Dell Sheds Two Top Execs in Restructuring

Dell is bidding farewell to its marketing chief and president of global operations as the company rebuilds its business-oriented sales around three main segments.

Computer maker Dell has announced a major restructuring that will see the company re-aligning to better serve its business customers. As part of the reorganization, Dell will orient its operations for business customers around three primary segments—enterprises, small and medium-sized businesses, and the public sector—in an effort to be more responsive to the needs of business customers.

The move mirrors changes Dell made to its consumer oriented business, which earlier reorganized around global customer segments rather than geographic regions.

“In the past two years we have significantly improved our competitiveness, reengineered our supply chain, broadened our product portfolio, and introduced Dell to more people in more places than ever before,” said CEO Michael Dell in a statement. “We have laid the foundation for the transition from a global business that’s run regionally to businesses that are really globally organized.”

As part of the reorganization, Dell will be bidding farewell to its chief marketing officer Mark Jarvis, although he will continue to assist the company in a consulting capacity. Dell’s VP of marketing for Europe, Middle East, and Africa Erin Nelson will take over as chief marketing officer.

Dell is also saying goodbye to its president of global operations Mike Cannon, who will retire January 31. Cannon will be replaced by Jeff Clarke, who is currently head of Dell’s Business Client Product Group. Like Jarvis, Cannon will also consult with Dell on an ongoing basis.

The reorganization comes as Dell looks to regain market share from Hewlett-Packard, which had taken over the top spot in global PC sales. Dell is also hoping to bolster investor confidence even in the dour global economy. For the year, Dell’s share price has declined almost 60 percent.