IBM Full Form

Introduction

International Business Machines Corporation is the complete form of IBM. It is a major American computer manufacturer with a significant market share both domestically and internationally. The corporation’s headquarters are situated in Armonk, New York. The corporation is one of those information technology firms that can trace its roots back to the 19th century. IBM is a computer hardware and software company that also provides infrastructure, hosting, and business consulting in fields ranging from mainframe computers to nanotech. 

About IBM 

IBM today stands to be known as the world’s largest computer company for most of its recent history; including over 350,000 employees globally, it is the world’s largest information technology employer.

IBM is also regarded as one of the most successful in its industry, but in the year 2007, it fell next to Hewlett Packard in terms of collective revenue. IBM has more patent rights than any other technology company based in the United States. It employs professionals and consultants in more than 170 countries, and IBM Research operates 8 laboratories around the world. 

IBM employees are known to hold 3 Nobel Awards and 4 Turing Awards among others. IBM ranks among the Top 20 Semiconductor Sales Leaders in the World.

Journey of IBM

In 1933, IBM acquired Electromatic Typewriters, Inc., and thus entered the game of electric typewriters, where it eventually rose to the top. 

During WWII, IBM assisted in the development of several high-speed electromechanical calculators, which were the forerunners of electronic computers. Only when Watson’s son, Thomas Watson, Jr., became head of the company in 1952 that the company made a full-fledged push into the electronic data-processing field. 

IBM’s size empowered it to spend heavily on research and development once it entered the computer field. This ability to invest, combined with its dominant position in office-calculating machines, marketing expertise, and adherence to rebuilding and service its hardware, allowed IBM to quickly establish itself as the leading corporate in the United States.

By the 1960s, IBM had produced 70% of all computers in the world and 80% of those computers used in the U. S. alone.

IBM in the computer industry

Throughout most of the 1960s, IBM had been the biggest of the eight main computer companies (along with UNIVAC, Burroughs, NCR, and others). People in the field would take a dig at the other companies owing to their relatively little size and call it ‘IBM and the seven dwarfs. IBM’s System/360 series was a major technological breakthrough in the 1960s.

IBM specialized in mainframe computers, which were costly medium- to computer systems capable of processing numerical data at high speeds. The IBM Personal Computer, introduced in 1981, was the company’s first foray into the expanding economy for personal computers. 

Despite capturing a sizable market share, IBM was unable to maintain its long-held dominance as a manufacturer of personal computers. New semiconductor-chip–based technologies were shrinking and simplifying computer manufacturing, allowing smaller companies to enter the field and capitalize on the latest concepts such as workstations, network services, and graphics design. 

IBM’s massive size prevented it from responding quickly to these suddenly heightened rates of changes in technology, and by the 1990s, the company had significantly downsized. 

Shifting of IBM into the services sector

On January 19, 1993, IBM had declared a US $8.10 billion loss, a considerable one, the largest single-year business loss any company had faced in US history at the time.

That same year, IBM hired Louis V. Gerstner, Jr., who is also considered as the man who overturned the affairs of the corporation. His decision to reverse his predecessor’s measures and re-integrate IBM’s major elements to concentrate on services first and products second are widely regarded as the decision that saved the company and continues to remain the crucial underlying principle of IBM’s strategy today.

IBM expanded its Software Group from standing as a single DB2 to five which include Lotus, Rational, etc. beginning with the acquisition of Lotus Development Corporation in 1995.

Big Blue

Big Blue is a popular name for IBM, and there are several theories as to how it came to be. One theory, supported by IBM’s existing staff, is that IBM field leaders invented the phrase in the 1960s, making reference to the color of mainframes installed by IBM in the 1960s and 1970s.

The phrase ‘all blue’ was used to call a devoted IBM staffer and this name was taken by the columnists later. Another plausible theory would be that the name comes from the logo of the company itself. There exists third speculation too, which cites the blue suits worn over white shirts by the workers of IBM then as being the reason behind the term ‘Big Blue’.

Operations of IBM 

Cloud & Cognitive Software, Systems, Global Business Services (GBS), and Global Financing are the Company’s chief segments.

The Cloud & Cognitive Software Solutions sector provides clients with integrated and secure cloud, data, and artificial intelligence (AI) solutions. It is divided into three business units: cognitive applications, cloud and data platforms, and transaction processing platforms. 

Consulting, business process, and software management services are provided by the GBS segment. The Global Financing segment provides financing, primarily through IBM Credit LLC, as well as remanufacturing and remarketing. 

The Systems segment provides infrastructure platforms to clients to help them meet the demands of composite multi-cloud and business AI workflows. It also offers telco consulting solutions and services to assist communications service providers (CSP) and communications on a variety of cloud platforms.

Conclusion

IBM reported income is $5.6 billion for the fiscal year 2020, with yearly revenue of $73.6 billion. IBM’s income has fallen in eight of the last nine years. IBM was placed at No. 38 on the 2020 Fortune 500 list of the largest corporations in the United States based on total revenue.