Dell Cutbacks Pay Off

In the recently ended quarter, Dell said desktop PC sales declined 6% year over year, while mobility sales were up 7%.

Echoing the comments it made during its previous quarterly report, Dell said that its "transformational efforts" to improve its growth opportunities and customer experience may cause short-term fluctuations in operating performance.

Dell did not provide specific guidance for the current quarter, but said that operating margins will be under pressure sequentially as the company enters the seasonally slower quarter with elevated operating expenses and additional costs related to ongoing investigations into its past accounting practices.

During the fiscal first quarter, Dell said it initiated a comprehensive review to better align operating expenses with the current business environment and its strategic growth opportunities. One outcome of the process is the 10% workforce cut.

A Dell spokesperson said the company currently employed 88,100 workers, although that figure includes more than 5,000 temporary contractors.

The goal of the job cuts, he said, are to eliminate redundancies and activities that are not critical to Dell's growth objectives.