On the product side, Dell EMC has already started consolidating the code base of its Compellent SC and EqualLogic PS line, and plans to do the same with the EMC Unity line as well, Haas said. This includes a focus on common management, replication, and tiering capabilities to drive the most value for customers without having to end-of-life a product.

"I'm not saying that in three or five years that this roadmap won't change," he said. "It might. But, it's also with the understanding that we will have clear migration paths onto a single code-based architecture, with a 'nobody gets left behind' philosophy. But, as of right now, every product that we've announced and shown to partners and customers in the storage portfolio we are committed to in perpetuity."

Yet while Dell is busy consolidating its product lines, some of those lines will remain independent because of their value in terms of working with strategic technology partners, including Dell EMC rivals, Haas said.

One of those is VMware, which has become the de facto standard of software-defined technology, he said.

"It has to work with everybody," he said. "It has to work with HPE. It has to work with NetApp. … It is our job on the Dell EMC side to make sure that our technology works best with VMware, not vice versa. [VMware] will make sure that they provide the open ecosystem to drive virtualization across all pillars of the data center, and try to drive any cloud on any app on any system."

It is heartening to know that Dell EMC will allow certain of its technologies, particularly VMware, to remain autonomous in terms of working with non-Dell platforms, said Jason Wright, managing director of All Covered, a Houston, Texas-based solution provider and Dell channel partner.

"It's important because we don't just work with Dell," Wright said. "We work with other manufacturers. Let's say that, all of a sudden, VMware could only run on Dell servers. That would create a problem for us. The fact that VMware will continue to develop and integrate with other platforms is really good for us."

Wright said his company has seen Dell improve its channel engagement in the last year or so before the EMC acquisition was announced. "I liked how Haas talked about Dell getting more aggressive in pushing the data center business out to the channel," he said.

Steven Burke and Sarah Kuranda contributed to this story.