Hi John,
re: I think our next move will be to that town!
.....and give up 105 degree heat index summers, and 20 degree winters? All so you can play all day at the beach ??!!??
Last time I was out west, I fantasized about being able to cycle all year round, hike real mountains only a short drive away, and not curse extremes in weather. That was three years ago....ugh.
Dell story...
Michael Dell says long way to go for turnaround
Hiring "new talent," forming partnerships, controlling expenses are part of the computer maker's strategy, says founder and CEO.
By Reuters
Published: July 10, 2007, 1:10 PM PDT
Dell has made progress in its turnaround efforts but still has "a long way to go" to spur personal computer sales and regain lost market share, Chief Executive Michael Dell said on Tuesday.
Dell, who retook the CEO job in January after sales growth slumped, said the company's strategy includes hiring "new talent," striking partnerships, making acquisitions and controlling spending.
"We are making steady progress, but there is a lot to be done," Dell, founder of the Round Rock, Texas, company, said at an event in New York to introduce a new brand of personal computers designed for small businesses.
In May, Dell said it planned to cut about 10 percent of its workforce, or about 8,800 of its 82,800 permanent employees and 5,300 temporary staff. The cuts are expected to take place over the next year.
Michael Dell said the company still had "things to do in expense management."
Asked if that might include new job cuts, Dell said he had no new announcements to make.
Renewing its focus on markets such as small business is a part of the No. 2 computer maker's turnaround strategy. On Tuesday, it launched its Vostro line, aimed at businesses with 25 or fewer employees.
The company said it hopes to grow the unit at twice the industry rate, the latest move in its bid to boost PC sales.
"It is an underserved part of the market," Dell's vice president of small/medium business, Frank Muehleman, told Reuters. "We think there is an opportunity for us to grow at least two times the market's rate of growth.
Citing data from research firm IDC, he said growth in the small- to medium-business PC market is about 7 percent to 10 percent each year, and Dell already has about a 25 percent to 30 percent market share.
The initiative comes as Dell also takes steps to boost sales of computers to consumers, the fastest-growing PC segment, as it tries to catch up with Hewlett-Packard, which last year displaced Dell as the largest PC maker by unit sales.
Dell on Tuesday said it would initially sell four notebook models in the Vostro line starting at about $450, as well as a desktop model and several printer options.
The Vostro-branded products feature very little of the preinstalled software--such as games--found on most consumer PCs, but will have business tools such as data backup and specialized networking support for customers without a dedicated technology staff.
Dell shares were down 1.2 percent to $28.66 in late trading on the Nasdaq. |
