Heads roll at beleaguered Dell

15 years ago

“Dell Inc. on Wednesday said president of global operations Mike Cannon will retire and Chief Marketing Officer Mark Jarvis will leave the company, shaking up the executive team Chief Executive Michael Dell brought in as part of his turnaround plan for the big computer maker,” Justin Scheck, Suzanne Vranica, and Joann S. Lublin report for The Wall Street Journal.

“Dell also said Wednesday it will organize globally around three main segments — large enterprise, public sector and small and medium businesses, to serve business customers better. It said its consumer business, led by Ron Garriques, is already organized globally,” Scheck, Vranica, and Lublin report.

MacDailyNews Take: Yes, organized neatly in the crapper. Courtesy flush, please!

Scheck, Vranica, and Lublin continue, “Cannon and Jarvis joined Dell in 2007 and reported directly to Mr. Dell. Earlier that year, Mr. Dell returned to the CEO role after a three-year hiatus during which time the company lost its place as the world’s biggest personal-computer maker and missed Wall Street profit projections. Upon returning, Mr. Dell promised to cut costs and expand into areas like high-end consumer PCs, retail sales and business services to spark new growth.”

MacDailyNews Take: Mikey thinks he’s gonna make it up in volume.

Scheck, Vranica, and Lublin continue, “Mr. Cannon received $16 million in salary, stock and other compensation in fiscal 2008, which ended last January, according to Dell’s proxy statement. Mr. Jarvis received $6.8 million in total compensation, the company disclosed, including reimbursement for a chartered plane to shuttle him between his Northern California home and Dell’s Texas headquarters.”

“Dell shares, which were trading above $20 when Mr. Dell returned as CEO, finished Tuesday at $10.23 at 4 p.m. on the Nasdaq Stock Market,” Scheck, Vranica, and Lublin report. “The company’s new consumer division hasn’t generated consistent profits, and growth in Dell’s world-wide commercial sales — which account for more than 80% of the company’s annual revenue — were down 6% in the quarter that ended in October. Total quarterly revenue declined 3%, while profit fell 5%.”