Michael Dell: Only Combined Dell EMC Can Deliver True Digital Transformation

Speak to any of the major technology firms and they will talk about how IT is transforming into a business issue. It no longer sits in the background, supporting existing processes. It is now driving businesses and opening up new markets.

There’s even a buzz phrase for it: ‘digital transformation’.

On the opening day of Dell EMC World 2016, the first iteration of the annual conference since the two merged earlier this year, CEO Michael Dell said the combination of the two companies and its portfolio meant it could help enable the three main pillars of this transformation better than anyone else.

Read More: Dell EMC World – The show that outgrew its hometown

Digital transformation

Speaking at the Austin Convention Center, Dell said Dell EMC was leading in so many different categories that only it could deliver change from the data centre to devices at the edge.

When it comes to the IoT, cloud, data analytics, and other trends that will drive this transformation, this puts Dell EMC ahead of anyone else, he argued.

“We’ve moved tech from being a bookkeeping tool in the back of an office to the centre of our business and everyday lives,” he said. “[Dell EMC] always believed that if we built the right technology we could amplify and enhance human progress. But I realise we’ve only begun. As the cost of making something intelligent costs $0, [it] becomes part of our every day world.

“All those sensors and devices will provide access to many new digital applications creating new sources of information [that can deliver better insights].

“This is the internet of Everything: an intelligent world pulsing with processing power and connectivity. Thew next industrial revolution, advancing human civilization.

“That is the opportunity for our generation and it might be the biggest opportunity ever.”

Dell’s portfolio

Dell spoke about how the combined company’s expertise in servers, storage, virtualisation, converged infrastructure, Platform as a Service (SaaS) and software-defined data centre, along with its annual $4.5 billion R&D spend and private structure put it at an advantage.

“We love being a privately controlled company and I haven’t found any downside to it. We’re focused on long term success, not short term quarterly thinking that plagues many public companies. We can think of a time horizon that spans decades.”

The journey to digital transformation comprises three main components – security, workplace and infrastructure – he added.

“As we connect everything, it has to be secure,” Dell said, adding that as businesses digitise, they create more attack surfaces and the data that can be stolen is more valuable. Threat monitoring and advanced security is therefore essential, he argued.

Workplace transformation will involve the introduction of new devices, such as virtual reality (VR) systems and support for new types of working such as bring your own device (BYOD) and remote working. Dell was adamant that the EMC merger would not distract it from the PC market.

“The PC business remains core to our strategy,” said Dell. “We have reached a historic 15 quarters in a row of increasing our PC share. In the last quarter we outgrew our competition. All our competitors have declined and we’re the only one’s growing.”

Data centre transformation

But it was data centre transformation where Dell elaborated the most, specifically in the area of hybrid cloud. Dell pitched Dell EMC as an enabler of hybrid cloud strategies, providing the software and architecture to make the most of public and private clouds.

He told the audience that the data centre changes might cost capital, but could result in savings that enable wider transformation.

“We know you have a data centre full of things that have been put in there [over the past two decades],” he told the audience. “We know budgets are under pressure but we know you need greater efficiency. If done right, the savings made from the data centre can help fund the transformation across the business.”

“Dell EMC is the leading provider of cloud infrastructure in the world. Just six weeks after the closure, we’re providing a number of solutions combining Dell, EMC and VMware.

“You’re getting a first look at the next great technology company: Dell EMC. As a combined company we lead with purpose.

“We believe the work we are doing is important. We have an unprecedented opportunity to do more.”

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