MIT CTL Research Scientists Drs. Inma Borrella and Maria Jesus Saenz, in collaboration with Dr. Elena Revilla, wrote a case study which has been recognized as the top-selling case in Operations Management at Ivey Publishing for 2024/2025. The case study, "Dell: Roadmap of a Digital Supply Chain Transformation," examines a real-world digital supply chain transformation, offering insights into how leading companies are leveraging technology to build more resilient and responsive operations. You can read the full case study here, and read Ivey Publishing's announcement and list of their top case studies here.
Case Summary
Dell Technologies Inc. was founded in 1984 in Austin, Texas, and became a global company that designed, developed, and manufactured personal computers and a variety of computer-related products. In 2016, it merged with EMC Corporation to create the largest privately-controlled technology company with the most comprehensive end-to-end solutions portfolio in the industry. In March 2018, the company formed an internal strategic group named Dell Global Operations and tasked its senior vice-president of strategy with planning the digital transformation of the company’s supply chain. in 2018, the Dell Global Operations group had to consider the intrinsic challenges of a giant and diverse enterprise. How would the company ensure that key actors were aligned with its digital vision? Which levers were needed to establish a digital vision that matched business strategy and priorities with supply chain operations? How could an actionable roadmap be developed to achieve the digital transformation of such a complex supply chain? What actions or goals should be prioritized?