Dell: John Swainson Advising On Buyout Talks?

As Dell (NASDAQ:DELL) navigates three potential buyout bids, The VAR Guy wonders: What advice is Dell Software Group President John Swainson offering to Michael Dell at this time? It’s an intriguing question, considering Swainson previously was a senior advisor at Silver Lake Partners, a global private equity firm that is trying to buy Dell.

As you’ll recall, Michael Dell and Silver Lake are trying to acquire the PC company — but Blackstone and Carl Icahn have also expressed interest in the computer company. As the M&A discussions continue, Dell (the company) needs to remain focused on customers and channel partners.

Enter John Swainson. The private equity veteran also was CEO of CA Technologies from 2005 to 2009, and before that Swainson held key posts at IBM for 26 years. Read between the lines and Swainson is the rare executive who has Fortune 100 experience, software experience, and private equity experience — key qualities as Michael Dell and team navigate the current M&A discussions.

At Dell, Swainson is trying to build a $5 billion software business by 2016. How is that effort coming along? Some new clues may emerge when Swainson hosts a major Dell event in San Francisco on April 24. The gathering, called “The Power to Do More: Accelerating Results,” will include Dell customers and partners describing end-to-end solutions that they’re leveraging in business. It’s safe to expect some news from the Dell Software Group and Dell Services.

Publicly, Swainson won’t be able to say much about Dell’s current private equity discussions. But privately, you can bet Swainson has Michael Dell’s ear.