Upon reading Sandra’s post on the shoe company, Jack Erwin, I proceeded to reflect on some of the business strategies employed. One of the most notable would be the direct sales strategy, also practiced by Dell.
Dell Computer Corporation was formed in 1984 by Michael Dell with the idea of selling computers in a better way. Dell believes that direct sales to customers create a much better level of service and it is seen as the final competing element in a matured industry. With its computers as assembled machines, Dell has approached providing service as a product. As apple did product innovations, Dell did operations innovations. Dell is at present a leading provider of products and services worldwide and has been among the top three companies by market share.
Dell’s Strategy:
- Just-in-time manufacturing
- Direct sales, customer service
- Mass Customization, Build-to-order
- Partnership with suppliers and extensive data and information sharing
Dell has followed lean manufacturing practices and has adopted just-in-time manufacturing unlike any other company. For this it has established partnerships with its suppliers and goes on to form cross-company design teams to deliver better quality products. Some of the Dell’s suppliers are located inclose proximity of Dell’s assembly plants thus reducing lead times and associated costs.Dell is not competing in the highly competitive market of component design and manufacturing. The just-in-time manufacturing system has resulted in cost savings which it can pass over to the customers who are price sensitive and thus get market share away from competitors. As showed by Prof Nagarajan, the days of inventory of Dell compared to companies like Apple, and IBM, were much shorter. This is especially good for companies related to technology as products because if these products sit too long in storage then they become outdated and lose their value.
Due to the innovative operation system, Dell is faster, and more efficient, cutting down costs.
Work Cited:
“Sandra Lin’s Blog.” Sandra Lins Blog. N.p., 05 Oct. 2014. Web. 05 Oct. 2014. <https://blogs.ubc.ca/sandralin/2014/10/05/blog-post-5-quality-curation-experience-fair-prices/>
Wulff, Mikael. “And The Last Post Reads.” Web log post. : Managing Operations – A Study On Dell’s Supply Chain Management. N.p., 27 Sept. 2013. Web. 05 Oct. 2014. <http://www.mixologist84.com/2013/01/managing-operations-study-on-dells.html>