Dell Inc. has not exactly gained rave reviews these last few years. Sliding earnings and market share, customer service nightmares, and serious accounting problems have given the company multiple black eyes -- all of which forced the return of founder Michael Dell as hands-on CEO this past January (he had stepped aside in 2004).

More recently, Dell has worked hard to fix its customer service problems, gaining some praise from industry watchers for increased investments in service and it's Direct2Dell corporate blog, which has opened a useful conversation channel with customers and users.  

At the same time, Dell has pushed hard on the environmental front, with substantial, award-winning efforts to support computer recycling, reduce carbon emissions, and become "the greenest technology company on earth."

Dell added yet more credibility to that environmental push, and a broader effort on corporate social responsibility, with this week's appointment of Gilbert Casellas as vice president of corporate responsibility. According to Dell, Casellas will lead a group that includes the company's global diversity, sustainability, and corporate philanthropy functions. Casellas has strong credentials for the role; he is former chairman of the U.S. Equal Opportunity Commission (under President Bill Clinton), former co-chair of the U.S. Census Monitoring Board, and a member of the boards of directors of the Hispanic Federation and the Johnnetta B. Cole Global Diversity and Inclusion Institute.

Assuming that Casellas has the authority to deliver on the promise, which one hopes he does, the position holds great potential for furthering Dell's initiative to integrate broad economic, social, and environmental concerns into the center of corporate decision making. It's an admirable and wise goal, and one that we can only hope succeeds. Kudos to Dell for making the move.