Dell Company Overview
Dell Inc. was formerly known as PC’s limited between the year 1984 and 1988 as well as Dell Computers Corporation between the year 1988 and 2003. The company is known as one of the most significant companies that deals in designing, developing and manufacturing of personal computers in the globe. Besides, it is also known for the production of computer-related products. The company has dramatically thrived in the United States of America and has penetrated international markets in the globe, with its headquarters in Round Rock, Texas.
Dell World Headquarters
1 Dell Way
Round Rock, TX 78682
512-338-4400
800-289-3355
Michael Dell first established the company in 1984. The company started by providing custom-made upgrades for Computers. With the endeavour to proving to be profitable and the founder dropped out of the school to begin building PCs. It was in 1985 when the company produce Turbo PC, which was its design. Founded on the mission of selling customised PCs directly to customers, the company, therefore, specialized on selling products to customers through catalogues, email-order and advertisement (Gilabert, Eduardo, et al., 2017, 2249). Concisely, Dell’s vision statement is, “It is the way we organise business. It is the way we interrelate with the society. It’s how we understand the world around us which include the client needs, technology and global business environment. Dell is aimed at satisfying the customers. Therefore in order to attain customer satisfaction, they need the modern technology and more loyal consumers. “Through avoiding various cost through traditional retail markets, the company attained a tremendous competitive advantage to its competitors and offered its products at lower prices. Inquest to create customer loyalty and penetrate broader markets, Dell stressed on referring technicians to service PCs, customer support and fulfilling of risk-free return plans. In 1989, Dell released its first notebook computer, the 316LT. In 1991, the company also released its coloured notebook computer and durable lithium-ion batteries. In 1996, it was a significant breakthrough for the company since it leveraged the use of the internet for client support and selling of PCs online which made it possible for the company to overtake Compaq Computer Corporation as the significant seller of PCs in the US. During the 21st century, Dell has extended its product mix to digital cameras, televisions, and other variety of computer-related products. The ownership of the company had shifted from to private ownership in 2013 when Michael Dell purchased the company in partnership with Silver Lake Partners. Moreover, in 2016, the company also attained EMC, an American company specialising in data storage which has made the worth of Dell to $60 billion as shown below.
Industry Overview
Dell Industry being a producer of computers, faces high competition. Some of the most significant competitors include a range of technology giants companies such as Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Group which is known as HP Inc. Besides, there is also the Lenovo Group Ltd. and Apple Inc. To stay competitive in the fair, the company has pulled dollars of its own money to take the company private. Such a move has made it possible for the company to expand into new sectors such as cloud services and enterprise hardware (Larsen, and Anne Isabell, 2017, 227). The transition of Dell Industry has been tremendous. For instance, the company grew from an unconventional start-up to an international technology leader. Therefore, the company has enjoyed fantastic long-term growth in its target market. Through the application of marketing principles such as positioning, targeting and segmentation, the company has attained a variety of target market. Some of the main target markets for the company include tech-savvy people, executives and professionals. Such a target market has been possible through customer connection and excellent marketing strategies.
Dell’s marketing strategy is inclined to offering tangible and intangible benefits to their clients. In that case, Dell provides a variety of products to ultimately provide the best satisfaction to the clients. Besides, the company customizes its customers’ needs and demands, mainly depending on the size such as small and large, private and corporate clients. Dell’s products range from hand-held devices to tablets. The company industry also provides mainly laptops and desktops as well as leger server solutions which are the first business engagement. Concerning the pricing strategies, the strategies change with the product cycle. However, the main objective of the company is to provide the best product with the best price possible. Such an objective is seen in the customization process of the products. For instance, the needs and demands of the clients are best configured with affordability and price. Such a strategy of pricing ensures that the company continues to gain a more significant market share.
Moreover, the company has also focused on the use of the internet as the direct sales channel has propelled to a more considerable profit margin and keeping the prices as low as possible (Kraemer, Kenneth, and Jason Dedrick, 2001, 147). In the emerging market like India and China, Dell has devoted to selling their products through their retail outlets. Besides, they have also increased the number of its portfolio through a building franchise network. Dell has also considered marketing their products through various strategies such as TV-advertising and also through the internet. Promotional strategies that Dell has leveraged include Walmart, Tesco, Best Buy and Carrefour have all improved the brand awareness.
Dell Company Statistics
Through the analysis of the income statement and the balance sheet of the company, it is clear that the primary source of income for the company is the electronic computers. In the analysis, it is clear that financial performance in 2020 is worse than half of the companies involved in the same activity. With the comparison of the financial performance of the company with the average industries in the United States, the financial performance of Dell is worse than the most listed companies in the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Through the figure presented in the income statement, Dell has been undergoing loss from 2013 to 2019. However, the company made a profit in 2020 accounting year in January. It was a great improvement considering the last few years the company was undergoing through some severe financial constraints.
Michael Dell leads the leadership of Dell Company as the chairman and CEO of the company. He is a great innovator and technology leader hence providing critical infrastructure for the company to build a digital future. In partnership with the CEO, Jeff Clarke serves as the vice and is responsible for the shaping of strategic agendas and prioritizing essential issues. Allison Dew, on the other hand, serves as the Chief marketing officer and is directly accountable for global marketing of the company’s products.
SWOT Analysis
Despite the fall of market share in Hewlett-Packard, Dell proves to be a strong market player in PC hardware segment (Korsmo, Charles, and Minor Myers, 2018, 221). Therefore, one of the greatest strength of the company is its strong market position. In the United States of America, Dell Company was ranked the second with a market share of 18% after HP Company. It has served previously as the leading companies in the server segment. Besides, it has a strong performance in Asia and Pacific which has dramatically boosted its financial performance. Finally, as part of its strength, Dell has a comprehensive product portfolio in its product mixes such as notebooks, servers, printers, networking, storage products and desktops. However, the weakness of the company is its poor and weak internal control of activities. Some of the critical issues concerning the company include its reporting and accounting matters which prompted the US investigation. Besides, the company has experienced product recalls such as the batteries which could overheat hence causing the risk of fire.
Despite the weaknesses, the company experiences great opportunities regarding the ability to acquire other new companies and projects in the future. Through acquisitions, the company can strengthen the Dells product and channel leadership which can hence simplify solutions for clients at a global scale (Lawton, Thomas, and Kevin P. Michaels, 2001, 91). There is also the opportunity of expanding market through acquisitions as well as making new Retail agreements. Alongside the opportunities that exist, various threats substantially face the company. For instance, there is the production of counterfeit goods. A continuous increase in counterfeit good seeks to decrease the revenue of the company as well as destroying the reputation of the company. There is also the issue of economic uncertainty which has increased the market share of the company. For instance, according to the Organization for Economic Collaboration and Development, the United States and euro areas are the relevant markets. The financial turmoil that happens often may as well affect the performance of the company.
References
Gilabert, E., Fernandez, S., Arnaiz, A., & Konde, E. (2017). Simulation of predictive maintenance strategies for cost-effectiveness analysis. Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part B: Journal of Engineering Manufacture, 231(13), 2242-2250.Larsen, A. I. (2017). DELL Technologies (Bachelor’s thesis, BI Norwegian Business School).
Kraemer, K. L., & Dedrick, J. (2001). Dell Computer: using e-commerce to support the virtual company.Korsmo, C., & Myers, M. (2018). The Flawed Corporate Finance of Dell and DFC Global. Emory LJ, 68, 221.Lawton, T. C., & Michaels, K. P. (2001). Advancing to the virtual value chain: Learning from the Dell model. Irish Journal of Management, 22(1), 91.