IBM's Chief Outlines Vision, Hints at Hopeful Signs for Tech
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By DONNA FUSCALDO
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
In his first major address as chief executive of International Business Machines Corp., Samuel J. Palmisano said Wednesday there are "interesting signs" that the economy has "perhaps hit the bottom and things are flattening out."
While Mr. Palmisano conceded that he and many other business executives are operating in one of the most difficult business environments ever, he said that business and government leaders around the world are optimistic about technology over the long term.
Mr. Palmisano, who addressed more than 200 customers and industry analysts in a speech here that many considered his coming out, laid out IBM's strategy for the future.
In IBM's view, the business and technology industries are entering a new era called "on-demand." In this era, companies will have to respond rapidly to customers' demands, market opportunities and external threats. To do that, Mr. Palmisano said it will require technology that is based on open standards, can easily be integrated, and can identify and fix problems itself. According to the executive, this new model will save companies money and will reduce the complexity of systems.
IBM is so sure that on-demand computing is the next wave that Mr. Palmisano announced Big Blue will invest $10 billion into this new vision. While he characterized this endeavor as a big, bold bet, he said it isn't a risky one.
In addition to the $10 billion in investment, IBM also created a new organization to oversee this effort and will be opening on-demand centers around the world. The centers will help customers implement pilots using open standards technology like Linux. The company also will launch a print and broadcast campaign focused on the on-demand strategy.
Write to Donna Fuscaldo at donna.fuscaldo@dowjones.com4
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Updated October 30, 2002 1:54 p.m. EST
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