’t take away from PCs but rather add to it. He believed that the PC’s central role in productivity and business wasn’t going to be dethroned by the new shiny toys. People would buy and use tablets and smartphones, but PCs would remain their primary productivity tool.

And he would bet Dell’s future on it.

But he had to convince the board of directors first. At the start, conversations were happening in secret and things were moving slowly but steadily. But when the idea was leaked, two new problems presented themselves.

The first was Carl Icahn, who contested for the ownership of Dell.  Carl Icahn is a self-proclaimed “activist investor” but others call him a “corporate raider.” The closer the go-private initiative was to happen, the more Carl Icahn fought for it. And he used every improper tool and method he could muster. The battle that followed between Carl and Michael delayed the deal and almost derailed it.

The second was Dell’s customers’ hesitation in doing business with the company.  The rumors about the go-private initiative left the customers wondering about the future of Dell and doubted whether any kind of investment in it was worth it. They were suspending purchases and all Dell’s leadership could say was, “We don’t comment on rumors and speculations.”

The press had also concluded that the go-private initiative was a declaration of Michael Dell’s incompetence and a desperate attempt to keep Wall Street’s eyes away from its demise.

History would prove them wrong and crown Michael Dell victorious.

A new chapter: How Dell's go-private move set the stage for future success

The deal happened.

In February 2013, Michael Dell and the investment firm of Silver Lake took Dell private in a leveraged buyout of $24.4 billion, at $13.65 a share.

Despite all the time that passed until Dell could fully execute its strategy, the company didn’t remain idle. It had made several calculated moves to significantly reduce its dependence on the declining PC market before the deal conversations ever happened.

From 2007 to 2012, Dell spent north of $12.40 billion in key acquisitions to increase its enterprise software and hardware solutions, including cloud data storage and management. The acquisitions focused on areas like:

• Data storage
• Systems management
• Data management in healthcare
• Cutting edge software

The company had already started severing the connection between its financial health and its PC market share many years ahead of its privatization.

But after the buyout, it went all in. Speed and agility became its prominent advantages. Dell became, nearly overnight, a hungry, quick, and ready-to-attack-its-prey jackal. Whenever a new opportunity arose and people asked for resources to pursue it, leadership committed double the resources and said, "Go faster!"

For example, SMBs (small and medium businesses) presented a gigantic opportunity. So the company increased its sales workforce, retrained its existing salespeople, and hit endless SMB doors. They would enter a business selling their low-margin PCs and simultaneously become their trusted advisor on all things tech. Then they sold their whole portfolio of solutions.

And the morale of employees was off the charts. Leadership kept their promises on the changes and provided all the support their people needed to execute the plan.

In addition, people started viewing PC and smartphones as complementary, just as Dell expected.

Was Michael Dell’s bet a good one? Well…

45% of Dell’s revenue was generated from PC sales, but 80% or more of its profits were generated by its new solutions. Eight years after the privatization, the value of their equity had increased more than 625% and their enterprise value reached $100 billion.

We’re pretty confident that’s a yes.

Key Takeaway #2: Successful strategic bets require a sober conviction

Markets change and evolve all the time. The difference between players that emerge prosperous and those that struggle to fit in the new order of things isn’t the unique access to data.

No. Every alert player in your competitive zone has more or less the same access to market trends and changes. The difference lies in what you envision the future to be. That’s your bet.

That’s what a winning corporate strategy needs. And because bets are inherently risky, you require two things to place a successful bet:

• Sobriety to envision what the future of your industry will look like.
• Conviction to pursue that vision relentlessly.

Steering towards success: Dell's current strategy and the EMC merger

Michael Dell had foreseen the evolution of the technology industry since the 2000s.

Not the specifics, but the trend of PCs and hardware becoming less relevant – or at least less profitable – and software, the cloud, and back-end taking the front seat. He realized (from very early on) that servers and storage management would become a huge concern for large enterprises building (or upgrading) their IT infrastructure.

Dell anticipated the market’s needs by making a simple observation: the quantity of data in the world expanded exponentially and the traditional way of data management would require server performance that wasn’t physically possible to achieve. But he knew there was a solution underway: virtualization – software that mimics the computer, creating virtual mainframes within the physical mainframe.

That’s why the company had started investing in these technologies since 2001.

Achieving synergy: Dell's competitive strategy and the merger with EMC and VMware

Dell, EMC, and VMware are three major players in the technology industry with distinct but complementary offerings.

EMC  had a successful product in networked information storage systems, i.e. a database management system for enterprises.

VMware  was pioneering in virtualization, allowing users to run multiple operating systems on the same device.

Dell  had an established distribution network and a series of back-end solutions that could expand and fit well with the former technologies.

The relationship between these three companies started in 2001. Dell and EMC entered a strategic alliance to rule a market of $100 billion worth by 2005.

For EMC, the alliance was a one-stone-three-birds initiative.  First,  it offered a lucrative distribution channel to customers their competitors were already targeting.  Second,  it ensured Dell wouldn’t partner with a competitor.  And third,  it reduced its supply costs for components.

For Dell, it also had a threefold benefit.  First,  It added high-performing products to a rapidly growing business.  Second,  it gave it an important customer – EMC was using Dell’s servers.  And third,  it allowed Dell to infiltrate deeper into enterprise data centers.

A strategic alliance that gave both Dell and EMC a competitive edge.

Then EMC bought VMware. That gave the company massive capabilities around cloud infrastructure services ending up being a very lucrative move. Dell, which had invested in VMware back in 2002, saw a massive opportunity to acquire the new EMC.

So Dell and EMC first began discussions of a potential partnership back in 2008, but the idea was ultimately shelved due to the financial crisis. However, in 2014, Dell revisited the idea as both companies had grown and become leaders in their respective industries.

Dell saw the potential for a merger as the two companies' services would bring significant value to their customers when combined. EMC's CEO, Joe Tucci, agreed with this assessment, but they still had to convince EMC's board. EMC was publicly held while Dell was private, and as soon as the idea was on the table, Dell found itself competing with two other interested parties, Cisco Systems and HP. In fact, HP nearly succeeded in acquiring EMC.

It failed due to a financial disagreement. So Dell jumped on the opportunity.

By then, EMC had grown tremendously and had eliminated any short- to mid-term potential start-up disruptors by acquiring them. EMC’s three businesses were uniquely complementary to Dell’s solutions:

• EMC Information structure , a leader in the data storage system market.
• VMware , the undisputed leader in virtualization.
• Pivotal , a start-up with a platform to develop cloud software.

However, the acquisition was a tough process. EMC had grown to a market cap of over $60 billion. It was impossible for Dell to fund an acquisition. Instead, the two companies merged.

The merger happened through a complex but effective financial plan, and the synergies created by the combined company increased revenue significantly. A year after the merger was initiated, the added revenue was well above expectations. This allowed Dell to pay down a significant portion of its debt and improve its financial standing and investment rating. The success of the merger led the company to simplify its structure and align the interests of the stakeholders of the three companies.

In 2018, Dell went public again as a very different entity than its first IPO, uniquely equipped to lead the 5-S sectors:  services, software, storage, servers, and security.

What is Dell’s business strategy’s primary focus today?

Dell aspires to become a leading player in the data era by providing a wide range of solutions, products, and services.

Excluding VMware, Dell is divided into two main business segments supported by its financial subsidiary:

• The Infrastructure Solutions Group ISG helps customers with their  digital transformation  by providing multi-cloud and big data solutions that are built on modern data center infrastructure. These solutions are designed to work in multi-cloud environments and can handle workloads in public and private clouds as well as on-premise.
• The Client Solutions Group CSG focuses on providing solutions for clients such as laptops, desktops, and other end-user devices. ‍
• Dell Financial Services DFS supports Dell businesses by providing financial options and services to customers according to the company’s flexible consumption models. Through DFS, the company tries to tailor its financial options to each customer’s way of consuming Dell’s solutions.

Dell's core offerings include servers, storage solutions, virtualization software, and networking solutions. The company is constantly investing in research and development, sales and other key areas to improve its products and solutions and to drive long-term growth.

Its primary strategic priorities are:

• Improving and modernizing its current offerings in the markets it operates in.
• Expanding into new growth areas such as Edge computing, telecommunications, data management, and as-a-service consumption models.

And its plan involves several key  initiatives :

• Developing its flexible consumption models and as-a-Service options to customers to meet their financial needs and expectations.
• Building momentum in recurring revenue streams through multi-year agreements.
• Investing in R&D to develop scalable technology solutions and incorporating AI and machine-learning technology. Since its Fiscal year 2020, the R&D budget is consistently at least $2.5 billion. Most of it goes towards developing the software that powers its solutions.
• Collaborating with a global network of technology companies for product development and integration of new technologies.
• Investing in early-stage, privately-held companies through Dell Technologies Capital.

Although Dell has a coherent strategy to achieve its objectives, competition isn’t idle nor trivial in the core competitive arenas. The company faces a significant risk that includes:

• Failure to achieve intended benefits regarding the VMware spin-off.
• Competition providing products and services that are cheaper and perform better.
• Delays in products, components, or software deliveries from single-source or limited-source suppliers.
• Inability to effectively execute its  business strategy  (transitioning sales capabilities, expanding solutions capabilities through acquisitions, etc.) and implement its cost efficiency measures.

The technological advances are rapid, and players are in a constant race to innovate not only on the technologies they provide but on their business models and all of their services and solutions. Emerging players and strategic relationships between competitors could easily shift the competitive landscape before the company finds a way to react.

Key Takeaway #3: When making transformational decisions, prioritize thinking long-term

A major acquisition, or a merger, between industry leaders is a bet on the industry’s future.

If you believe in the bet long-term, don’t sacrifice a good move for short-term returns, as HP did with EMC. Instead, do your due diligence in the consideration phase:

• Consider real alternatives.
• Understand deeply how the capabilities of both companies will be improved.
• Validate your assumptions with current market needs and trends.
• Move faster than the competition.

Why is Dell so successful?

One of the key reasons Dell has been so successful is Michael Dell’s intuition and strategic instinct.

He demonstrated a consistent ability to take an accurate pulse of the market, make a winning bet and chase it relentlessly by performing a business transformation. Additionally, Dell never lost one of its core strategic strengths: building strong relationships with its customers by providing excellent customer support and tailored solutions to meet their unique needs. The company has also been successful in streamlining its  operations  and supply chain, which has allowed it to offer competitive prices and high-quality products.

Dell puts the customer first and makes strategic pivots with perfect timing.

How Dell’s vision guides its steps

According to Dell’s annual report, its vision is:

“To become the most essential technology company for the data era. We seek to address our customers’ evolving needs and their broader digital

transformation objectives as they embrace today’s hybrid multi-cloud environment.”

And their two strategic priorities, growing core offerings and pursuing new opportunities, are their roadmap to achieving it.

Growth by numbers

• Search Menu
• Browse content in Arts and Humanities
• Browse content in Archaeology
• Anglo-Saxon and Medieval Archaeology
• Archaeological Methodology and Techniques
• Archaeology by Region
• Archaeology of Religion
• Archaeology of Trade and Exchange
• Biblical Archaeology
• Contemporary and Public Archaeology
• Environmental Archaeology
• Historical Archaeology
• History and Theory of Archaeology
• Industrial Archaeology
• Landscape Archaeology
• Mortuary Archaeology
• Prehistoric Archaeology
• Underwater Archaeology
• Urban Archaeology
• Zooarchaeology
• Browse content in Architecture
• Architectural Structure and Design
• History of Architecture
• Residential and Domestic Buildings
• Theory of Architecture
• Browse content in Art
• Art Subjects and Themes
• History of Art
• Industrial and Commercial Art
• Theory of Art
• Biographical Studies
• Byzantine Studies
• Browse content in Classical Studies
• Classical Literature
• Classical Reception
• Classical History
• Classical Philosophy
• Classical Mythology
• Classical Art and Architecture
• Classical Oratory and Rhetoric
• Greek and Roman Papyrology
• Greek and Roman Archaeology
• Greek and Roman Epigraphy
• Greek and Roman Law
• Late Antiquity
• Religion in the Ancient World
• Digital Humanities
• Browse content in History
• Colonialism and Imperialism
• Diplomatic History
• Environmental History
• Genealogy, Heraldry, Names, and Honours
• Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing
• Historical Geography
• History by Period
• History of Emotions
• History of Agriculture
• History of Education
• History of Gender and Sexuality
• Industrial History
• Intellectual History
• International History
• Labour History
• Legal and Constitutional History
• Local and Family History
• Maritime History
• Military History
• National Liberation and Post-Colonialism
• Oral History
• Political History
• Public History
• Regional and National History
• Revolutions and Rebellions
• Slavery and Abolition of Slavery
• Social and Cultural History
• Theory, Methods, and Historiography
• Urban History
• World History
• Browse content in Language Teaching and Learning
• Language Learning (Specific Skills)
• Language Teaching Theory and Methods
• Browse content in Linguistics
• Applied Linguistics
• Cognitive Linguistics
• Computational Linguistics
• Forensic Linguistics
• Grammar, Syntax and Morphology
• Historical and Diachronic Linguistics
• History of English
• Language Evolution
• Language Reference
• Language Variation
• Language Families
• Language Acquisition
• Lexicography
• Linguistic Anthropology
• Linguistic Theories
• Linguistic Typology
• Phonetics and Phonology
• Psycholinguistics
• Sociolinguistics
• Translation and Interpretation
• Writing Systems
• Browse content in Literature
• Bibliography
• Children's Literature Studies
• Literary Studies (Romanticism)
• Literary Studies (American)
• Literary Studies (Modernism)
• Literary Studies (Asian)
• Literary Studies (European)
• Literary Studies (Eco-criticism)
• Literary Studies - World
• Literary Studies (1500 to 1800)
• Literary Studies (19th Century)
• Literary Studies (20th Century onwards)
• Literary Studies (African American Literature)
• Literary Studies (British and Irish)
• Literary Studies (Early and Medieval)
• Literary Studies (Fiction, Novelists, and Prose Writers)
• Literary Studies (Gender Studies)
• Literary Studies (Graphic Novels)
• Literary Studies (History of the Book)
• Literary Studies (Plays and Playwrights)
• Literary Studies (Poetry and Poets)
• Literary Studies (Postcolonial Literature)
• Literary Studies (Queer Studies)
• Literary Studies (Science Fiction)
• Literary Studies (Travel Literature)
• Literary Studies (War Literature)
• Literary Studies (Women's Writing)
• Literary Theory and Cultural Studies
• Mythology and Folklore
• Shakespeare Studies and Criticism
• Browse content in Media Studies
• Browse content in Music
• Applied Music
• Dance and Music
• Ethics in Music
• Ethnomusicology
• Gender and Sexuality in Music
• Medicine and Music
• Music Cultures
• Music and Media
• Music and Culture
• Music and Religion
• Music Education and Pedagogy
• Music Theory and Analysis
• Musical Scores, Lyrics, and Libretti
• Musical Structures, Styles, and Techniques
• Musicology and Music History
• Performance Practice and Studies
• Race and Ethnicity in Music
• Sound Studies
• Browse content in Performing Arts
• Browse content in Philosophy
• Aesthetics and Philosophy of Art
• Epistemology
• Feminist Philosophy
• History of Western Philosophy
• Metaphysics
• Moral Philosophy
• Non-Western Philosophy
• Philosophy of Language
• Philosophy of Mind
• Philosophy of Perception
• Philosophy of Action
• Philosophy of Law
• Philosophy of Religion
• Philosophy of Science
• Philosophy of Mathematics and Logic
• Practical Ethics
• Social and Political Philosophy
• Browse content in Religion
• Biblical Studies
• Christianity
• East Asian Religions
• History of Religion
• Judaism and Jewish Studies
• Qumran Studies
• Religion and Education
• Religion and Health
• Religion and Politics
• Religion and Science
• Religion and Law
• Religion and Art, Literature, and Music
• Religious Studies
• Browse content in Society and Culture
• Cookery, Food, and Drink
• Cultural Studies
• Customs and Traditions
• Ethical Issues and Debates
• Hobbies, Games, Arts and Crafts
• Lifestyle, Home, and Garden
• Natural world, Country Life, and Pets
• Popular Beliefs and Controversial Knowledge
• Sports and Outdoor Recreation
• Technology and Society
• Travel and Holiday
• Visual Culture
• Browse content in Law
• Arbitration
• Browse content in Company and Commercial Law
• Commercial Law
• Company Law
• Browse content in Comparative Law
• Systems of Law
• Competition Law
• Browse content in Constitutional and Administrative Law
• Government Powers
• Judicial Review
• Local Government Law
• Military and Defence Law
• Parliamentary and Legislative Practice
• Construction Law
• Contract Law
• Browse content in Criminal Law
• Criminal Procedure
• Criminal Evidence Law
• Sentencing and Punishment
• Employment and Labour Law
• Environment and Energy Law
• Browse content in Financial Law
• Banking Law
• Insolvency Law
• History of Law
• Human Rights and Immigration
• Intellectual Property Law
• Browse content in International Law
• Private International Law and Conflict of Laws
• Public International Law
• IT and Communications Law
• Jurisprudence and Philosophy of Law
• Law and Society
• Law and Politics
• Browse content in Legal System and Practice
• Courts and Procedure
• Legal Skills and Practice
• Primary Sources of Law
• Regulation of Legal Profession
• Medical and Healthcare Law
• Browse content in Policing
• Criminal Investigation and Detection
• Police and Security Services
• Police Procedure and Law
• Police Regional Planning
• Browse content in Property Law
• Personal Property Law
• Study and Revision
• Terrorism and National Security Law
• Browse content in Trusts Law
• Wills and Probate or Succession
• Browse content in Medicine and Health
• Browse content in Allied Health Professions
• Arts Therapies
• Clinical Science
• Dietetics and Nutrition
• Occupational Therapy
• Operating Department Practice
• Physiotherapy
• Radiography
• Speech and Language Therapy
• Browse content in Anaesthetics
• General Anaesthesia
• Neuroanaesthesia
• Clinical Neuroscience
• Browse content in Clinical Medicine
• Acute Medicine
• Cardiovascular Medicine
• Clinical Genetics
• Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics
• Dermatology
• Endocrinology and Diabetes
• Gastroenterology
• Genito-urinary Medicine
• Geriatric Medicine
• Infectious Diseases
• Medical Toxicology
• Medical Oncology
• Pain Medicine
• Palliative Medicine
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Respiratory Medicine and Pulmonology
• Rheumatology
• Sleep Medicine
• Sports and Exercise Medicine
• Community Medical Services
• Critical Care
• Emergency Medicine
• Forensic Medicine
• Haematology
• History of Medicine
• Browse content in Medical Skills
• Clinical Skills
• Communication Skills
• Nursing Skills
• Surgical Skills
• Medical Ethics
• Browse content in Medical Dentistry
• Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
• Paediatric Dentistry
• Restorative Dentistry and Orthodontics
• Surgical Dentistry
• Medical Statistics and Methodology
• Browse content in Neurology
• Clinical Neurophysiology
• Neuropathology
• Nursing Studies
• Browse content in Obstetrics and Gynaecology
• Gynaecology
• Occupational Medicine
• Ophthalmology
• Otolaryngology (ENT)
• Browse content in Paediatrics
• Neonatology
• Browse content in Pathology
• Chemical Pathology
• Clinical Cytogenetics and Molecular Genetics
• Histopathology
• Medical Microbiology and Virology
• Patient Education and Information
• Browse content in Pharmacology
• Psychopharmacology
• Browse content in Popular Health
• Caring for Others
• Complementary and Alternative Medicine
• Self-help and Personal Development
• Browse content in Preclinical Medicine
• Cell Biology
• Molecular Biology and Genetics
• Reproduction, Growth and Development
• Primary Care
• Professional Development in Medicine
• Browse content in Psychiatry
• Addiction Medicine
• Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
• Forensic Psychiatry
• Learning Disabilities
• Old Age Psychiatry
• Psychotherapy
• Browse content in Public Health and Epidemiology
• Epidemiology
• Public Health
• Browse content in Radiology
• Clinical Radiology
• Interventional Radiology
• Nuclear Medicine
• Radiation Oncology
• Reproductive Medicine
• Browse content in Surgery
• Cardiothoracic Surgery
• Gastro-intestinal and Colorectal Surgery
• General Surgery
• Neurosurgery
• Paediatric Surgery
• Peri-operative Care
• Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
• Surgical Oncology
• Transplant Surgery
• Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgery
• Vascular Surgery
• Browse content in Science and Mathematics
• Browse content in Biological Sciences
• Aquatic Biology
• Biochemistry
• Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
• Developmental Biology
• Ecology and Conservation
• Evolutionary Biology
• Genetics and Genomics
• Microbiology
• Molecular and Cell Biology
• Natural History
• Plant Sciences and Forestry
• Research Methods in Life Sciences
• Structural Biology
• Systems Biology
• Zoology and Animal Sciences
• Browse content in Chemistry
• Analytical Chemistry
• Computational Chemistry
• Crystallography
• Environmental Chemistry
• Industrial Chemistry
• Inorganic Chemistry
• Materials Chemistry
• Medicinal Chemistry
• Mineralogy and Gems
• Organic Chemistry
• Physical Chemistry
• Polymer Chemistry
• Study and Communication Skills in Chemistry
• Theoretical Chemistry
• Browse content in Computer Science
• Artificial Intelligence
• Computer Architecture and Logic Design
• Game Studies
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Mathematical Theory of Computation
• Programming Languages
• Software Engineering
• Systems Analysis and Design
• Virtual Reality
• Browse content in Computing
• Business Applications
• Computer Games
• Computer Security
• Computer Networking and Communications
• Digital Lifestyle
• Graphical and Digital Media Applications
• Operating Systems
• Browse content in Earth Sciences and Geography
• Atmospheric Sciences
• Environmental Geography
• Geology and the Lithosphere
• Maps and Map-making
• Meteorology and Climatology
• Oceanography and Hydrology
• Palaeontology
• Physical Geography and Topography
• Regional Geography
• Soil Science
• Urban Geography
• Browse content in Engineering and Technology
• Agriculture and Farming
• Biological Engineering
• Civil Engineering, Surveying, and Building
• Electronics and Communications Engineering
• Energy Technology
• Engineering (General)
• Environmental Science, Engineering, and Technology
• History of Engineering and Technology
• Mechanical Engineering and Materials
• Technology of Industrial Chemistry
• Transport Technology and Trades
• Browse content in Environmental Science
• Applied Ecology (Environmental Science)
• Conservation of the Environment (Environmental Science)
• Environmental Sustainability
• Environmentalist Thought and Ideology (Environmental Science)
• Management of Land and Natural Resources (Environmental Science)
• Natural Disasters (Environmental Science)
• Nuclear Issues (Environmental Science)
• Pollution and Threats to the Environment (Environmental Science)
• Social Impact of Environmental Issues (Environmental Science)
• History of Science and Technology
• Browse content in Materials Science
• Ceramics and Glasses
• Composite Materials
• Metals, Alloying, and Corrosion
• Nanotechnology
• Browse content in Mathematics
• Applied Mathematics
• Biomathematics and Statistics
• History of Mathematics
• Mathematical Education
• Mathematical Finance
• Mathematical Analysis
• Numerical and Computational Mathematics
• Probability and Statistics
• Pure Mathematics
• Browse content in Neuroscience
• Cognition and Behavioural Neuroscience
• Development of the Nervous System
• Disorders of the Nervous System
• History of Neuroscience
• Invertebrate Neurobiology
• Molecular and Cellular Systems
• Neuroendocrinology and Autonomic Nervous System
• Neuroscientific Techniques
• Sensory and Motor Systems
• Browse content in Physics
• Astronomy and Astrophysics
• Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics
• Biological and Medical Physics
• Classical Mechanics
• Computational Physics
• Condensed Matter Physics
• Electromagnetism, Optics, and Acoustics
• History of Physics
• Mathematical and Statistical Physics
• Measurement Science
• Nuclear Physics
• Particles and Fields
• Plasma Physics
• Quantum Physics
• Relativity and Gravitation
• Semiconductor and Mesoscopic Physics
• Browse content in Psychology
• Affective Sciences
• Clinical Psychology
• Cognitive Psychology
• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Criminal and Forensic Psychology
• Developmental Psychology
• Educational Psychology
• Evolutionary Psychology
• Health Psychology
• History and Systems in Psychology
• Music Psychology
• Neuropsychology
• Organizational Psychology
• Psychological Assessment and Testing
• Psychology of Human-Technology Interaction
• Psychology Professional Development and Training
• Research Methods in Psychology
• Social Psychology
• Browse content in Social Sciences
• Browse content in Anthropology
• Anthropology of Religion
• Human Evolution
• Medical Anthropology
• Physical Anthropology
• Regional Anthropology
• Social and Cultural Anthropology
• Theory and Practice of Anthropology
• Browse content in Business and Management
• Business Ethics
• Business History

Business Strategy

• Business and Technology
• Business and Government
• Business and the Environment
• Comparative Management
• Corporate Governance
• Corporate Social Responsibility
• Entrepreneurship
• Health Management
• Human Resource Management
• Industrial and Employment Relations
• Industry Studies
• Information and Communication Technologies
• International Business
• Knowledge Management
• Management and Management Techniques
• Operations Management
• Organizational Theory and Behaviour
• Pensions and Pension Management
• Public and Nonprofit Management
• Strategic Management
• Supply Chain Management
• Browse content in Criminology and Criminal Justice
• Criminal Justice
• Criminology
• Forms of Crime
• International and Comparative Criminology
• Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice
• Development Studies
• Browse content in Economics
• Agricultural, Environmental, and Natural Resource Economics
• Asian Economics
• Behavioural Finance
• Behavioural Economics and Neuroeconomics
• Econometrics and Mathematical Economics
• Economic History
• Economic Methodology
• Economic Systems
• Economic Development and Growth
• Financial Markets
• Financial Institutions and Services
• General Economics and Teaching
• Health, Education, and Welfare
• History of Economic Thought
• International Economics
• Labour and Demographic Economics
• Law and Economics
• Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics
• Microeconomics
• Public Economics
• Urban, Rural, and Regional Economics
• Welfare Economics
• Browse content in Education
• Adult Education and Continuous Learning
• Care and Counselling of Students
• Early Childhood and Elementary Education
• Educational Equipment and Technology
• Educational Strategies and Policy
• Higher and Further Education
• Organization and Management of Education
• Philosophy and Theory of Education
• Schools Studies
• Secondary Education
• Teaching of a Specific Subject
• Teaching of Specific Groups and Special Educational Needs
• Teaching Skills and Techniques
• Browse content in Environment
• Applied Ecology (Social Science)
• Climate Change
• Conservation of the Environment (Social Science)
• Environmentalist Thought and Ideology (Social Science)
• Natural Disasters (Environment)
• Social Impact of Environmental Issues (Social Science)
• Browse content in Human Geography
• Cultural Geography
• Economic Geography
• Political Geography
• Browse content in Interdisciplinary Studies
• Communication Studies
• Museums, Libraries, and Information Sciences
• Browse content in Politics
• African Politics
• Asian Politics
• Chinese Politics
• Comparative Politics
• Conflict Politics
• Elections and Electoral Studies
• Environmental Politics
• European Union
• Foreign Policy
• Gender and Politics
• Human Rights and Politics
• Indian Politics
• International Relations
• International Organization (Politics)
• International Political Economy
• Irish Politics
• Latin American Politics
• Middle Eastern Politics
• Political Behaviour
• Political Economy
• Political Institutions
• Political Theory
• Political Methodology
• Political Communication
• Political Philosophy
• Political Sociology
• Politics and Law
• Public Policy
• Public Administration
• Quantitative Political Methodology
• Regional Political Studies
• Russian Politics
• Security Studies
• State and Local Government
• UK Politics
• US Politics
• Browse content in Regional and Area Studies
• African Studies
• Asian Studies
• East Asian Studies
• Japanese Studies
• Latin American Studies
• Middle Eastern Studies
• Native American Studies
• Scottish Studies
• Browse content in Research and Information
• Research Methods
• Browse content in Social Work
• Addictions and Substance Misuse
• Adoption and Fostering
• Care of the Elderly
• Child and Adolescent Social Work
• Couple and Family Social Work
• Developmental and Physical Disabilities Social Work
• Direct Practice and Clinical Social Work
• Emergency Services
• Human Behaviour and the Social Environment
• International and Global Issues in Social Work
• Mental and Behavioural Health
• Social Justice and Human Rights
• Social Policy and Advocacy
• Social Work and Crime and Justice
• Social Work Macro Practice
• Social Work Practice Settings
• Social Work Research and Evidence-based Practice
• Welfare and Benefit Systems
• Browse content in Sociology
• Childhood Studies
• Community Development
• Comparative and Historical Sociology
• Economic Sociology
• Gender and Sexuality
• Gerontology and Ageing
• Health, Illness, and Medicine
• Marriage and the Family
• Migration Studies
• Occupations, Professions, and Work
• Organizations
• Population and Demography
• Race and Ethnicity
• Social Theory
• Social Movements and Social Change
• Social Research and Statistics
• Social Stratification, Inequality, and Mobility
• Sociology of Religion
• Sociology of Education
• Sport and Leisure
• Urban and Rural Studies
• Browse content in Warfare and Defence
• Defence Strategy, Planning, and Research
• Land Forces and Warfare
• Military Administration
• Military Life and Institutions
• Naval Forces and Warfare
• Other Warfare and Defence Issues
• Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution
• Weapons and Equipment

• < Previous chapter
• Next chapter >

24 Dell: The Business Case for a Sustainable Supply Chain

• Published: March 2021
• Cite Icon Cite
• Permissions Icon Permissions

The computer manufacturer Dell runs the world’s largest electronics take-back programme. It has recovered more than 800,000 tonnes of electronics since 2008. In the case of individual consumers it partners with freight companies in retrieving equipment from consumers’ homes and partners with Goodwill, a not-for-profit organization that seeks to make people independent through education and training, in running 2,000 locations across the United States where consumers can drop off any brand of used electronics. The article points to the commercial as well as the environmental savings resulting from the recycling programme and describes the process by which Dell has been able to achieve this.

Introduction

Dell is one of the world’s largest computer manufacturers and technology companies. The company sells a wide range of IT hardware, software products, and services for enterprise, government, small business, and consumer markets. 1 As a privately held company, Dell has the freedom to pursue a longer time horizon and to commit to changing how it uses its resources. The principle of efficiency is central to the Dell business model and informs the company’s approach to resources, sourcing, and waste management.

Pain Points in the Ecosystem

Dell’s commitment to efficiency has prompted the company to take on the timely challenge of improving e-waste disposal throughout its business.

E-waste, that is, discarded electrical and electronic equipment, is the world’s fastest-growing waste stream. 2 Rapid technology innovation and ever-shortening product lifespans are contributing to the increase of e-waste. 3 According to a United Nations’ University report, the amount of global e-waste reached 41.8 million tonnes in 2014. 4 To compound matters, e-waste has a low overall recycling rate, which means that unwanted equipment remains unused.

Responsible e-waste disposal is not only important from an environmental perspective, but also makes good economic sense. 5 Vast amounts of gold, for example, exit the economy due to low recycling rates, but increasingly there is an opportunity to recapture that value, as a tonne of computer motherboards contains more gold in it than a tonne of gold ore. In terms of scale, the material value of global e-waste was estimated to be €48 billion in 2014 alone. 6 This underutilized resource has a vast ‘untapped potential to create a more sustainable, efficient product ecosystem’. 7

The circular economy takes the traditional, linear model of ‘take, make, and dispose’—which moves products from design to factory to consumer to landfill—and bends it into a more efficient closed-loop ecosystem. Unwanted used electronics can be taken back for refurbishment and then resold on the secondary market. Products beyond repair, or those that are no longer economical to repair, are recycled to allow for precious and scarce materials to be recovered. Recycled content can either be incorporated into the design and manufacturing of new products or sold for others to use.

Research shows that approximately 30 per cent of consumers have technology products lying around the house unused, and half of consumers are unsure about what to do with their old electronics. 8 According to Dell, similar situations exist with businesses warehousing old equipment. Take-back options make it easy for a wide variety of customers to dispose of their old electronic products in a responsible manner. This measure ensures that unwanted electronics get reused or, if at the end of life, properly recycled.

Plastic is one of the most useful and important materials in modern society. It is popular in computers due to its durability, ease of fabrication into complex shapes, and electrical insulation qualities. 9 However, plastic recycling remains challenging and, as a result, the material constitutes a major contributor to landfills and to nonpoint source pollution—pollution from many different sources. The production of traditional plastics also uses a substantial amount of fossil fuels. Manufacturing plastics from fuel is resource intensive, requires large amounts of energy, and releases relatively high levels of CO 2 emissions in the process. Recent research has shown that our current use of plastics will become unsustainable if we do not take steps to improve recycling and reduce plastics’ usage.

Using secondary, recycled plastic as feedstock for new computers presents one possible solution. With the fast pace of innovation and product upgrades in the ICT sector, recycled content can reduce the environmental toll of manufacturing with virgin materials. The circular economy and the development of secondary raw material markets are high on the European agenda. Nevertheless, it remains challenging to find a sufficient supply of high-quality post-consumer recycled plastics that meets the technical, economic, and aesthetic requirements of ICT products manufacturers. 10

In response, Dell is taking steps towards creating a ‘circular’ supply chain (see also Interface, Chapter 25 ). In addition to environmental concerns, the increased volatility in commodities and growing pressure on resources have alerted Dell to the business necessity of rethinking materials and energy use. 11 In 2013, Dell committed to putting a total of 50 million pounds weight of recycled materials back into its products by 2020. The company reached this goal at the beginning of 2017 and is continuing to scale its efforts.

For Dell, sourcing post-consumer recycled plastics from the market and building a new, stable closed-loop supply chain for plastics from used electronics collected through take-back programmes present viable and affordable alternatives to using virgin materials. Rather than focusing exclusively on individual challenges, Dell has taken steps to approach their supply chain from a broader, systemic perspective. Most recently, this has included expanding its efforts to also address precious metals, such as gold. Jennifer Allison, director of supply chain sustainability at Dell, summarizes the company’s current business strategy:

We’re talking about systems—not just products, programmes, or initiatives. Looking at the whole system is when change begins to make a significant difference. Technology is a great tool for measuring and analysing systems, understanding processes, and identifying inefficiencies. 12

In this way, Dell takes a whole ecosystem view of its product life cycles. This approach is transforming the design of products and services. Dell’s life-cycle approach aims to keep viable products and parts in circulation for longer periods of time. It also harnesses global efforts to reuse, refurbish, and resell products and parts to extend their lifetimes and to recycle them at the end of life.

Product design emphasizes ease of repair and recyclability from the beginning. Dell also looks continuously for ways to incorporate sustainable materials, such as recycled plastic and reclaimed carbon fibre, into products and packaging. 13

The Take-Back Programme

Dell has the world’s largest electronics take-back programme, which spans more than seventy-five countries and territories. The programme has recovered approximately 800,000 tonnes of electronics since 2008. For commercial customers, Dell offers a full-spectrum of logistics and disposal capabilities via the Asset Resale and Recycling Service. Current capabilities include data security, on-site shredding, recycling, and full traceability reporting. Dell also makes it easy for individual consumers to recycle by partnering with freight companies to provide free mail-back recycling of Dell-branded equipment. In many countries, the programme will even pick up used equipment from a customer’s home. 14

Another programme designed to make the recovery of obsolete electronics easier and more accessible is the Dell Reconnect Partnership with Goodwill, a not-for-profit organization committed to helping people become independent through education and training. The Reconnect Programme allows people to drop off any brand of used electronics to more than two thousand participating Goodwill locations across the United States. Dell Reconnect accepts any brand of computer equipment in any condition from consumers and provides free recycling services.

Dell returns all proceeds to Goodwill in order to help support Goodwill’s mission of putting people to work. 15 By participating in this initiative, customers simultaneously help protect the environment, benefit the community, and receive a receipt for tax purposes. In this way, the programme helps both the customers and the business.

The donated equipment has value as a whole system, as parts, and sometimes as raw materials such as metals, plastics, and glass. 16 If the equipment can be refurbished, Goodwill sells it. If not, the end-of-life product is sent to Wistron, one of Dell’s recycling partners, for asset recovery in the United States. Metals such as tin, gold, 17 and tungsten are re-sold in the commodities market. To complete the closed loop, plastics are sorted and shipped to China, turned into pellets, and mixed with virgin plastics for use in new Dell products. 18

Closed-Loop Recycled Plastic Supply Chain

Dell’s 2020 ‘Legacy of Good’ sustainability plan set the goal of incorporating 50 million pounds weight of post-consumer recycled-content plastics and other sustainable materials into Dell products by 2020. 19 Dell met this target ahead of schedule in early 2017.

It started with the launch of Dell’s closed-loop recycled plastics supply chain in 2014. Since then, the company has used more than 9,750 tonnes of closed-loop plastics in over 125 products. These products include flat-panel monitors, desktops, and all-in-one computers.

Run in conjunction with various supply chain partners, the programme consists of collecting, recycling, and using e-waste to make new Dell products. 20 It begins with sorting plastics out of the various take-back streams, further processing them, and then sending them to a manufacturing partner in Asia. The plastics are then melted down and moulded into new parts and computer components, thereby creating a closed-loop system. The whole process—from the time the equipment is received for recycling to the time the plastics are back in a customer’s hands as part of a new product—takes just under six months. The closed-loop system also provides businesses with a price more stable than the cost of virgin materials, which fluctuates with the price of oil. It also reduces the company’s dependence on those environmentally costly virgin materials. Furthermore, by reusing plastics already in circulation, Dell cuts down on e-waste, reduces carbon emissions, and helps drive a circular economy for IT. The closed-loop process yields an 11 per cent lower carbon footprint than a process using virgin materials, 21 and creates products that are better for the environment, which is increasingly what Dell customers demand. 22 Dell was also the first PC manufacturer (January 2018) to use recycled gold from e-waste in its products. Working with the data analyst TruCost, it found that this closed-loop process can cause 99 per cent less environmental damage and avoid $1.6 million in natural capital costs per kilogram processed (US$3.68 million for the pilot project alone) when compared to gold mining. The same study showed closed-loop process can avoid 41 times the social impacts of gold mining.

Dell’s leadership in recovering and reusing plastic from used computers constitutes an important step in moving the larger electronics industry towards a circular economy. Louise Koch, corporate sustainability director in EMEA for Dell, describes the impetus for initiating a closed-loop system:

Dell’s programme is driven by both an effort to improve efficiency—a principle that goes back to its founding ethos and business model—as well as a commitment to reducing environmental impact. 23

The use of closed-loop plastics may create a demand for plastic from used computers and thereby increase the level of plastic recycling from electronics. This, in turn, generates new jobs and opportunities for those in the nascent industry, all while staying true to Dell’s founding principles.

Challenges in Moving to a Closed-Loop Recycling System

In moving from the traditional take–make–dispose linear supply chain to a circular supply chain, Dell has had to overcome a number of hurdles.

One of the biggest challenges that Dell faced with the closed-loop recycling was identifying which types of plastic can be incorporated back into new products. As Scott O’Connell, director of environmental affairs for Dell, puts it, ‘When dealing with plastics, getting the properties equivalent or better to virgin materials isn’t easy…But this is a challenge we’ve been able to overcome with engineering know-how.’ 24 Dell worked with partners to test different approaches. Testing revealed that, due to mechanical and aesthetic considerations, a blend of recycled-content with virgin plastic produces the best outcomes.

Another challenge involves establishing a reliable closed-loop supply chain. As O’Connell describes, ‘We had to make sure that we had sufficient volume of product coming in to be able to yield enough plastics to put into a mainstream Dell product.’ 25 Supply of products and plastic derives from Dell’s own sources, which adds a greater degree of insight and security. However, for the closed-loop recycling to work and scale, Dell needs security of supply, which can be difficult to attain with fluctuating numbers of products collected through take-back. Shrinking form factors—the fact that there is less plastic per item recycled as electronics become smaller—further complicate the situation. Hence Dell needs to continue to drive increasing participation in take-back programmes, while at the same time exploring other means of acquiring recycled-content materials.

Transporting materials poses an additional challenge. Dell customers are all over the world, which means that take-back initiatives must accommodate the global scale. While Dell has a small closed-loop plastics supply chain in Europe already and is exploring ways to scale in other geographies, materials need to be collected in sufficiently large amounts to make shipping to a centralized processor worth the economic and environmental costs. This involves logistics, regulations, and other considerations. In some cases, even the definition of the material being moved can affect the viability of closed-loop efforts: is recycled plastic labelled as waste or a raw material, for example?

The final challenge for Dell is to demonstrate the benefits of closed-loop recycling to customers. Ultimately, the products look and perform exactly the same as those made from virgin materials. Dell must communicate the value proposition to customers by highlighting the amount of recycled content in the final product, the closed-loop nature of the materials, and the benefits to the customers’ own sustainability goals.

Performance

Since 2008, Dell has taken back more than 1.76 billion pounds (nearly 800,000 tonnes) of used electronics and since mid-2014, when Dell launched the closed-loop plastic recycling programme, it has created nearly 5,000 tonnes of plastics from recycled computer parts. Dell has saved more than $1.8 million from this process, and the carbon footprint of circular plastics is 11 per cent smaller than that associated with the manufacture of virgin plastics. Dell now uses circular plastics in approximately 125 products across millions of units globally.

Together with TruCost, Dell has completed an evaluation to understand the gains from moving away from virgin plastics. One of the most useful ways for companies to assess the risks associated with new initiatives is to quantify the environmental impacts generated by their activities—internal operations, upstream supply chain, and downstream product use and disposal—and then convert those impacts into monetary values. 26 The monetary value helps identify the value not captured in traditional financial markets and incorporates these considerations into decision-making. 27

Findings showed that Dell’s closed-loop plastic has a 44 per cent ($1.3 million annually) greater environmental benefit than virgin ABS plastic. 28 In particular, increased computer recycling lessened environmental impacts. The research found that recovering and recycling the used plastics from computers minimized ‘human health and ecotoxicity impacts’ and reduced the overall emission of hazardous substances. 29

Dell has also begun to incorporate social impact metrics into its valuation framework. 30 Emergent strategies such as analysing activities for their use of social and human capital are likely to be an area for further refinement and application in the future. 31 At present, Dell is combining both environmental and social impact metrics into its process in order to help tackle the challenge of responsible e-waste disposal.

On a global scale, there is still huge potential to scale up circular resource streams in the IT sector and beyond. Only 10 per cent of the plastics produced today are recovered—and more than 50 per cent end up in landfills.

Dell has increased the use of recycled materials (both closed-loop and traditional post-consumer recycled materials) in new products and plans to continue to scale the programme.

As Dell continues to scale the current programme, it will look to expand into reclaiming and reusing other materials. Dell has already had success with using reclaimed carbon fibre for products and is currently using recycled ocean plastics ink made from captured diesel emissions for packaging.

Dell will also look at how ocean plastics or other solutions can be used with products.

Dell will continue to measure social impact using the same methodology, updating models for collection totals to follow form-factor trends. It will report progress annually, building on this total toward a cumulative 2 billion pounds by 2020. 32

Dell continues to lead conversations with governments and industry partners about recycling and circular loops on a global scale. Dell is open to innovative collaborations with even more customers, partners, and governments in the coming years. Dell sees particular opportunities in creating partnerships in developing countries to strengthen this ecosystem.

Dell’s take-back programme presents a compelling example of the potential of circular economy and closed-loop systems to contribute to responsible, mutual business practices. Looking towards the future, creating closed-loop recycling programmes in developing countries represents a new frontier. Recycling products in the countries from which they are recovered brings skilled jobs, creates industry, and strengthens the local economy. 33 Using its proven abilities to leverage partnerships and government relationships to create the infrastructure needed for new programmes, Dell can continue driving a culture of recycling in communities around the world. 34 As Dell’s programme example highlights, collaborative approaches have the potential to create both financial and environmental savings for corporations and customers on a global scale.

‘Dell Inc. at a Glance,’ Company Profile, Vault.com, http://www.vault.com/company-profiles/computer-hardware/dell-inc/company-overview .

Center for Security Studies, http://isnblog.ethz.ch .

Baldé, C.P., Forti V., Gray, V., Kuehr, R., Stegmann, P. The Global E-waste Monitor – 2017, United Nations University (UNU), International Telecommunication Union (ITU) & International Solid Waste Association (ISWA), Bonn/Geneva/Vienna.

Rubin (2015).

Kitsara (2014).

Baldé et al. (date).

Anya Khalamayzer.(2017) “8 Ripple Effects of the Circular Economy in 2017”, Greenbiz, https://www.greenbiz.com/article/8-ripple-effects-circular-economy-2017 .

‘Switched on to Value,’ WRAP Report, November 2014, http://www.wrap.org.uk/sites/files/wrap/Switched%20on%20to%20Value%2012%202014.pdf .

‘Plastics: Key Materials for Innovation and Productivity in Major Appliances,’ American Plastics Council, http://infohouse.p2ric.org/ref/11/10437.pdf .

‘Best Practices in Recycled Plastic,’ DigitalEurope , August 2016, http://www.digitaleurope.org/DesktopModules/Bring2mind/DMX/Download.aspx?Command=CoreDownload&EntryId=2276&language=en-US&PortalId=0&TabId=353 .

‘Best Practices in Recycled Plastic,’ DigitalEurope .

‘Full Circle’, Institute for Supply Management, October 2016—Lisa Arnseth interview with Jennifer Allison.

‘Dell on the Circular Economy’, March 2016, http://i.dell.com/sites/content/corporate/corp-comm/en/Documents/circular-economy-0316.pdf .

‘Dell Recycling,’ Dell Inc., http://www.dell.com/learn/us/en/uscorp1/dell-environment-recycling .

‘About Us,’ Goodwill Industries International, Inc., http://www.goodwill.org/about-us/ .

‘Dell Reconnect—How It Works’, Dell Inc., http://www.dell.com/learn/us/en/uscorp1/corp-comm/how-it-works-reconnect .

www.dell.com/gold .

Hower (2015).

‘Dell 2020 Legacy of Good Plan’, Dell Inc., http://i.dell.com/sites/doccontent/corporate/corp-comm/en/Documents/2020-plan.pdf .

‘Dell’s Closed-Loop Recycling Process’, Dell Inc., https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjdkPqots7TAhXhKsAKHde7AF0QFggoMAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Fi.dell.com%2Fsites%2Fdoccontent%2Fcorporate%2Fsecure%2Fen%2FDocuments%2FClosed-LoopRecyclingfull.pdf&usg=AFQjCNHzBL-F4ooKUkKnDSbgyHG8CLRzQ&sig2=bKIXDKjRA1YoWSQgh4H5yg .

Louise Koch (Corporate Sustainability Lead for Europe, Middle East and Africa), personal communication.

Scott O’Connell (Dell, Director of Environmental Affairs), interviewed by Mike Hower (Hower 2015)

Dell, Dell Inc., http://www.dell.com/en-us/ .

‘Valuing the Net Benefit of Dell’s More Sustainable Plastic Use at an Industry-Wide Scale’, Trucost, September 2015, http://i.dell.com/sites/content/corporate/corp-comm/en/Documents/circular-economy-net-benefits.pdf .

‘Dell 2020 Legacy of Good Plan,’ Dell Inc., http://i.dell.com/sites/doccontent/corporate/corp-comm/en/Documents/2020-plan.pdf

• About Oxford Academic
• Publish journals with us
• University press partners
• What we publish
• New features  
• Open access
• Institutional account management
• Rights and permissions
• Get help with access
• Accessibility
• Advertising
• Media enquiries
• Oxford University Press
• Oxford Languages
• University of Oxford

Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University's objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide

• Copyright © 2024 Oxford University Press
• Cookie settings
• Cookie policy
• Privacy policy
• Legal notice

This Feature Is Available To Subscribers Only

Sign In or Create an Account

This PDF is available to Subscribers Only

For full access to this pdf, sign in to an existing account, or purchase an annual subscription.

Brought to you by:

Dell Inc. in 2009

By: Stewart Thornhill, Ken Mark

The Dell story is well-known in the business world: a young Michael Dell, while attending the University of Texas in Austin, founds a computer sales company that eventually revolutionizes the…

• Length: 18 page(s)
• Publication Date: Dec 9, 2008
• Discipline: General Management
• Product #: 908M93-PDF-ENG

What's included:

• Teaching Note
• Educator Copy

$4.95 per student

degree granting course

$8.95 per student

non-degree granting course

Get access to this material, plus much more with a free Educator Account:

• Access to world-famous HBS cases
• Up to 60% off materials for your students
• Resources for teaching online
• Tips and reviews from other Educators

Already registered? Sign in

• Student Registration
• Non-Academic Registration
• Included Materials

The Dell story is well-known in the business world: a young Michael Dell, while attending the University of Texas in Austin, founds a computer sales company that eventually revolutionizes the industry. The case puts students in the position of a senior executive at Dell who is preparing for an investor relations meeting. As the senior executive reviews information on his company, he wonders how best to convey to skeptical investors that Dell's strategy will return the company to growth. In examining the Dell story, students learn about how Dell built up a set of competitive advantages that seemed unassailable until the early 2000s. The second part of the case illustrates the impermanence of competitive advantages - it describes how Dell is attempting to remake itself after falling behind its competitors.

Learning Objectives

This case study is suitable for undergraduate and graduate-level students and is designed to be taught within an 80-minute class. This Dell Inc. case study is designed to illustrate two points. First, a firm focusing on its competitive advantage can excel in the market and second, the difficulty of sustaining competitive advantage.

Dec 9, 2008 (Revised: May 3, 2017)

Discipline:

General Management

Geographies:

United States

Industries:

Electronics manufacturing

Ivey Publishing

908M93-PDF-ENG

We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience, including personalizing content. Learn More . By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies and revised Privacy Policy .

Dell Inc.’s Strategy and Competitiveness in 2008 Case Study

What is your evaluation of Michael Dell’s performance in his roles as Dell’s CEO and Chairman? How well has he performed the five tasks of crafting and executing a strategy that was discussed in Chapter 2?

The performance of Michael Dell as CEO and Chairman was excellent, his dynamic leadership, innovative marketing concept, and time-worthy decision guided Dell to turn it into the global giant of the information technology-related product and services. His excellent communication and easy accessibility, emphasis on the talented people and entrust control over the subordinates turned him into a role model to the juvenile executives and he established himself as the chief strategist for direct sales approach in the IT product and service market.

From the case study, it has been evidenced that as CEO of Dell Michael Dell performed such duties and responsibilities that commercially appointed CEOs may never perform for instance he traveled door to door to meeting customers, checking their demands, scrutinizing the outcomes of different strategies and the extents of customer’s satisfaction. The unparallel leadership of Michael Dell was again proved when he shifted the responsibility of CEO to Kevin Rollins, it demonstrated the most devastating impact on the performance of the company through slowed down in 2006 and the board was bound to resettle Michael Dell as the CEO of the company including chairman of the board. Michael Dell engaged his talent and innovation at crafting & executing Dell’s strategy in a very simple format – ‘PCs could be assembled by the order directly to the customer’ this strategic vision contains four doctrines such as well-built direct customer relationship, facilitate customers to obtain the customized product, providing efficient technology along with strong supply chain for the company. Michael Dell empowered the company in an extent stage where it has enabled to deliver any added value to customers with most up-to-date technology combining best performance and efficiency that would be accountable to customers ensure them the maximum return on investment for their along with non-proprietary as well as standardized technologies carry out most excellent value for the customers.

What are the elements of Dell’s strategy? Which one of the five generic competitive strategies is Dell employing? How well do the different pieces of Dell’s strategy fit together? In what ways is Dell’s strategy evolving?

According to the given case during 2002–2007, the seven core elements such as –

• Introducing build-to-order assembling services in a more and more cost-efficient way;
• Close collaboration with suppliers to constrict a cost-effective solution for the supply chain;
• To engage the best effort to maximize direct sales techniques to increase more and more customers,
• exploring new product and services to gain further superior market share of the global IT market;
• Ensuring best customer service for the Dell product along with appropriate technical support,
• Continuous spending for most up-to-date research and development to ensuring better customer satisfaction meeting their appropriate needs;
• All the Dell efforts always focused on product and services with standardized technologies

The low-cost strategy is the generic competitive strategies that Dell put into practice and the company is striving to endow with enormous services at a very low cost next to eradicating cost of the supply chain to deliver the sky-scraping quality of product and services as possible lower costs, all these strategies draw mutually assist Dell to gain success. Thus, Dell’s strategy has been evolving through getting higher its market creating new plants in different countries organizing its products integrating flexible computers along with simpler IT products and services that would capable the company to distinguish itself from the other competitors in the market.

Does Dell’s expansion into other IT products and services make good strategic sense? Why or why not?

It is fair enough for Dell to allow further expansion of its other IT products and services that would formulate superior strategic sense for the reason that in the concurrent time IT is no more a luxurious product, but categorized as a necessity product where Dell endow with value-added services to get together the requirements of the consumers. With the shifting dynamics of the market, if Dell keeps itself engaged in producing personal computers, its sales growth rate would defiantly decline for not to addressing the changing needs of the customers, by growing with the low-cost strategy to deliver the elevated quality of product and service integrating the competitive advantage of homogeneous technology. At this stage, Dell gained its competitive advantage by adopting skills at its directive, momentum along with efficiency that would capable to reduce cost more rapidly than all other, IT companies who are competitors of Dell.

Which company is competitively stronger—Dell or Hewlett-Packard?

Given case illustrated that Dell’s strategy has started to work with full speed by 2003 while its direct sales and build-to-order business model, as well as its strategy, has contributed the company with the largest part of well-organized procurement, assembling, and distribution ability in the global PC market where Dell enjoys an extensive cost along with profit margin advantage. At the beginning of Dell, Hewlett- Packard is a most strapping competitor in the IT product market where Dell’s global leadership proved its strength over HP where a new CEO reengineered the revitalized strategy that radically changed the gap between Dell and HP from 2006 to 2007 a gain of 18.8 % global market share where 14.9% share of Dell. In the context of the US domestic market, Dell also engaged its highest efforts to set control over HP in the financial year 2006-7 while Dell occupied 33.6% of the US market and HP has a share of 19.5 % which is outstanding about other market players, following table illustrate the strength of Del and HP-

In the US domestic market, the competitive strength of HP is next to Dell while the companies are positioned at the first and second position respectively during 1998–2007.

What issues and problems does Michael Dell need to address?

The most significant factors that Michael Dell must need to address is to explore the way of elevating sales along with strengthening the market share position with most competitive conditions where HP is at this time the major rival to Dell and it is emergence to take into account that HP is competitively stronger than Dell for trade competence. The sales of HP are constantly ever-increasing, even during the starting of the global financial crisis in 2007; HP demonstrated accelerated sales revenue growth while most of the promising competitors like Acer and Asus have failed to bit violently with Dell. On the other hand, the lack of innovation in product and service development is an additional factor for Dell that the company needed to address for its global expansion, consecutively, to attain the overseas customers more successfully, Dell must get hold of its costs that enlarge among the retail distribution where Dell would be able to utilize its best cost advantages. On the other hand, Dell needed to address its two key advantages at its supply chain management customized to the direct sales model that the company first put into practice and treated as a competitive advantage over the other competitors, the economic circumstance along with technological shifts is rapidly influence Dell to innovate its product and service.

• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2021, July 23). Dell Inc.'s Strategy and Competitiveness in 2008. https://ivypanda.com/essays/dell-incs-strategy-and-competitiveness-in-2008/

"Dell Inc.'s Strategy and Competitiveness in 2008." IvyPanda , 23 July 2021, ivypanda.com/essays/dell-incs-strategy-and-competitiveness-in-2008/.

IvyPanda . (2021) 'Dell Inc.'s Strategy and Competitiveness in 2008'. 23 July.

IvyPanda . 2021. "Dell Inc.'s Strategy and Competitiveness in 2008." July 23, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/dell-incs-strategy-and-competitiveness-in-2008/.

1. IvyPanda . "Dell Inc.'s Strategy and Competitiveness in 2008." July 23, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/dell-incs-strategy-and-competitiveness-in-2008/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Dell Inc.'s Strategy and Competitiveness in 2008." July 23, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/dell-incs-strategy-and-competitiveness-in-2008/.

• Dell Computer Company and Michael Dell
• Business Analysis of Dell Inc.
• Why Dell Company is Great
• The Success of Dell Company
• Dell Computers Company Planning and Organization
• The Keys to the Success of Dell
• Dell Computer Corporation: Competitive Advantages
• DELL and HP Machines Comparison
• Dell Company: Analytical and Cynical View
• Dell Incorporation Company Performance and Governance
• SOCAR's Market Presence in the European Oil and Gas Industry
• Revlon Company's Status in the Russian Industry
• Voestalpine Advantages in China's Industry
• Lickitty Cakes Company's Problems
• Sprouts Farmers Market Company's Entry to Canada

• Skip to content.
• Jump to Page Footer.

Foreign Investment in 2024: Fueling Global Growth in Tight Markets

Join us as we share crucial insights into the anticipated shifts and emerging trends that will define the funding ecosystem in 2024.

Case study: Dell—Distribution and supply chain innovation

Read the highlights

• Cutting out the middleman can work very well.
• Forgoing the retail route can increase customer value.
• Re-examine & improve efficiency for process/operations.
• Use sales data and customer feedback to get ahead of the curve.

In 1983, 18-year-old Michael Dell left college to work full-time for the company he founded as a freshman, providing hard-drive upgrades to corporate customers. In a year’s time, Dell’s venture had $6 million in annual sales. In 1985, Dell changed his strategy to begin offering built-to-order computers. That year, the company generated $70 million in sales. Five years later, revenues had climbed to $500 million, and by the end of 2000, Dell’s revenues had topped an astounding $25 billion. The meteoric rise of Dell Computers was largely due to innovations in supply chain and manufacturing, but also due to the implementation of a novel distribution strategy. By carefully analyzing and making strategic changes in the personal computer value chain, and by seizing on emerging market trends, Dell Inc. grew to dominate the PC market in less time than it takes many companies to launch their first product.

No more middleman: Dell started out as a direct seller, first using a mail-order system, and then taking advantage of the Internet to develop an online sales platform. Well before use of the Internet went mainstream, Dell had begun integrating online order status updates and technical support into their customer-facing operations. By 1997, Dell’s Internet sales had reached an average of $4 million per day . While most other PCs were sold preconfigured and pre-assembled in retail stores, Dell offered superior customer choice in system configuration at a deeply discounted price, due to the cost-savings associated with cutting out the retail middleman. This move away from the traditional distribution model for PC sales played a large role in Dell’s formidable early growth. Additionally, an important side-benefit of the Internet-based direct sales model was that it generated a wealth of market data the company used to efficiently forecast demand trends and carry out effective segmentation strategies. This data drove the company’s product development efforts and allowed Dell to profit from information on the value drivers in each of its key customer segments.

Virtual integration: On the manufacturing side, the company pursued an aggressive strategy of “virtual integration.” Dell required a highly reliable supply of top-quality PC components, but management did not want to integrate backward to become its own parts manufacturer. Instead, the company sought to develop long-term relationships with select, name-brand PC component manufacturers. Dell also required its key suppliers to establish inventory hubs near its own assembly plants. This allowed the company to communicate with supplier inventory hubs in real time for the delivery of a precise number of required components on short notice. This “just-in-time,” low-inventory strategy reduced the time it took for Dell to bring new PC models to market and resulted in significant cost advantages over the traditional stored-inventory method. This was particularly powerful in a market where old inventory quickly fell into obsolescence. Dell openly shared its production schedules, sales forecasts and plans for new products with its suppliers. This strategic closeness with supplier partners allowed Dell to reap the benefits of vertical integration, without requiring the company to invest billions setting up its own manufacturing operations in-house.

Innovation on the assembly floor: In 1997, Dell reorganized its assembly processes. Rather than having long assembly lines with each worker repeatedly performing a single task, Dell instituted “manufacturing cells.” These “cells” grouped workers together around a workstation where they assembled entire PCs according to customer specifications. Cell manufacturing doubled the company’s manufacturing productivity per square foot of assembly space, and reduced assembly times by 75%. Dell combined operational and process innovation with a revolutionary distribution model to generate tremendous cost-savings and unprecedented customer value in the PC market. The following are some key lessons from the story of Dell’s incredible rise:

1. Disintermediation (cutting out the middleman): Deleting a player in the distribution chain is a risky move, but can result in a substantial reduction in operating costs and dramatically improved margins. Some companies that have surged ahead after they eliminated an element in the traditional industry distribution chain include:

• Expedia (the online travel site that can beat the rates of almost any travel agency, while giving customers more choice and more detailed information on their vacation destination)
• ModCloth (a trendy virtual boutique with no bricks-and-mortar retail outlets to drive up costs)
• PropertyGuys.com (offers a DIY kit for homeowners who want to sell their houses themselves)
• iTunes (an online music purchasing platform that won’t have you sifting through a jumble of jewel cases at your local HMV)
• Amazon.com (an online sales platform that allows small-scale buyers and sellers to access a broad audience without the need for an expensive storefront or a custom website)
• Netflix (the no-late-fees online video rental company that will ship your chosen video rentals right to your door)

2. Enhancing customer value: Forgoing the retail route allowed Dell to simultaneously improve margins while offering consumers a better price on their PCs. This move also gave customers a chance to configure PCs according to their specific computing needs. The dramatic improvement in customer value that resulted from Dell’s unique distribution strategy propelled the company to a leading market position.

3. Process and operations innovation: Michael Dell recognized that “the way things had always been done” wasn’t the best or most efficient way to run things at his company. There are countless examples where someone took a new look at a company process and realized that there was a much better way to get things done. It is always worth re-examining process-based work to see if a change could improve efficiency. This is equally true whether you’re a company of five or 500.

4. Let data do the driving: Harnessing the easily accessible sales and customer feedback data that resulted from online sales allowed Dell to stay ahead of the demand curve in the rapidly evolving PC market. Similarly, sales and feedback data were helpful in discovering new ways to enhance customer value in each of Dell’s key customer segments. Whether your company is large or small, it is essential to keep tabs on metrics that could reveal emerging trends, changing attitudes, and other important opportunities for your company.

See additional learning materials for distribution .

Summary: Dell combined operational and process innovation with a revolutionary distribution model to generate tremendous cost-savings and unprecedented customer value in the PC market.

Read next: customer discovery: identifying effective distribution channels for your startup.

Strickland, T. (1999). Strategic Management, Concepts and Cases . McGraw Hill College Division: New York.

Dell’s Turnaround Strategy in 2008

January 8, 2010

Business Management Article

Dell’s new retail business and supply chain approach

Dell is taking steps to turnaround its business and recovering from losses and decline in its profit margins. Dell had first announced cost-cutting measures as early as May last year. In 2007, Dell changed its direct-sales model to offer computers in retail outlets, after losing the title of top PC maker to Hewlett-Packard Co (HP). Dell is now beginning to supply similar products to retailers like Wal-Mart, but as a smaller percentage of its business. Dell is currently the second largest computer retailer in the world behind HP.

Dell’s well-established direct-sales model allowed buyers to custom-build and purchase computers online or by phone. Customers could choose custom PCs (almost 500,000 configuration options or combinations that were assembled) direct from its factory. On the other hand, competitor HP also sold configure-to-order models but also supplied fixed-configuration PCs direct to retail.

Dell’s new retail business is not profitable as of now. So Dell aims to make its retail computer business cost-effective by aligning (reducing) manufacturing costs (cost of goods sold) with its competitors. But this will be challenging since Dell does not have the same volume in retail globally (as competitors), and therefore a smaller fixed base to spread costs. Secondly, Dell’s supply chain had not exactly been designed for mass distribution. HP uses a diversified supply chain unlike Dell’s one supply chain approach. [Download Case Study on Dell’s Supply Chain Management Strategy (pdf file)]

The return of Michael Dell and the Turnaround Plan

Michael Dell, the founder of Dell returned as the CEO in January 2007, and the company has a turnaround plan which it promises will yield $3 billion in annual savings over the next three or four years. Dell’s plans include depending more on resellers and contract manufacturers to cut costs and boost sales of which the consumer personal computer business is expected to contribute more than the current 15 percent of total revenue. (At HP, consumer sales of PCs and printers account for about one-third of revenue. Industry-wide sales of consumer PCs are growing at about twice the rate of PCs for businesses.) Contract manufacturers who manage large volumes of orders for big PC makers like HP will be given more work. But apart from concentrating on designing and manufacturing to cut costs, supply chain and logistics (distributing PCs for retailers) are key focus areas as scale is less of an issue. The cost-cutting exercise would also include restructuring of its logistics network and outsourcing more of its manufacturing operations. Dell also announced its intentions to install a logistics hub in Dubai to cater to the emerging market regions and also into the east African regions. Developed economies like the US (though the biggest) are the slow in growth. Last year, the EMEA region made up less that 25 per cent of its total revenues (70 per cent growth) and is estimated to be $61 billion in 2008.

Dell’s Turnaround Plan:

Cutting costs : Cutting costs is very important because competitors like HP use the money from profitable printers operations and take more market risk with designing innovative products. Moreover the prices of computers keep going down. One can buy a Dell laptop now for less than $500.

Moving away from computers internally and outsourcing more of its manufacturing operations : Dell has manufacturing facilities in Texas, North Carolina, Tennessee, and in Malaysia, Penang, China and Poland. Its manufacturing operation in Austin, Texas will shut down. Also HP, IBM and Sun Microsystems already have long-standing partnerships with outside manufacturing partners. These partners offer customers bundles of computer hardware, software and services. Dell on the other hand is relatively a new player in this field and has traditionally depended on its own businesses to design and make computers.

Moving into indirect sales channels like computer resellers and retailers .

Introducing more products : New product introduction is vital since major PC manufacturers realistically only make money in the first three months (or six in some cases) of a new product.

Analysts predict that it will take Dell one more year for its PCs to be as cost-effective as its competitors and stage a recovery.

• Business User
• IT Professional
• Microsoft 365
• Microsoft Copilot
• Microsoft Copilot for Microsoft 365
• Microsoft Copilot for Sales
• Microsoft Copilot for Small and Medium Business
• Microsoft Adoption Score
• Microsoft Dynamics 365
• Microsoft Lists
• Microsoft Loop
• Microsoft Mesh
• Microsoft Planner
• Microsoft Power Platform
• Microsoft Search
• Classic Microsoft Teams
• New Microsoft Teams
• Microsoft Teams Premium
• Microsoft Teams Phone
• Microsoft Security
• Microsoft Syntex
• Microsoft Viva
• Outlook mobile
• SharePoint Premium
• Champion Management Platform
• Extensibility Look Book Gallery
• Microsoft 365 Archive
• Microsoft 365 Backup
• Microsoft 365 Learning Pathways
• Microsoft Intelligent Document Processing
• Microsoft Teams App Templates
• New Employee Onboarding Solution Accelerator
• Partner Solution Gallery
• Sample Solution Gallery
• SharePoint eSignature
• SharePoint look book
• Accessibility
• Adoption guides
• Azure Adoption Framework
• Case Studies
• Employee experience
• FastTrack for Microsoft 365
• Frontline workers
• Guidance for virtual events
• Leading in the era of AI
• Microsoft 365 Roadmap
• Meetings, webinars, and town halls in Microsoft Teams
• Microsoft Copilot resources for education
• Modern Collaboration Architecture (MOCA)
• Podcasts & Shows
• Remote learning in education
• Skype for Business to Microsoft Teams upgrade
• Streamline end user training
• AI learning hub
• Become a Service Adoption Specialist
• Coffee in the Cloud tutorials
• Developer training
• End user training
• IT Pro training
• Microsoft 365 Champion Program
• Microsoft Learn
• Modern Work Customer Hub (Microsoft Copilot customer training)
• Office Quick Start guides
• Community Events
• Community Tenant
• Global Community Initiative
• Microsoft Community Hub
• Student Ambassador Community
• Release notes

Home / Case Studies / Dell Technologies

Dell Technologies unlocks new connections and streamlines work with Microsoft Viva Topics

Published on March 1, 2023

Dell Technologies

Among one of the world’s leading technology companies, Dell Technologies is committed to transforming business, shaping the future of innovation, and driving human progress. With more than 158,000 employees, the organization has a vast amount of organizational knowledge and content that its tens of thousands of salespeople around the world consider vital. Dell Technologies turned to Microsoft Viva Topics, a knowledge platform that uses AI to bring knowledge and content directly to employees in the Microsoft 365 apps where they already work.

When Sandra Murtagh, Vice President of Global Sales Learning and Development at Dell Technologies, and Karen Butcher, Head of the Global Sales Learning and Development Transformation Office at Dell Technologies, launched a transformation office within the Dell learning and development organization, the goal was to orient the sales function toward the future. “We’re always thinking about what’s next,” says Butcher. “How can we make the learning experience better? How can we make life easier for our sellers?”

They focused on delivering great experiences and integrating their learning platform with Microsoft Teams, where sellers will be able to access training content at the moment of need. Viva Topics emerged as the next logical step. “Moving forward, we want to integrate more and more information in convenient places for sellers,” says Butcher. “That’s exactly what we’ve started to do with Viva Topics.”

The sales learning and development organization at Dell recognized AI as the most effective way to gather and present large amounts of information. “We’re using Viva Topics because it’s an AI-driven curation engine that pulls together both content and people associated with topics,” says Bruce Sánchez, Global Lead for Sales Learning and Development Technology at Dell Technologies. And because Viva Topics will extend to partner apps, employees will gain a full picture of information gathered from Microsoft sources and beyond. “We’re always on the lookout for partner integrations,” adds Srikanth Ramaswamy, Global Lead for Modern Content and Collaboration Services, Dell Digital Team Member Experience at Dell Technologies. After the success of the pilot testing phase, Dell has recently expanded the use of Viva Topics and embraced a full-scale rollout across its global sales force.

Turning to Viva Topics to uncover knowledge from within the apps they use every day leads Dell sales employees to forge new connections with colleagues. “That’s probably one of the biggest benefits we’re experiencing,” says Murtagh. “Historically, we relied on legacy relationships, but with the combination of Microsoft Teams and Viva Topics, we’re opening up collaboration and relationships across all our functions.” 

The ability to effortlessly create connections is a boon for a global, highly dispersed sales force. “Dell has championed working from home for many years,” says Butcher. “And today, a hybrid approach is at the forefront of our organization.” Creating a flexible, highly mobile experience for sellers is one way the sales learning and development organization supports the hybrid approach for Dell’s sales team. “The ability to easily search for and uncover content natively in Teams and other applications was a big hit,” Butcher continues. “Especially because people have the same experience on mobile devices and desktops, no matter where they work from.” 

“We’ve made Viva Topics a big part of our reimagination of what work looks like for our sellers.”

As the sales learning and development organization expands its use of Viva Topics, it’s also exploring other Microsoft Viva modules, including Microsoft Viva Connections, Microsoft Viva Sales, and Microsoft Viva Insights. It’s an exciting moment. “I’ve been with Dell for 26 years,” says Murtagh. “Where we are now in terms of knowledge management and learning is a massive flip from where we were in the past. We’ve made Viva Topics a big part of our reimagination of what work looks like for our sellers.”

Share this page

•  Share on Microsoft Teams
• Share on Facebook
• Share on LinkedIn

• Workforce and Demographics
• Major Employers
• Workforce Development
• Small Business
• Launch Metro OKC- Small Business Resources
• Infrastructure
• Business Costs
• Data Center
• Business Expansions
• Aviation and Aerospace
• Film and Creative Industries
• Shared Services
• Properties & Demographics (OKCEDIS)
• Featured LoopNet Properties
• Overall Map
• Canadian County
• Cleveland County
• Grady County
• Kingfisher County
• Lincoln County
• Logan County
• McClain County
• Oklahoma County
• Payne County
• Pottowatomie County
• Midwest City
• Oklahoma City
• Slaughterville
• Partnership Organizations
• Regional Data
• Aerospace in OKC
• A River's Rise
• The BioTech Story
• By the Numbers
• 2024 Economic Outlook
• Coming Soon

Dell, Inc. Case Study

Landing Dell confirmed what City leaders already knew. Oklahoma City was ready for prime time and had established itself as a hot location for tech jobs.

Provide an appropriate site, workforce plan, and incentives package to persuade a major technology firm to not only locate in Oklahoma City, but also broaden and develop their initial paradigm to allow for a greater vision and mutually beneficial end result.

Assemble a nimble, creative team with common goals and the ability to change focus quickly, providing a firm with not only their stated needs but the grounds and motivation for an even larger, more expansive operation.

• Greater economic impact
• “Anchor tenant” for riverfront redevelopment
• Creation of working model for future corporate location / site selection opportunities
• Validation / continuance of Oklahoma City’s economic and cultural renaissance

INTRODUCTION

When Dell, the world’s largest computer maker, announced plans in July 2004 to open a Customer Care Center in Oklahoma City, it caught many people by surprise. But it didn’t surprise anyone who had worked behind the scenes to make it happen.

“Frankly, internally the rumor was that Tampa had landed the deal, but Oklahoma City didn’t back down -- and the pride, true loyalty and commitment of everyone that we interacted with was material,” said Brenda Hudson, Director of SMB Services for Dell Inc. Hudson served on Dell’s North American Site Assessment team and later became the first director of the Oklahoma City operation.

“This wasn’t just an economic development initiative,” she said. “This was a joining of a corporation with real people and a real community and a real sense of partnership. The excitement around what Dell could do for the community was palpable and frankly, still is.”

Landing Dell confirmed what City leaders already knew. Oklahoma City was ready for prime time and had established itself as a hot location for tech jobs. In fact, Expansion Management magazine named Oklahoma City the eighth hottest city for business relocation in 2005, ahead of Dallas-Fort Worth.

“The Dell brand is very strong,” said Mayor Mick Cornett, “and Oklahoma City’s brand is rising.”

Today Dell serves as a gateway to the city’s downtown core and as an anchor for the new riverfront redevelopment. As drivers head north or south on Interstate 44 across the Oklahoma River, the two buildings of Dell’s Oklahoma City campus provide a striking visual symbol of what’s possible when a leading global company creates a lasting partnership with an unprecedented team of public and private partners.

SITE SELECTION PROCESS

According to Charles Kimbrough, then business recruiter with the Oklahoma Department of Commerce, Dell was first looking at who might staff their new operation. “They asked for specific information, largely surrounding labor statistics, and made it clear the project would be workforce-driven. One of the things they wanted in that first proposal was the wage rate for their proposed positions compared to the average household income and compared to the price of a 2000 square-foot home. Their goal was to hire people at a wage that would allow them to live comfortably.”

There were several unique aspects to the Dell site selection process, including Dell’s use of an internal site selection team, the changing scope of the project and the need for a seamless and effective local planning team.

“Dell had a good team of people,” said Gary Pence, senior business development manager with the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber. “Tom Menke, then Dell’s senior project strategist, and Charles Kimbrough bonded from the start. The teams were able to work through a lot of issues with Dell because of that trust.”

It was also unusual that the scope of the Dell project changed quite dramatically over a short amount of time. Almost overnight, Dell’s plans grew from a 250-person customer care center in an old retail site to a high profile campus with a workforce of over 1,000 persons. Workforce was the driver for the change, and city and state officials had always had a bigger vision for what was possible.

“We were confident from the start because we thought we were vying for a small customer care center, and those can be placed in practically any metropolitan area,” explained Roy Williams, President and CEO of the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber. “We just made up our minds to do everything we could to help Dell understand what our City really had to offer.”

In the end, sharing a bigger vision with Dell paid off. “Dell’s team recognized there was much more here than they initially thought and that there was potential for a different kind of business unit,” Williams said. “They figured out that we were capable of embracing just about anything they chose to do.”

In addition to the uniqueness of Dell’s in-house site selection team and the speed with which the project quickly morphed into something much bigger than anyone expected, the comprehensive team that the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber and the state of Oklahoma put together was integral to the ultimate success of the effort.

The caliber of team members, their ability to align programs and services across agencies, and their quick responses to Dell’s needs impressed Dell officials. “Oklahoma City was very creative in the negotiation phase and gave Dell every courtesy, and made it clear that the endeavor was a partnership, not just an economic development project,” said Hudson.

Once Dell officials made the decision to locate in Oklahoma City, the ramp up time was unusually short. In just two months the teams were able to hire the initial workforce and finalize the riverfront land deal with the City.

The quality of the greater Oklahoma City area workforce was a deciding factor in Dell’s site location decision. While there may have been doubters on the Dell team early on, city and state officials quickly proved that Oklahoma City could handle the employment needs of a major technology company.

So how did Oklahoma City prove to Dell officials that the region could support their employment needs?

Oklahoma City and state officials ran a blind employment ad to find out how many qualified responses they would get. People responding to the ad had to do a short online assessment and send in a resume. The results were impressive.

“At the next meeting with Dell, Richard Gilbertson, OESC director of employment services, brought in a stack of applications a foot deep and sat them on the table. ‘Here are a few prospective employees I think you will be interested in,’ he said. The visual image alone was spectacular.”

After Dell officials formally announced plans to locate in Oklahoma City in July 2004, the OESC, Career Tech and the Workforce Investment Board recruited, tested, screened, trained, and delivered applicants to Dell who were prepared and ready to go to work.

An agreement between Dell and Oklahoma’s Training for Industry Program (TIP) meant that the state paid for assessments, the training of new employees and top-notch classroom space, furnishings and equipment.

Dell began operations in Oklahoma City from a temporary location in the Hertz Financial Center in September 2004. At that time, according to Kimbrough, Dell was still looking at two different communities in Oklahoma for their permanent location.

“Oklahoma City put together a proposal that was incubated out of Cathy O’Connor’s office that simply blew Dell away,” Kimbrough said. “It was one of the most clever and creative proposals I have ever seen.”

O’Connor was Oklahoma City’s lead negotiator on the Dell project. She proposed the site along the Oklahoma River and explained that if Dell chose a site in a blighted area they could receive more incentives. Oklahoma City had already offered $2 million in incentives for one location, but Dell could qualify for at least $2 million more if they chose the River site.

Dell was also looking at Oklahoma City’s quality of life. “Without our knowledge, one of Dell’s top officials brought his entire family to Oklahoma City for Memorial Day Weekend to find out what living in Oklahoma City was like,” Kimbrough said. That informal, behind-the-scenes visit had a positive impact on Dell’s decision. One month later they announced plans to build their own facility on an approximately 55-acre site on the Oklahoma River.

By July 2005 Dell announced expansion of employment and a second building at its Oklahoma facility. Just a year after choosing Oklahoma City for its sixth customer care center, Dell expanded its work force twice and began building two 120,000 square foot offices along the Oklahoma River to house at least 1,000 employees each. Karen Quintos, then vice president and general manager of Dell Americas Contact Centers said, “The quality of the area work force made the decision to expand our operation an easy one. We have exceeded our performance expectations here for our customers since taking our fist call in September 2004.”

SITE AND INCENTIVES

When Dell decided to search for a larger site, the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber used a sophisticated, web-based, Geographic Information System (GIS) called The Oklahoma City Economic Development Information System (OKCEDIS) to obtain data about properties in the area, including availability, cost per square foot and amenities such as hotels, restaurants, and traffic conditions around specific sites. They were also able to look at work force availability at various mile radii simultaneously. Using OKCEDIS sped up the site location process and it was the first time Dell had used GIS.

O’Connor said that in addition to the City providing an initial $4 million in incentives, she developed the idea of providing additional monies for jobs that were created, and funded those grants from federal Community Development Block Grant dollars. That idea led to $5.5 million in job creation grants for Dell.

“TIF revenues were used to make site improvements,” O’Connor explained. “It would not have been possible for Oklahoma City to fund the incentives needed to attract Dell and create up to 3500 new jobs in Oklahoma City without TIF.”

In Dell’s case, the City created both a sales tax and a property tax increment district. The sales tax increment is based on new sales taxes generated by the jobs created by Dell.

Dell’s campus is located on a 62-acre site along the Oklahoma River in Oklahoma’s federally designated Empowerment Zone.

By locating in an Empowerment Zone, which is created in an area where average wages are low to promote public-private collaboration to stimulate job growth, Dell is able to take advantage of unique tax breaks and incentives.

Today Dell has a developable site for future growth, and could add a third building on their campus site, according to Batchelor. But because Dell took the initiative to develop and build on a brownfield site in an EZ, there is great potential to add new development in the area.

“Right now we are involved in several follow through pieces, including a Riverfront Redevelopment Plan that will develop an area adjacent to Dell on the east and west,” said Batchelor.

At the state level, Dell qualified for the Quality Jobs Program, which pays rebates of up to five percent of payroll each quarter in exchange for hiring new employees. Dell also received TIP funding from the state for employee recruitment and training.

Although incentives are always important, Hudson said the willingness of the Chamber team, Francis Tuttle Technology Center, Mayor Cornett, Governor Henry and others to “really understand our business, our candidate profile and our ramp, resonated throughout the site selection process and set Oklahoma City apart from the rest.”

“Dell wanted a really cool kind of campus to attract the kind of employees they wanted,” Williams said. “And we wanted a corporate anchor on the river to make a statement about where we are headed as a city. We knew it would be successful.”

RESULTS/ECONOMIC IMPACT

The results of Dell’s decision to locate in Oklahoma City have been phenomenal. Dell has hired and trained more than 2000 people since September 2004 and continues to find strong candidates for sales and technical support positions.

Dell’s Oklahoma City campus has exceeded expectations when compared to other Dell Centers, according to Hudson. “Oklahoma City has performed exceptionally well comparatively. The high-end technical group quickly became best of breed from both a delivery and customer satisfaction standpoint and the sales arms also ramped quickly and competitively.”

Oklahoma City’s Dell campus supports ten Dell business units and served over nine million customers in 2007. Since its inception, Dell’s Oklahoma City facility has had a total economic impact of $631 million in the region.

In addition to Dell’s financial impact, the company has given back to the community in many other ways. According to Kathy Oden-Hall, Dell Oklahoma’s corporate communications manager, employees donated about 5000 hours in community service in 2007 alone. They have supported events and projects for children through the Boys and Girls Club and Baptist Children’s Home, provided meals for the hungry through the Regional Food Bank, donated blood to the Oklahoma Blood Institute and garnered the “Most Spirited Award” three years running for the Dell water stop at the Oklahoma Memorial Marathon.

The Dell Foundation has also contributed more than $300,000 to area organizations. “Globally, Dell understands the importance of community service, and has made a commitment to support local communities where their employees live and work,” according to Oden-Hall.

“We will have a solid and lasting relationship with Dell as a company because we built personal relationships with the people involved,” said Williams. We continue to provide legislative and business support to Dell as well. I consider it a compliment that they call on us first for assistance.”

As a result of the entire Dell experience, the Oklahoma City recruitment team believes they have a competitive advantage because they know each other well and work well together.

“In other states people may come to the table not knowing each other and distrusting each other,” explained Dearing. “We know each other well. We know our roles and responsibilities, respect each other, and stay in touch with each other. It takes all of us to make something this wonderful work, and it is invaluable to a prospect.”

More Case Studies

Greater Oklahoma City excels in exceeding expectations. Read more about how our team helped deliver value and great working relationships to our customers.

For Oklahoma City, the cost of living, pro-business environment, incredible incentives offered, central location and quality of life combine to make OKC an ideal place to do business.

Throughout Tinker Air Force Base’s history dating back to the 1940s, Oklahoma City leaders have shown an ongoing willingness to support the U.S. military’s mission here however they can.

The Greater Oklahoma City Chamber did more than figure out what to do. They came up with a big idea and brought all the necessary players together to make it happen.

Our Affiliates

Visit Oklahoma City

Greater OKC Chamber

Relocation Resources

Media Resources

VeloCity OKC

Greater Oklahoma City Chamber

Economic Development

123 Park Avenue

Oklahoma City, OK 73102

(405) 297-8900

Fern Fort University

Dell inc. - investment strategy case study analysis & solution, harvard business case studies solutions - assignment help.

Dell Inc. - Investment Strategy is a Harvard Business (HBR) Case Study on Finance & Accounting , Fern Fort University provides HBR case study assignment help for just $11. Our case solution is based on Case Study Method expertise & our global insights.

Finance & Accounting Case Study | Authors :: Larry Wynant, Ken Mark

Case study description.

At the start of August 2008, Dell Inc. (Dell) seems to be at a critical juncture. Michael Dell's return a year and a half ago has brought significant change to the company, including a focus on growing market segments, a shift in the company's distribution strategy, and an emphasis on design in Dell's product lineup. Despite these changes, Dell's stock price has lost value since Michael's return. A portfolio manager is trying to assess if Michael Dell's return to the helm of Dell Inc. and the company's shift in distribution strategy will turn around the company's stock price. To support his analysis, the portfolio manager has asked his team to assemble comparative financial data on Dell and its key competitors. The portfolio manager wants to know if he should buy, hold or sell Dell's shares. There are three teaching objectives for this case: assess financial performance using financial statements and financial ratios; identify cash flow and profit drivers; and identify the determinants of value and stock price.

Forecasting

Order a Finance & Accounting case study solution now

To Search More HBR Case Studies Solution Go to Fern Fort University Search Page

[10 Steps] Case Study Analysis & Solution

Step 1 - reading up harvard business review fundamentals on the finance & accounting.

Even before you start reading a business case study just make sure that you have brushed up the Harvard Business Review (HBR) fundamentals on the Finance & Accounting. Brushing up HBR fundamentals will provide a strong base for investigative reading. Often readers scan through the business case study without having a clear map in mind. This leads to unstructured learning process resulting in missed details and at worse wrong conclusions. Reading up the HBR fundamentals helps in sketching out business case study analysis and solution roadmap even before you start reading the case study. It also provides starting ideas as fundamentals often provide insight into some of the aspects that may not be covered in the business case study itself.

Step 2 - Reading the Dell Inc. - Investment Strategy HBR Case Study

To write an emphatic case study analysis and provide pragmatic and actionable solutions, you must have a strong grasps of the facts and the central problem of the HBR case study. Begin slowly - underline the details and sketch out the business case study description map. In some cases you will able to find the central problem in the beginning itself while in others it may be in the end in form of questions. Business case study paragraph by paragraph mapping will help you in organizing the information correctly and provide a clear guide to go back to the case study if you need further information. My case study strategy involves -

• Marking out the protagonist and key players in the case study from the very start.
• Drawing a motivation chart of the key players and their priorities from the case study description.
• Refine the central problem the protagonist is facing in the case and how it relates to the HBR fundamentals on the topic.
• Evaluate each detail in the case study in light of the HBR case study analysis core ideas.

Step 3 - Dell Inc. - Investment Strategy Case Study Analysis

Once you are comfortable with the details and objective of the business case study proceed forward to put some details into the analysis template. You can do business case study analysis by following Fern Fort University step by step instructions -

• Company history is provided in the first half of the case. You can use this history to draw a growth path and illustrate vision, mission and strategic objectives of the organization. Often history is provided in the case not only to provide a background to the problem but also provide the scope of the solution that you can write for the case study.
• HBR case studies provide anecdotal instances from managers and employees in the organization to give a feel of real situation on the ground. Use these instances and opinions to mark out the organization's culture, its people priorities & inhibitions.
• Make a time line of the events and issues in the case study. Time line can provide the clue for the next step in organization's journey. Time line also provides an insight into the progressive challenges the company is facing in the case study.

Step 4 - SWOT Analysis of Dell Inc. - Investment Strategy

Once you finished the case analysis, time line of the events and other critical details. Focus on the following -

• Zero down on the central problem and two to five related problems in the case study.
• Do the SWOT analysis of the Dell Inc. - Investment Strategy . SWOT analysis is a strategic tool to map out the strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats that a firm is facing.
• SWOT analysis and SWOT Matrix will help you to clearly mark out - Strengths Weakness Opportunities & Threats that the organization or manager is facing in the Dell Inc. - Investment Strategy
• SWOT analysis will also provide a priority list of problem to be solved.
• You can also do a weighted SWOT analysis of Dell Inc. - Investment Strategy HBR case study.

Step 5 - Porter 5 Forces / Strategic Analysis of Industry Analysis Dell Inc. - Investment Strategy

In our live classes we often come across business managers who pinpoint one problem in the case and build a case study analysis and solution around that singular point. Business environments are often complex and require holistic solutions. You should try to understand not only the organization but also the industry which the business operates in. Porter Five Forces is a strategic analysis tool that will help you in understanding the relative powers of the key players in the business case study and what sort of pragmatic and actionable case study solution is viable in the light of given facts.

Step 6 - PESTEL, PEST / STEP Analysis of Dell Inc. - Investment Strategy

Another way of understanding the external environment of the firm in Dell Inc. - Investment Strategy is to do a PESTEL - Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental & Legal analysis of the environment the firm operates in. You should make a list of factors that have significant impact on the organization and factors that drive growth in the industry. You can even identify the source of firm's competitive advantage based on PESTEL analysis and Organization's Core Competencies.

Step 7 - Organizing & Prioritizing the Analysis into Dell Inc. - Investment Strategy Case Study Solution

Once you have developed multipronged approach and work out various suggestions based on the strategic tools. The next step is organizing the solution based on the requirement of the case. You can use the following strategy to organize the findings and suggestions.

• Build a corporate level strategy - organizing your findings and recommendations in a way to answer the larger strategic objective of the firm. It include using the analysis to answer the company's vision, mission and key objectives , and how your suggestions will take the company to next level in achieving those goals.
• Business Unit Level Solution - The case study may put you in a position of a marketing manager of a small brand. So instead of providing recommendations for overall company you need to specify the marketing objectives of that particular brand. You have to recommend business unit level recommendations. The scope of the recommendations will be limited to the particular unit but you have to take care of the fact that your recommendations are don't directly contradict the company's overall strategy. For example you can recommend a low cost strategy but the company core competency is design differentiation.
• Case study solutions can also provide recommendation for the business manager or leader described in the business case study.

Step 8 -Implementation Framework

The goal of the business case study is not only to identify problems and recommend solutions but also to provide a framework to implement those case study solutions. Implementation framework differentiates good case study solutions from great case study solutions. If you able to provide a detailed implementation framework then you have successfully achieved the following objectives -

• Detailed understanding of the case,
• Clarity of HBR case study fundamentals,
• Analyzed case details based on those fundamentals and
• Developed an ability to prioritize recommendations based on probability of their successful implementation.

Implementation framework helps in weeding out non actionable recommendations, resulting in awesome Dell Inc. - Investment Strategy case study solution.

Step 9 - Take a Break

Once you finished the case study implementation framework. Take a small break, grab a cup of coffee or whatever you like, go for a walk or just shoot some hoops.

Step 10 - Critically Examine Dell Inc. - Investment Strategy case study solution

After refreshing your mind, read your case study solution critically. When we are writing case study solution we often have details on our screen as well as in our head. This leads to either missing details or poor sentence structures. Once refreshed go through the case solution again - improve sentence structures and grammar, double check the numbers provided in your analysis and question your recommendations. Be very slow with this process as rushing through it leads to missing key details. Once done it is time to hit the attach button.

Previous 5 HBR Case Study Solution

• Alumni Action Foundation: Currency Hedging Strategy Case Study Solution
• AQR's DELTA Strategy Case Study Solution
• SinYi Corporation Expansion Strategy in China Case Study Solution
• Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Intercreditor Agreement Case Study Solution
• Battling Over a New York Workout: the W Hotel Strategy Case Study Solution

Next 5 HBR Case Study Solution

• Martingale Asset Management LP in 2008, 130/30 Funds, and a Low-Volatility Strategy Case Study Solution
• Trading Strategies with Options Case Study Solution
• Market Integration and Portfolio Strategy Case Study Solution
• Internet Customer Acquisition Strategy at Bankinter Case Study Solution
• Susan Griffin: Formulation of a Long-Term Investment Strategy Case Study Solution

Special Offers

Order custom Harvard Business Case Study Analysis & Solution. Starting just $19

Amazing Business Data Maps. Send your data or let us do the research. We make the greatest data maps.

We make beautiful, dynamic charts, heatmaps, co-relation plots, 3D plots & more.

Buy Professional PPT templates to impress your boss

Nobody get fired for buying our Business Reports Templates. They are just awesome.

• More Services

Feel free to drop us an email

• fernfortuniversity[@]gmail.com
• (000) 000-0000