IBM 1997 Annual Report Download - page 11

To become the world’s first truly knowledge-man-
agement-based company, you need great technology,
but you also need lots of smart people. I’ve already
discussed here some of our world-class technologies.
What follow in this report are examples of the
wonderful creativity of our nearly 270,000 people.
This team’s job, of course, is not finished. We have
one more peak to scale: a return to industry leadership.
To be part of a true revolution is a rare privilege.
For many generations, no such opportunity ever arises.
For us, it has. When we started this journey five
years ago, we focused on what was required to bring
IBM back. We then came to realize that, in doing so,
we were joining in the reinvention of the entire
information technology industry. It’s only within the
past couple of years that the full scope of this revolution
has become clear.
The rise of a globally connected world is changing
everything. It’s rewriting the basic assumptions of
business, the economy and global society — and the
new text reads like an IBM playbook. If IBM didn’t
exist — if we had disintegrated it five years ago —
somebody would have to recreate us to lead this new
era. (That’s just what some of our competitors are
trying to do.)
We have a chance to imagine new ways for people
to interact, to govern themselves, to manage their
businesses, to enhance their health, to teach their
children. And we have the resources to do something
about it — to push the technology further and faster
than anyone else, and to turn it into real solutions,
solutions that matter. Our customers and business
partners are looking for someone to lead, and we
intend to do it.
The women and men of the new IBM aren’t daunted
by that prospect. They’re fired up by it. And so am I.
As you may know, I’ve committed to remain
IBM’s chairman and CEO for at least another five
years. I’ve done so for two reasons.
First, the job Icame here to do isn’t complete.
We’ve proved we could survive, when many had
written us off for dead. We’ve proved we could grow,
when most believed growth would come only to the
small and fleet. And Ibelieve we’re proving IBM is
relevant to the world of the future, when many saw us
as an artifact of the past. Now, our task is to lead.
Second, Icould not, frankly, think of anything
else that would be nearly as much fun. If you love
business — and Ido — you want to be where the
action is, where the marketplace is most dynamic,
where the issues are the most urgent, where team
creativity is at its most intense. The most important
development in the global economy at the dawn of
the 21st century is going on right now, and IBM is at
its epicenter. This large, resourceful and vitally impor-
tant company is truly coming into its own. Where else
would anyone want to be?
*****
I want to recognize one of our directors, who is retiring
this year. Harold Brown has had an extraordinary
association with IBM. He was a member of the Board
from 1972 to 1977. After serving as U.S. Secretary of
Defense, he rejoined the Board in 1981. I would like
to thank Dr. Brown for his many years of support and
service to our company, and express my personal
gratitude for helping me during my transition into IBM.
9
Louis V. Gerstner, Jr.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer