Inspiration from an Inspiron

I had read about Dell long before I went to US. To me the image of this company is that of an entity that one can trust. So when I made my first on-line purchase, I could rely only on Dell. Again when I had to buy a computer in just about a week's time, they helped me assemble as per my requirements, budget and deliver at the right time. So, when I got a chance to read up on the man who did it all, I readily took it up. "Direct from Dell" is an exemplary work on operations, marketing, strategy and human resources. As I read, I felt extremely charged with the philosophies of Mr Micahel Dell and find so many of those matching my own thoughts on how a good organization should be. So, I took time to note down some beautiful anecdotes from his book:

On recruitment:

I said the biggest threat to Dell wouldnt come from a competitor. It would come from our people.- enterpreneur, energy, be part of something greater than themselves

Its not even enough to hire on the basis of ones talent. You have to hire based upon a candidates potential to grow and develop.We recruit for succession.

At Dell we look for people who possess the questioning nature of
student and are always ready to learn something new.
1. How do they process information ?

2. What is their definition of success ?

3. How they relate to people ?

4. Do they understand the strategy of their business ?

5. What are they really proud of ? - are they focussed on their own
agradisement or on the company they are working in ?

6. Find if they have strong opinions and willing to defend it - actively disaggreeing with them. Companies need people confident in their abilities and strong in their convictions, not people who feel the need to agree in the face of conflict.

Performance Apraisal:

Reward Success by narrowing responsibilty:- If you assume that your people can grow at the same rate as your company - and still maintain the sharp focus that is critical success - you will be sadly disappointed. It becomes too big and complex even for the hardest working person to handle without sacrificing personal career development and suffering burnout.

360 deg feedback - Its about people who are thoroughly invested in each other's growth.

I dont want my interactions planned; I want anecdotal feedback. One of my goals is to continually bring information from the outside world into Dell so as to remain competitive.

Build a company of owners: Engender as sense of personal investment in all your employees - which comes down to three things: responsibility, accountability and shared success.

How can we make your job easier ?more successful? more meaningful ?

What do customers like and not like ?

What do they need ?

What would they like us see us doing better ?

How can we improve?

Ask questions and do a lot of listening.

On Innovation:

To encourage people to innovate more, you have to make it safe for them to fail. Its to be construed as a learning experience. "That dint work here and her's why", thats not failure.

On Pride:

If you accept the status quo as good enough, you are managing in rearview mirror. Just to stay competitive, you have to constantly question everything you do. We hire for, and develop, leaders who are open minded nad can accept being disagreed with publicly or corrected
when they got their facts wrong.

Its easy to fall in love with how far you've come and how much you've done.

Its human nature to shrink in the face of bad news or disappointment and something will happen to make the situation better.

ROIC- Return on Invested Capital.

How can employee contribute to increase the ROIC - reduce cycle time, eliminate scrap and waste, selling more, forecasting accurately, scaling operating expenses, increasing inventory turns, collecting accounts receivables efficiently, and doing things right the first time.

On Customers:

Beyond winning and satisfying your customer, the objective must be to delight your customer - and not once but again and again. Engage in cooperative, mutually beneficial dialogue.

The challenge in business is finding the perfect match between what your customer wants or needs and what you can provide. Know customers, what they want and dont and what they value most. Know what you can do to help them be more effective in their business.

Segmentation bring us closer to our customers. One size doesnt fit all.

Our best customers aren't the largest ones. Our best customers are those we learn the most from, who teach us ways to add value beyond our existing products or services, and who challenge us to come up with solutions that ultimately benefit a range of customers.

On Partnership:

Approach a problem or solution holistically.Choose what you want to excel at, and find great partners for the rest.Complexity kills, proximity pays.
You cant be a partner if you dont know what your buyer's goals are. Sharing plans and information openly makes a measurable difference.Trade information for inventory.

On Competition:

Focussing all your energies on what your competition is doing simply means that you're overlooking your greatest source of competitive advantage: your customers.

On Net connection to employees:

Some might argue that if you give access to the World Wide Web, they will spend all their time surfing the Net. But that's like saying, "We dont want to teach our people how to read because they might spend all their time reading." As a resource, the internet enables and enhances
so many business functions - if you're preoccupied with the ways in which your staff might abuse the technology, you're going to miss out on the benefits while your competitors run away with the future.