IBM 2011 Annual Report Download - page 6

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4
In sum, our strong strategic positioning, solid balance sheet,
recurring revenue, robust prot streams and unmatched
global reach give us condence that we will achieve success
in the next ve years, as we have during the past decade.
The information on pages 9 to 15
—
“Generating Higher
Value at IBM”
—
explains how.
The decade ahead
The next decade holds enormous promise for IBM,
most importantly because of what it holds for business
and society at large. We are uniquely positioned to deliver
the benets of a vast new natural resource
—
a gusher
of data from both man-made and natural systems that
can now be tapped to help businesses and institutions
succeed in an increasingly complex and dynamic global
economy. Together, we can create economic and societal
value of incalculable potential, across the developed
and developing worlds, as well as in new global markets
such as those in Africa.
Without question, the world is undergoing disruption.
But IBM now stands out among our industry peers
and in business at large as distinctively able to keep moving
to the future, and to keep generating differentiating
value for our clients, our employees and the citizens of the
world. And that, in turn, promises to continue generating
high value for our owners.
The fact that we enter IBM’s second century with such
strength and condence is a testament to the extraordinary
leadership of Sam Palmisano as IBM’s CEO. I will leave
to Sam the description of our historic transformation.
But there is no doubt that IBM today is far stronger than
it was a decade ago, in both its performance and its impact
on the world.
Let me close by expressing my pride in the worldwide
IBM team for bringing us to this point, and my gratitude
to you, our shareholders, for your unwavering support.
I trust you share our excitement about your company’s
performance and the way in which IBMers are building
on our storied past to build an even brighter future.
Virginia M. Rometty
President and Chief Executive Officer
This letter includes selected references to certain non-GAAP nancial measures that are made to facilitate a comparative view of the company’s ongoing operational performance.
For information about the company’s nancial results related to (i) operating pre-tax income, operating pre-tax income margin and operating earnings per share and (ii) free cash
ow, which are in each case non-GAAP measures, see the company’s Form 8-K submitted to the SEC on January 19, 2012 (Attachment II
—
Non-GAAP Supplementary Materials).