Dell to double its staff in India by 2009

[Newsjock]

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/14141205.htm

Associated Press

NEW DELHI - Dell Inc. plans to double the number of its employees in India to 20,000 in three years, Chairman Michael Dell said Monday, in what appeared to be moves by the world's largest personal computer maker to beef up its presence in one of the world's fastest growing markets.

Although most of the new hiring will be made at the company's call centers, there will also be substantial recruitment at the its product testing center and a possible manufacturing plant.

The Round Rock, Texas-based company currently operates four call centers in India, a product testing center for corporate customers and a global software development center. Some 10,000 people are employed at these facilities.

... The company is also looking to set up a manufacturing center in India, a move that could help boost the sale of Dell computers here.

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[niyad]

1. note to self: NO buying dell products.

[customerserviceguy]

25. My current desktop machine is a Dell

but then again, I really don't need tech support from anyone, whether in India, or elsewhere. They still build a pretty solid computer, compared to practically everyone else's proprietary box, but like I say, if you really think you're going to need a lot of hand holding, you had best look somewhere else.

[MalachiConstant]

27. my girlfriend went through

3 hard drives on her dell laptop

[unda cova brutha]

28. Dell doesn't make the hard drives.

[jaxx]

2. A co-worker has a Dell.

If it breaks, she is on the phone usually 3 hours and has to fix it herself with their guidance. Last time the C drive went bad, and it took 3 weeks to get the part. First having to call them, and try a bunch of things that didn't work, finally taking it to a local repair place and finding out what was really wrong. Another long phone call and more things tried that didn't work, finally ending with them saying, yep it was the C drive. Then wait for the part and install it herself. Not what I would call a good warranty.

[cannabis_flower]

8. Almost all..

warranties on computers work that way. I work at a call center walking users through what they can fix themselves. About 75% of the problems are user error, software errors that can easily be fixed, or simple things like connections being unplugged.

It is not practical or economical to send a tech out to someone's house for every little piddling problem that happens. Not only that but the user would be stuck waiting for a tech for at least a day or two when they might be able to have it fixed in a matter of an hour or two. Lots of times the user calls and hasn't even tried rebooting the computer or checking any of the connections to make sure that they aren't loose. Why wouldn't the user want the phone tech to have them check for simple problems rather than wait to have a tech come out to tell them their keyboard was unplugged?

[jaxx]

17. I have an HP, bought at Staples.

If it breaks, it goes right in to a local repair shop....HP's dime. Extended warranty, the same thing.

[sarcasmo]

23. The difference is you speak clear English. With a Dell employee

on the other end who speaks broken English and who is trying to help you re install a drive it is a nightmare. Never again Dell, we already went through your nightmare.

[cannabis_flower]

26. Well, you might want to know...

That on occasion I have to call HP for support as part of my job and there are 2 call centers that you might get when you call - one is in Canada and the other is in India.

[lenegal]

3. Dude, don't buy a dell.

I have a Gateway, thank you.

[greenisin]

4. It took us 18 months...

to get replacement computers for three of them that wouldn't power-up out of the box. We were talking to people in Texas who were complete idiots. The one good thing about moving the call center to India is that the employees will be better trained and do a better job. I don't like it when this country loses jobs, but the idiots in Texas at the Dell call center were completely useless. Maybe now their service will improve.

[Gormy Cuss]

18. Doubtful

It's a major leap of faith to think that part of the offshoring deal is to improve the caliber of the customer service. All they want to do is offer the same level at a lower cost. If you found the domestic workers were substandard, don't expect the Indians to be any better.

I have dealt with Dell customer services reps in both operations and it's a mixed bag. Some of the Americans were idiots, some of the Indians were. Some in both places were sharp, resourceful people.

[slide to the left]

5. ugh! I hate this

I hate when I call customer service and ther person on the other end has an accent to think that I can't understand them. Then, they are not authorized to help you. I feel like I live in a Capitol One commercial...NO...NO...NO.

[katinmn]

6. Then they better start marketing their 'puters in India because Americans

sure as hell won't be able to buy them! Not without jobs.

[wordpix2]

7. I put in an order for a Dell computer but STOPPED the order when I was

referred to Indian employees to answer some questions I had about warranties, technical help and repairs. The process was so long and cumbersome on the phone just to get my questions answered I just said forget it and rescinded the order (this was 3 yrs. ago). I ended up with a Sony from Best Buy where I can get help and repairs locally.

You're losing business over this, DELL!

[katinmn]

12. Good for you. I have a '98 dell laptop

Never again!

[Tempest]

9. Your tax money are buying Dells

DHS has an exclusive purchasing contract with Dell for computers and monitors.

DHS is going through a refresh project and updating every workstation in DHS that is two years or older.

That's approx. 12,000 computers.

[spartan61]

10. I bought a Dell in 1999 and loved it but the hard drive crashed

while it was still under warrenty. Dell sent out an independent repair person who replaced the hard drive with no charge to me. That repair person told me that Dell had the best customer service of all the other companies he worked for. He was independent and all the companies called him for the local repairs. Now fast forward...When I replaced that Dell, even though I liked the Dell, I refused to buy another because they had begun to outsource their tech suppport. I'm so glad that I didn't buy another one because of what Dell is doing to the American workers. Michael Dell should be ashamed of himself! He is getting richer and richer on the backs of the American worker.

[wordpix2]

14. also he's getting richer on the backs of Indian workers who aren't paid

well---anyone know what they make? I think it's a few bucks and hour or something, if that.

[Starbucks Anarchist]

22. It's a lot to them.

The cost of living is (obviously) much lower over there.

I recall reading an article where they interviewed an Indian call center employee. She was paid roughly a few hundred dollars a month, I believe, yet she could afford a nice apartment, necessities and enough money to save.

[HughBeaumont]

11. You couldn't PAY me to support this conservaturd . . .

It's bad enough I have to use these infernal crash-test dummies at work. My home PC is going to be a Frankenstein. Better to do that and get what you want rather than have Smell's assembly-line POS's

[QC]

13. Apple is doing the same thing now.

http://www.applematters.com/index.php/section/comments/887/

I'm sure someone will come along to explain why it's bad when Dell does this but a very good thing when Apple does it.

[mac56]

15. LOL! How true!

Apple is DOUBLEPLUSGOOD.

[QC]

16. Steve Jobs raised the choco ration to 15 grams!

At least that's the rumor I've been hearing!

[Tesha]

19. How nice of you to put words in our mouths!

> I'm sure someone will come along to explain why it's bad
> when Dell does this but a very good thing when Apple does it.

How nice of you to put words in our mouths!

Here's what I actually have to say:

When Apple does it, it's bad too. As a very loyal Apple customer
and frequent Apple recommender, I'm disappointed by the news
that they're doing this.

On the other hand, I know through personal experience that
India *CAN* provide good technical support, so who knows?
Maybe Apple will buy the good stuff?

Tesha

[sarcasmo]

24. Is it really about India providing good technical support.

It's about the outsourcing of American jobs for cheap labor. One day no car or computer will be made in this country. Way to go Apple and Dell keep up the good work. Like the Dictator in Chief says, outsourcing is good for Amerika.

[Voltaire99]

20. Not I.

My Apple laptop is a great machine, but the corporation that makes it is as corrupt as any.

Needless to say, Dell, Apple and many other US employers are outsourcing with the blessing of our pols, such as good old Hillary Clinton.

[DiverDave]

21. I'm going to build my next computer, Link:

http://www.daileyint.com/build/

[MalachiConstant]

29. in related news

Dell loves republicans. hmmm.... loves republicans AND outsourcing... coinicidence? i think not.



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