Michael Dell’s first fortune came from selling made-to-order PCs. But the type of engineering that is about to get him a place back at the top of the technology world is more of the financial kind.
Mr Dell laid out his plans on Monday for a return to Wall Street, five years after an acrimonious departure that showed little love lost on either side. The PC pioneer complained that stock market short-termism left no room to take a longer view on his company’s turnround, while rebellious investors led by Carl Icahn claimed he was buying Dell back on the cheap.
Since going private — and then adding storage maker EMC in a second huge buyout — Mr Dell has led the consolidation in older parts of the IT market, particularly in hardware.