IBM 2015 Annual Report Download - page 12

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10 A Letter from the Chairman
revenue and signings, fi nishing with a growing
backlog. We have also grown in the parts
of IBM Global Business Services (GBS) where
we have transitioned to our high-growth
strategic imperatives, with nearly half of our
GBS revenue now coming from those busi-
nesses. In December we announced that our
partnership with Apple had delivered more
than 100 IBM MobileFirst for iOS applications,
helping to transform the way work gets done
across 14 industries and 65 professions.
Our Systems Hardware business had
a strong year. Since the launch of the z13
in the fi rst quarter of 2015, we have delivered
mainframe growth of 35percent, with strong
double-digit gains every quarter. Power revenue
grew 4percent in 2015 and has grown for
four straight quarters on the strength of
OpenPOWER and Linux on Power. The strong
performance of our Systems Hardware
business over the past two years—swinging
from a year-to-year decline in profi t of $1.7billion
in 2013 to reporting profi t growth of nearly
$600million last year—is largely the result of
the signifi cant business restructuring we
have implemented.
For the full year, we generated revenue
of $81.7billion, down 1percent. We achieved
operating earnings per share of $14.92 and
delivered operating net income of $14.7billion.
The progress of our transformation—in
particular our growth in hardware and GTS—
shows what IBMers can do to reinvent
our core businesses. In 2016, we will focus on:
• Our software businesses, where we will
accelerate our shift to cognitive solution-
based opportunities and help our
clients make the transition to as-a-service
models delivered via hybrid cloud.
• GBS, where we will use cognitive to differen-
tiate and drive our consulting business;
modernize GBS’s core business with digital
value propositions; and grow margin through
continued focus on high-value markets and
improved productivity.
• Storage, where we will accelerate our
shift to object storage and strengthen
our leadership in fl ash.
Our model is based on strong generation
of free cash fl ow, which we maintained with
$13.1billion in 2015. We use our cash to invest in
the future and to return value to you, our owners.
In 2015 we invested more than 6percent of
our revenue in R&D and about $4billion in capital
expenditures. We announced 15 acquisitions.
And for the 23rd consecutive year, IBM led