DELL VALUE CHAINS Since Dell rolled out its integrated supply chain in the early 2000s, the world has paid attention to this model as a new strategy which helps the company increase its profitability and customer value. Dell's revenues have grown rapidly, from $12 billion to $61 billion over the past 10 years. How has Dell used its direct sales and make-to-order model to develop an exceptional supply chain? Dell, which is an American computer company, operates primarily on direct sales to corporate and institutional customers. With the direct sales model, Dell can collect information from its customers; IT specifications and location of each client, including feedback. After Dell sells the computers to its customers, Dell and the customers still have a close relationship because the company still needs to work with them as an IT service and consultancy. This allows Dell to communicate more with customers and obtain more information. Dell knows what its customers want and when they want to replace their computers and equipment through this communication. Additionally, as technology evolves very quickly and some technology equipment has a short life cycle, Dell ultimately offers equipment to deal with these issues. Since Dell can forecast sales by communicating with its customers, to achieve a make-to-order model, Dell realizes that they need to improve its operation and supply chain. The biggest challenge of the make-to-order model is delivery time. Customers don't like to wait or hear an excuse for a delay. So, to avoid dissatisfying customers, Dell decided to create its integrated supply chain. First and foremost and the most important element of an effective supply chain is information technology. High IT efficiency...... middle of paper ...... information will be sent directly to suppliers. This way, suppliers can know exactly how many products they need to produce. To achieve a make-to-order model and create an efficient supply chain system, Dell and its suppliers must invest heavily in information technology. Technology industry leaders Toshiba, IBM and Samsung are among Dell's partners. These companies have high IT efficiency and sufficient resources to support Dell's supply chain. Thanks to the expertise of these companies, Dell's supply chain was a success. This system also provides a win-win business relationship between Dell and its partners. When Dell can meet the needs of its customers, orders for Dell computers will increase. Thus, Dell's supplier revenues will also increase. REFERENCE: http://crito.uci.edu/papers/2001/dell_ecom_case_6-13-01.pdf