Dell, Incorporated: the key success factors

(Source: Harvard School of Business Journal, March 25. 2007)

Summary of the Article

Dell key factors for success is it develops, manufacture and sells own products in a

vast market worldwide and supports personal computers, server, data storage, devices,

network switches, personal digital assistance(PD), software and computer peripherals.

The corporation markets specific brand names to different consumer segments. It

typically sells the OptiPlex, Latitude, and Precision names to medium – sized and large

business customers, where the company’s advertising emphasizes long life cycles,

reliability, and serviceability. Added factors to Dell’s success are its;

a. Core which is the system itself

b. Best effort which is trying to assist a customer with a en-mail or soft ware error

c. Seamless support which is characterized by conferencing a customer via an ISP to

verify settings.

Dell’s brands such as Dimension, Inspiron, and XPS have an orientation towards

consumers, students and small home office environments, emphasizing value,

performance and expandability. Dell XPS brand targets the lucrative gaming market. XPS

desktop systems use silver rather than black cases found on newer Dell PC’s. Dell have

also diversified its product line to include peripheral products such as USB key drives,

LCD television and printer.

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Assessment of the Article

I admire the brains of those behind the entire development of Dell laptops and

computers and its product development. The financial obligation of the company behind

this undertaking must have been entirely unequaled; however, I sense Dell financial

independence is not all perfect. Some necessary factors involving its operation are

unintentionally left out and not reported to the benefit of the entire organization

knowledge management.

In this sense I could say that Dell some operating system (OS) of Dell computers

which are made exclusively for its own brand and do not accept other machines like the

case of Apple\s new Intel version of the Mac OS X operating system. Dell’s customers

are complaining about clogging lines whenever they make request for assistance due to

failure in Dell’s OS. Dell system transfers customer calls several times between queues

before they reach the appropriate department. According to the Better Business Bureau,

complaints about Dell’s operating system more than doubled in 2006. Dell acknowledges

that it had problems with customers’ service including transfers of more than 45% of calls

and long wait-times. If I may be allowed to advise the company I would say that Dell’s

research team and management must watch out for the quality of materials that they used

in manufacturing their products. Remember their experience in 2006 when Sony

manufactured batteries could overheat and catch fire; the company had to recall all its

units and repaid their customers. The incident caused a lot of damage and terrible loss of

money for the Company.

I also read an article accusing Dell Company being skeptical toward negative

criticisms like unfair practices to obtain tax revenue. Some shareholders filed law lawsuit

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accusing Dell and Intel of conspiring, and accusing Dell executives including CEO

Michael Dell of options- backdating and of propped financial reports. Seven current and

former workers at a call-center in Roseburg, Oregon sued Dell for unfair labor practice

and failed to provide proper rest-breaks and improperly recorded their lunch-periods.

Therefore, I could say that this article is not entirely correct because in my assessment,

Dell Company is not a real model of a company that exercises its social responsibility

amidst it financial success as they claimed.