What if Michael Dell was right?
The biggest tech companies are struggling in a crisis that seems not to have a end.
Cisco, HP, even Microsoft have announced layouts and reduction of employee. We can say this is a common issue for a moment of crisis, companies need to rise up ROI and cost reduction is a key factor. It’s also undoubted that laying off personnel is the easiest way to reduce costs.
But is this crisis just a matter of costs and ROI? or there are deeper reasons that are hitting those companies?
The economical crisis is just one of the many problems some tech companies are experiencing, from my point of view the main reason for the crisis is not just financial, but lays in a deeper problem: technology innovation and identity.
In the last years we saw a dramatic change in users behaviour and technologies, some new kids traced the route while the old giants struggles to follow.
Problem number one here, they become follower and not leader, and when you’re a big guy following is hard because you can’t hide nor run.
The company that invested in technologies, creating consensus and making things happen like apple or google traced a hard path to follow, they mark their identities to new and cool paradigma. Samsung was quick and efficient to jump on the train and using the same tools of innovation and “coolness” of the products conquer a market.
HP and Cisco on the contrary haven’t been able, till now, to redesign their identity into something different. Old products, old technologies, old communication…. If we’re take a look at what is happening in HP and Cisco right now we see cost reduction but we cannot see a real plan, a strategy a vision.
Dell forced his company to take a direction, hope will be successful because his courage has been amazing. He wanted to give a multi year vision and a clear position. we’ll see if time will give him the success he deserve. But to do this he was forced to take a decision, make Dell private again so to choose a direction and follow it even if the stock market is looking for different things at the moment.
What is the path for HP and Cisco?
The technology market has changed, it is changing. the Box and Hardware selling that has made the fortune of the two companies is reaching it’s limit, We so not change core switch every year unless there is a real technological change, and server and storage are not so different that the ones of 5 years ago…
While Cisco and HP looks for an identity Microsoft seems to have found again its will to succeed planning a transition that could change the face of the company. Again this is a technological and identity point. Cloud, Service and multiplatforms seems to be the new Microsoft mantra and we could expect that big “M” developer tools (that made the fortune of Microsoft OS) will soon be able to accomplish the new vision that the new energetic CEO is giving to the company.
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