Dell is working hard to regain lost market share to rivals in the PC business, and while the company has made progress in its turnaround efforts, it still has "a long way to go" to spur personal computer sales, founder Michael Dell said Tuesday.
"Give us some time - we are making steady progress," Dell, 42, said in the interview. "We have an enormous opportunity in front of us, but it will require some changes."
Michael Dell retook the CEO position in January after the company's sales growth slumped. Since then, the PC maker has undergone through several changes, most notably, abandoning its 23-year practice of direct sales to customers via the Internet or phone, to start selling through partners at retail stores as well.
Dell, the world's second-largest computer maker, is putting more emphasis on product design, with the introduction of a line of PCs available in a variety of shell colors and the ultra-thin XPS M1330 notebook. The company also introduced a product line Tuesday called 'Vostro' aimed at small businesses. However, Dell's turnaround work to win back the title of No. 1 PC maker is still far from completed. The company said it would dismiss about 10 percent of its workforce in the next year, in a move to cut expenses and preserve profit margins.
"We first want to be No. 1 in service and support for our customers. And after that, we want to be No.1 in profitability. I think if you do those two things correctly, you become No.1 in market share.", said Dell