Dell To Host First-Ever Dell World Conference In October

Dell World will feature keynote addresses from CEO Michael Dell, Brad Anderson, senior vice president of Enterprise Solutions Group; Paul Bell, president of public and large enterprise; Steve Felice, president of consumer, small and medium business and Stephen Schuckenbrock, president of Dell Services.

Marc Benioff, chairman and CEO of Salesforce.com, VMware CEO Paul Maritz and Intel president and CEO Paul Otellini are also scheduled to speak at the event, which will be held at the Austin Convention Center.

The theme of the event is "Unlocking Innovation in the Virtual Era" and is targeted to "IT professionals who plan, deploy and manage enterprise technology," according to the DellWorld.com Web site.

Michael Dell plans to talk about the changing face of IT and how innovation in technology is "fueling the next chapter for cloud computing, data management and mobility," according to the Web site.

Dell couldn't be reached Friday afternoon for comment on how many VARs are expected to attend and what information or sessions might be specific to partners.

Nonetheless, at least one Dell Partner is intrigued by the event. "To the degree they have meaningful content and show a clear direction that Dell is headed, it's a great idea," said Peter Kennedy, founding partner and chairman of Kraft & Kennedy, a New York-based solution provider.