Dell to cut even more jobs as it reduces costs

Looks like Dell's plan to trim $3B in costs from its budget is going to involve even more job cuts than the 8,800 already announced -- speaking to analysts today, Michael Dell said that his company's management had "identified a very significant opportunity" to cut costs, and that it was "aggressively going after it." That means even more jobs will be slashed, apparently -- a further 1,000 this quarter at least, but Dell wouldn't say what the total would be in the end, just that it would be more than 8,800. Dell went on to say that no part of the company would be considered sacred as cuts are considered, and that Dell's brass thinks that it's "begun the journey to transform the company." Cutting jobs is one way to do it, sure -- but might we suggest focusing on delivering great products would also help?

[Ellianth @ Apr 3rd 2008 9:58PM]

I sure hope they'll be starting by closing down those Indian call centers.

[Abuzar @ Apr 3rd 2008 11:19PM]

Ve Do nt like yor aatiiitude.

[DarkLightConnection Unbanned @ Apr 4th 2008 12:55AM]

Amen. All companies should close down those damn Indian call centers (or at least the tech support ones) and hire three or four actual technicians (they'd solve all the queries faster after all, because they don't lose time reading the scripts)

I'm tired of talking with "qualified expert technicians" who don't know what a resistor is.... (Yes I know, but there are some times the internet just doesn't have an answer... ie. when you got rare hardware and no $$$$ to fix it the expensive way)

[hypereric @ Apr 4th 2008 6:21AM]

It's not just their overseas call centers... It's their whole d@mn customer support system system. It can only be called "Dell Hell" once you enter into it.

I was ordering some parts for various workstations and servers we have have around the office... I also threw in a couple of ram chips for my mom's media center (her MCE 2005 is a Dell... and as I am an owner, I took a little liberty with the PO).

Upgraded the machines here at the office fine... threw the chips into slots #2 & 4 of her machine and flipped it on. Nothing... by the time I went through my mental checklist of what would cause no beeps or video ("video card... nah... ram... WAIT A SECOND!") it was too late. The smell of burning plastic assaulted me. D@mn chip #2 had shorted itself out and was hot enough to start wilting the affixed label. I yanked the power cord out and had to "hot potato" the chip out of there. Still have it, prolly going to frame it.

The chip fried slots #2 and #4 and the IDE controller (the CD/DVD would play peek-a-boo with BIOS). And then began my descent into Dell Hell.
At least 20 emails, at least 7 different techs who contradicted each other on how they were going handle the problem (one said, "we will send you a new MB, give us your address", I did that and then another said "we cannot send you a new MB" ad nauseum), two to three months time, and after at least 2 or 3 emails badgering each d@mn tech about what they were going to propose next, they finally they send a guy out to replace the MB. And he brings the wrong chips. Feh.

In the end, they sent more chips and I popped those in there and everything seemed OK. Except, of course, all the connected peripheals at the time of the almost-bonfire are acting funny now (as I told them would happen at the beginning of my experience in Dell Hell): the CD/DVD sometimes recognizes a disk, sometimes doesn't ... though it will maintain its' presence in BIOS now, the dual tuner sometimes recognizes it has two tuners, sometimes doesn't.

H3ll, this is the abbreviated version.

ENGADGET: you guys need a story about Dell Hell? I've kept all my notes and emails ... and like I told them in the beginning, this would have been real "funny" if my mom had taken her computer back to her apartment in a multi-story high rise assisted living development and the chip *then* decided to short out.

[v3xx @ Apr 3rd 2008 9:59PM]

first motorola now dell. hmm should i keep making crappy products and lose sales or improve quality and stay in business.

[Aguiluz @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:00PM]

Unrelated but....

To get the reply button to work, click it again and again and again. That's what I did once. When I did it, it ran smooth as glass.

If that doesn't work... Well, I got no idea.

[Jonathan Keim @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:00PM]

Wow, two 'cut job' posts in a row...

[LJKelley @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:01PM]

Maybe they shouldn't be so greedy. If memory serves me right they posted $12 Billion profit last year. I understand earning money but cutting costs when you still make tons of money? Even if they were to only make half of that this year, do theyy really need to the extra $3 Billion which is gonna hurt the economoy and not make Dell look any better in American eyes as no doubt you will see more jobs in China & India.

[v3xx @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:05PM]

i used to talk to people in india about my charter internet always going out but i've learned. It takes 3 minutes to drive to the store and talk to someone in my own language.

[v3xx @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:06PM]

wtf reply is broken.

[Aguiluz @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:10PM]

To get it to work, mash the reply button again and again!

[Mr.Tech @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:10PM]

I can't agree with you more than I should have. Dell is just being greedy with this but their just trying saving money. You can't really blame Dell.

[Mike @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:28PM]

HaHa. Oil companies made a record 123 Billion dollars last year but this week their representatives were telling Congress that they need $18 Billion in tax breaks or they will raise the gas price. All companies try to make as much money as possible.

[Iain @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:28PM]

Investors are a nasty bunch, you give them $12 billion one year, they expect $18 billion the next. It is the nature of public companies.

[ThePremierAssassin @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:28PM]

Its funny how Dell was all the rage just a few years ago...

I thought about getting a Dell Bluray laptop but for some reason I just didn't find it appealing. Are Dell products even high quality anymore?

[legios @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:33PM]

Man, I hate Dell. I've never replaced a Dell on my own terms...they've all failed on me. Both my laptops had their screens fail after 2 years. And my xps200's hard drive failed 1 week after the 1 year warranty expired. Meanwhile, my 4 year old abspc is still running like a champ.

You would think I would stop buying them...but they're just so convenient and cheap...can't stop...somebody please stop me.

[snitch @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:34PM]

You know they could always give the share holders back there money and close down shop. don't these billionares have any pride????????

[Zadillo @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:35PM]

"A penning pinching Jew"? Seriously?

[Stem $ell @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:46PM]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There once was a CEO stellar
A top o’ the heap type o' Dell’er
Moaning, “Downsizing’s nigh
Leopard’s bled us bone dry”
And the Jobs that he 'slashed'? Apple’s feller!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[yoshi @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:48PM]

"Dell went on to say that no part of the company would be considered sacred as cuts are considered"

I'd be willing to bet that they still consider executive salaries as sacred....

[RC @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:50PM]

Wish I had the same experience. My father has bought Dell for years and they just seem to keep working for years and years...one systems still running Win98 is so decrepit but he doesn't want to do anything with it because it still works. Forget the fact that it doesn't sleep and he has the old printer tied into it so it needs to be on to print from his laptop....the thing is basically a space heater now, making the office too hot. If Dell computers were less reliable, then he would have enough reason to update his various computers.

[changenow @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:55PM]

Obama believes that companies should not get billions of dollars in tax deductions for moving jobs oversea. This is a policy extended by the Bush administration back in 2004. Motorola and Dell are great examples of why this is a failed policy. (like so many other Bush policies)

[changenow @ Apr 3rd 2008 10:58PM]

... and like Engadget's failed commenting system.

My comment above was intended as a reply to LJKelley

[BigD145 @ Apr 3rd 2008 11:09PM]

Slaves aren't counted as employees, no matter how much (or little) you pay them. Dell can cut US employees, hire replacements overseas, and still call it a cut.

[benjesuit @ Apr 3rd 2008 11:16PM]

This is sad, sad news.

[Abuzar @ Apr 3rd 2008 11:19PM]

Ve Do nt like yor aatiiitude.

[Abuzar @ Apr 3rd 2008 11:19PM]

Damn this reply system! It seems to only work when you click on the TIME of the comment and THEN you reply.

[nh @ Apr 4th 2008 4:25AM]

Interesting, so can you use this to reply to replies? This is a reply to #11440532.

[synchro_destiny @ Apr 3rd 2008 11:20PM]

What help would it be cutting jobs in China & India? they should cut the flak at top where the fatty executives are churning moolah and not delivering. The only reason Dell can afford making such cheap products, is because they outsource it to China & India.

[Angie @ Apr 3rd 2008 11:31PM]

You're very cute. But your grasp on capitalism needs some work. Its not about the money you earned last year in public companies, its about the money you are going to earn next quarter and maybe the quarter after that. That is what matters, that is what makes people and institutions invest or deinvest in you.

[Mike @ Apr 3rd 2008 11:39PM]

You guys are both right, it is about both. Clearly it is about what you made last year as a beenchmark to meet and surpass next year. Both aspects play a part in how a business operates.

[DogEars @ Apr 3rd 2008 11:42PM]

Actually the Precision line of laptops has excellent build quality. You get what you pay for and all that.

I've also been very pleased with their server products.

[Dave @ Apr 4th 2008 12:00AM]

yes they do, or shareholders cash out...the shareholders are to blame. If Dell wasn't public, they most likely would not be cutting jobs so aggressively. But at the same time, if it weren't for shareholders, they probably would not have the capital they need to keep production at what it currently is.

[nano @ Apr 4th 2008 12:57AM]

Other PC manufacturers are breaking out champagne right now, 'cause they all know that the best way to get out of a rut is to fire the engineers and raise pay to VP's and C*O's.

[Rand @ Apr 4th 2008 12:59AM]

Got news for you. Those Dell employees in China and Taiwan aren't any cheaper than their U.S. counterparts. An engineer in Shanghai or Taipei is costing Dell the same as in the U.S. The only difference is they are in countries where Dell wants an market presence. Oh sorry there is one other difference....the engineers they have in Asia suck.

[Steffen Jobbs @ Apr 4th 2008 1:38AM]

So, I guess the only computer company increasing it's amount of employees is Apple. Having so many employees in the Apple stores seems like a massive amount of overhead, but so far so good. Give it a couple of more years before those people get laid-off or fired.

[Maff @ Apr 4th 2008 7:42AM]

th credit crunch bites! its pretty hard to make money on consumer electronics lately and gets harder by the day, i just feel sorry for all the staff lost!

[fredisdead @ Apr 4th 2008 8:35AM]

um...is it me or memorex? WHAT is up with this comment thingy?

[fredisdead @ Apr 4th 2008 8:47AM]

I would never purchase another dell. I have owned hewlett and gateway, believe it or not the Hewlett is still working (after 8 years) and shows NO SIGNS of going down. Hewlett is like the workhorse of computers. Well for me this one is. This is my first and last dell. The computer itself is ok, but the programs of dells that are installed and this POS windows media edition also bites the big one.Customer service? Hells bells, actually dell really doesnt even have any. Maybe 'ol HADJI, who calls himself 'HANK' when you call will have to find another job....maybe with ANY OTHER FREAKING BIG COMPANY that has moved it's operations over seas so we dont have to pay more! hahahahaha Even just trying to type that line almost made me choke. have a good weekend everyone and thank you for your time!

[Maze @ Apr 4th 2008 12:00PM]

Please, do not post negative article about Dell until I sell my laptop on eBay.

[umedium @ Apr 4th 2008 2:29PM]

CRAZY - I put in an order for one of the new fancy XPS systems last weekend, was supposed to ship today...I read this posting, and not FIVE MINUTES later I get an email from Dell saying my machine is 'delayed' a full week. How much you wanna bet, some disgruntled technition is gonna take a dump in my cpu?

SHIT!

[c. thomas @ Apr 4th 2008 4:33PM]

Everyone is laying people off. Poor poor economy. If economy was a person it would be a she on life support with a bloody maxi pad!

[Codey H. @ Apr 5th 2008 12:41PM]

I don't even feel sorry for Dell anymore. At all.

[CaliforniaKid @ Apr 5th 2008 1:08PM]

After being laid off during the Dot Bomb and then after a merger, I've found private sector IT work to be too unstable.

Now doing IT work for the gov't. Contrary to what I thought, it pays as well as private sector. Benefits are terrfic: 100% paid health care, all obscure holidays off; and retirement pension (if I should live that long).

[Brandon @ Apr 5th 2008 1:16PM]

Funny, I have a job interview with them on Tuesday.

[Guinnis @ Apr 7th 2008 7:35AM]

The problem with moving all those manufacturing jobs to China and support to India is you no longer have those medium paying jobs for low end workers. They are now working at Wal-Mart or Best Buy for a lower wage. Dell is going to cut American workers and replace them with workers from India and China. If Dell thought that moving jobs would hurt sales it wouldn’t do it. Most Americans are too motivated by the lowest price to think about how it effects there neighbors.

[Mobile Phone Diva @ Apr 10th 2008 12:17AM]

But there are also many reports of failed hard drives and screens. Especially after they moved everything overseas. I have to say that all those reports about hardware failure make me scared to get a new Dell now.