• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

As CEO of the $96 billion Sam’s Club, Latriece Watkins is testing her mettle at the warehouse retailer that produced CEOs for Walmart, Target, and Walgreens

2

As AI slashes white-collar jobs, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff says almost no one is being hired—except in sales

3

Current price of oil as of May 29, 2026

1

As CEO of the $96 billion Sam’s Club, Latriece Watkins is testing her mettle at the warehouse retailer that produced CEOs for Walmart, Target, and Walgreens

2

As AI slashes white-collar jobs, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff says almost no one is being hired—except in sales

3

Current price of oil as of May 29, 2026

Michael Dell lays out his plan

By
Dan Primack
Dan Primack
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Dan Primack
Dan Primack
Down Arrow Button Icon
April 1, 2013, 8:43 PM ET

FORTUNE — Last month I was critical of Michael Dell for not explaining his plans for a privately-held Dell Inc. (DELL), were he and Silver Lake to successfully purchase the company. We got a bit more insight from last Friday’s proxy statement, but today the CEO sent a memo to all company employees that was more specific.

Here is the part of the memo describing growth plans (verbatim):

• Extend end-to-end information technology solutions capabilities. We anticipate making significant investments in research and development, capital expenditures and personnel additions. This includes hiring additional R&D, services and sales personnel in order to extend the depth and breadth of our capabilities and to increase the number of customers to whom such services and solutions are provided. Dell’s strategy of becoming an integrated provider of end-to-end IT solutions is expected to require additional investments in converged infrastructure solutions, software, cloud solutions, application development and modernization, consulting and managed security services. In addition, it is likely that we will need to make additional acquisitions to complete our transformation.

• Hire additional sales personnel. Our goal is to increase sales coverage and expand the depth of partnerships with channel partners in our Partner Direct program. We also expect to significantly increase investment in training for both new and existing sales personnel, including our channel partners.

• Compete aggressively in emerging countries. We anticipate making significant investments to enhance our presence and ability to compete in emerging markets, including the BRIC countries (i.e., Brazil, Russia, India and China). In addition, we expect to expand aggressively in other parts of Asia, Latin and South America, Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

• Invest for growth in the PC and tablet business. We have plans to significantly increase investment in our PC and tablet business to enhance our ability to compete. While Dell’s strategy in the PC business has been to maximize gross margins, following the transaction, we expect to focus instead on maximizing revenue and cash flow growth with the goal of improving long-term sales and competitive positioning.

•  Accelerate delivery of a simplified and enhanced customer experience. In 2012, we began an effort to simplify every aspect of the customer relationship. If successful, we believe this initiative will make it easier for customers to do business with Dell, eliminating friction and complexity and enabling more rapid response to customer needs. We expect to make significant operating expense and capital expenditure investments to accelerate this effort, which should yield improvements throughout the value chain, eliminating unnecessary complexity from our solutions, go-to-market, premium support, online sales and support, procurement and supply chain. Over time, this should help improve the customer experience, grow customer relationships, drive efficiencies and improve cycle times.

What we still don’t know is how The Blackstone Group (BX) views such strategic plans, although I’m sure Michael Dell asked during their recent series of sit-downs. There have been rumors that Blackstone is keen on divestitures — such selling as Dell Financial Services to General Electric (GE) — but no such specifics have been disclosed.

If the two sides are in sync, then it’s possible that Michael Dell could leave Silver Lake at the altar (or just remain agnostic, awaiting the highest share price). That’s assuming, however, that there also is agreement on governance issues (perhaps a thornier subject, given Blackstone’s stated desire for a public equity stub).

Anyway, consider this just another brick in the M&A world’s most compelling wall.

Sign up for my daily email newsletter on deals and deal-makers: GetTermSheet.com

About the Author
By Dan Primack
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in

Damn the torpedoes — More ships are quietly slipping through the Strait of Hormuz as helicopters scare off Iran’s fast-attack boats
EnergyIran
Damn the torpedoes — More ships are quietly slipping through the Strait of Hormuz as helicopters scare off Iran’s fast-attack boats
By Jason MaMay 30, 2026
1 hour ago
Warren Buffett’s son Peter didn’t know his dad was a billionaire until his 20s—he found out from a rich list
SuccessWarren Buffett
Warren Buffett’s son Peter didn’t know his dad was a billionaire until his 20s—he found out from a rich list
By Sydney LakeMay 30, 2026
3 hours ago
A woman in a dark blazer speaks in front of a table of people.
SuccessLeadership
‘Don’t be yourself’ in the workplace, actually, Columbia professor says. Here’s why authenticity is ‘overrated’
By Sasha RogelbergMay 30, 2026
3 hours ago
Former IHOP CEO Julia Stewart
SuccessJobs
Ex-Applebee’s exec was told she’d never be CEO—she bought the chain and fired her naysayer: ‘We don’t need two of us, so I’m gonna have to let you go’
By Emma BurleighMay 30, 2026
3 hours ago
Ex–Google CEO Eric Schmidt warns U.S. tech workers: Competing with China’s grueling 12-hour workdays means sacrificing work-life balance
Future of Workthe future of work
Ex–Google CEO Eric Schmidt warns U.S. tech workers: Competing with China’s grueling 12-hour workdays means sacrificing work-life balance
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezMay 30, 2026
3 hours ago
guitar
AIMusic
AI is splitting the music world. This 49-year-old guitarist used it to keep playing after Parkinson’s
By Mustakim Hasnath and The Associated PressMay 30, 2026
3 hours ago

Most Popular

As CEO of the $96 billion Sam’s Club, Latriece Watkins is testing her mettle at the warehouse retailer that produced CEOs for Walmart, Target, and Walgreens
Magazine
As CEO of the $96 billion Sam’s Club, Latriece Watkins is testing her mettle at the warehouse retailer that produced CEOs for Walmart, Target, and Walgreens
By Emma HinchliffeMay 27, 2026
3 days ago
As AI slashes white-collar jobs, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff says almost no one is being hired—except in sales
Success
As AI slashes white-collar jobs, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff says almost no one is being hired—except in sales
By Emma BurleighMay 28, 2026
2 days ago
Current price of oil as of May 29, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of May 29, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerMay 29, 2026
1 day ago
Surging Treasury yields expose a brutal truth: America has no margin for error on its $39 trillion debt
Economy
Surging Treasury yields expose a brutal truth: America has no margin for error on its $39 trillion debt
By Shawn TullyMay 30, 2026
12 hours ago
UBS says Ron DeSantis has a problem with his plan to help 92% of homeowners save on property taxes: His own state's data
Personal Finance
UBS says Ron DeSantis has a problem with his plan to help 92% of homeowners save on property taxes: His own state's data
By Nick LichtenbergMay 28, 2026
2 days ago
Jamie Dimon tells Gen Z to 'learn how to think, learn how to earn respect' as he describes 'great meeting' with Zohran Mamdani
Success
Jamie Dimon tells Gen Z to 'learn how to think, learn how to earn respect' as he describes 'great meeting' with Zohran Mamdani
By Nick LichtenbergMay 29, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.