Национальный исследовательский университет – Высшая школа экономики
Общеуниверситетская кафедра Публичной политики
Эссе по курсу «Global Actors in Public Policy»
«IBM as a global actor»
Работу выполнила:
студентка 2 курса магистратуры
Анастасия Толстопятова
Преподаватель:
проф.
Москва, 2011
The origin and trajectory of becoming global[1]
IBM, one of the oldest computing companies in the world, was incorporated in the state of New York on June 16, 1911 as the Computing - Tabulating - Recording Company (CTR), but its origins can be traced back to developments at the close of the 19th century. CTR adopted the name International Business Machines in 1924, using a name previously designated to CTR's subsidiary in Canada and later South America.
In 1914, Thomas J. Watson, Sr., joined CTR as general manager (in 11 months became the president). Watson boosted company spirit with employee sports teams, family outings and a company band. He preached a positive outlook, and his favorite slogan, "THINK," became a mantra for CTR's employees. During Watson's first four years, revenues more than doubled to $9 million. He also expanded the company's operations to Europe, South America, Asia and Australia.
During the Great Depression of the 1930s, IBM managed to grow while the rest of the U. S. economy floundered. Thomas J. Watson, Sr., took care of his employees. IBM was among the first corporations to provide group life insurance (1934), survivor benefits (1935) and paid vacations (1937). More over IBM (CSC that time) hired a Black employee and three women in 1899, 10 years before the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People was founded and 20 years before women won the right to vote.
In 1932 IBM completed one of the finest modern research and development laboratories in the world at Endicott, New York.
When World War II began, all IBM facilities were placed at the disposal of the U. S. government. IBM's product line expanded to include bombsights, rifles and engine parts - in all, more than three dozen major ordnance items.
The war years also marked IBM's first steps toward computing. The Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator, also called the Mark I, was completed in 1944 after six years of development with Harvard University. It was the first machine that could execute long computations automatically.
In 1952, the company introduced the IBM 701, its first large computer based on the vacuum tube. The IBM 7090, one of the first fully transistorized mainframes, could perform 229,000 calculations per second. The U. S. Air Force used the 7090 to run its Ballistic Missile Early Warning System.
On July 20, 1969, with the landing on the moon of the Apollo 11 module, IBM reached a high point in its achievements for the Federal U. S. government, for computing industry and for science and engineering. Designed by NASA, and built and programmed by IBM at the Space Systems Center in Huntsville, Alabama, the Saturn instrument unit was the computer nerve center for the launch vehicle - controlling the Saturn rocket until Apollo was safely headed to the Moon.
Thanks to the birth of the IBM Personal Computer or PC in 1981, the IBM brand began to enter homes, small business and schools.
In the fall of 1995, after the company passed through internal crisis, IBM's new vision was articulated - that network computing would drive the next phase of industry growth and would be the company's overarching strategy. Services became the fastest growing segment of the company, with growth at more than 20 percent per year.
In May 1997, IBM dramatically demonstrated computing's potential with Deep Blue, a 32-node IBM RS/6000 SP computer programmed to play chess on a world class level. In a six-game match in New York, Deep Blue defeated World Chess Champion Garry Kasparov. It was the first time a computer had beaten a top-ranked chess player in tournament play, and it ignited a public debate on how close computers could come to approximating human intelligence.
Now IBM is a multinational technology and consulting corporation manufacturing and selling computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas ranging from mainframe computers to nanotechnology.
Globally, the company was ranked the 31st largest firm by Forbes for 2011. Other rankings for 2011 include #1 company for leaders (Fortune), #2 best global brand (Interbrand), #1 green company worldwide (Newsweek), #12 most admired company (Fortune), and #18 most innovative company (Fast Company).
IBM offices are located in over 200 countries with 426,751 employees. IBM holds more patents than any other U. S.-based technology company, and has nine research laboratories worldwide.
IBM passed a long way to become a global actor through developing its technology, social responsibility and collaboration network with governments, academic institutions, research centers, non-governmental organizations and other public policy actors over the world.
Vision, goals and ambitions[2]
IBMers value:
- Dedication to every client’s success
- Innovation that matters – for the company and for the world
- Trust and personal responsibility in all relationships
IBM vision:
· IBM identifies and acts upon new opportunities to apply its technology and expertise to societal problems.
· IBM scales its existing programs and initiatives to achieve maximum benefit (ex. World Community Grid devoted to creation the world's largest public computing grid to tackle projects that benefit humanity. Its work has developed the technical infrastructure that serves as the grid's foundation for scientific research. Grid’s success depends upon individuals collectively contributing their unused computer time to change the world for the better. IBM Corporation has donated the hardware, software, technical services and expertise to build the infrastructure for World Community Grid and provides free hosting, maintenance and support).
· IBM empowers its employees and others to serve their communities. For 100 years, service and volunteerism have been essential elements of what it means to be an IBMer. Creating a culture of service has always been a central part of IBM corporate citizenship efforts. At any given time, there may be as many as 160,000 IBMers involved in community service efforts around the world, engaged in projects that range from working with mayors of major cities to improve urban quality of life to teaching science, math and engineering to local high school students. But this year (centennial year for IBM) IBM is aiming for 100 percent participation, with all 400,000 IBMers donating at least one day to community service.
· IBM integrates corporate citizenship and social responsibility into every aspect of the company.
IBM ambitions:
IBM is focused on specific societal issues, including the environment, community economic development, education, health, literacy, language and culture. These are areas of urgent societal needs where IBM applies its technology to solve problems, rather than simply making cash donations. IBM wants to keep contributing into innovation of countries, cities, governments, communities and the planet’s critical infrastructure.
IBM is focused on geo expansion trying to implement its experience in all over the world.
Methods used to reach the global goals[3]
Smarter Planet concept. In 2008 IBM introduced the concept of Smarter Planet which devoted to advance such systems as companies, cities (smart traffic, security systems, CO2 reduction) and the world to be more instrumented, intelligent and interconnected, that requires a profound shift in management and governance. IBM wants intelligence to be infused into the systems and processes that make the world work - cars, appliances, buildings, roadways, power grids, clothes, even natural systems such as agriculture and waterways.
Two years after the concept was introduced, IBM has collaborated with more than 600 organizations and 25 cities worldwide. Areas of implementation: Smarter Water Management, Smarter Transportation, Smarter Traffic, Sustainability on a smarter planet, Social Business, Smarter Security and Resilience (an intelligent approach to risk management), Smarter retail, Smarter Railroads, Smarter Public Safety (as by 2050, nearly three quarters of the planet will live in cities, public safety will be a key factor in determining which city people choose), Smarter Products and Services, Smarter Oilfields, Smarter Healthcare, Smarter Government (e-government), Smarter Food (less waste, smarter supply chains, safer food), Smart Grid (energy), Education, Smarter computing (supercomputer Watson with greater than ever productivity), Smarter communications, Smarter Commerce, Smarter Cities (safe neighborhoods, quality schools, affordable housing, no traffic jams), Business Agility, Smarter Buildings, Smarter Money.
For Smarter City project development IBM created City Forward, a free, web-based platform provides access to expertise and technologies that can offer insight into specific metropolitan issues. City Forward is collaborating with non-profits, think tanks, and public policy schools to integrate their urban planning policy expertise as well as their extensive network of contacts with cities, non-profits and academia. The project also draws on extensive expertise from across the IBM Corporation.
All solutions IBM provides can be applied whenever, so Smarter Planet is a real mechanism of geo expansion. Governments have already started to make orders refer to one/several Smarter Planet solutions all over the world.
IBM also collaborates with universities, initiates students contests, provided grants for education. This is how strategy of growing up future scientists and IBM technology users works.
IBM contributes to open source software development, investing huge money for open course community. The goal is to promote technology even on free base. It is also a contribution into NGO sector and academic community.
KidSmart all over the world IBM initiative is to promote early learning and technologies for home and schools. Again – IBM contributes to its technologies future users
The Corporate Service Corps, another IBM initiative, was launched in 2008 to help provide IBMers with high quality leadership development while delivering high quality problem solving for communities and organizations in emerging markets. The program empowers IBM employees as global citizens by sending groups of 10 – 15 individuals from different countries with a range of skills to an emerging market for four week community-based assignments. During the assignment, participants perform community-driven economic development projects working at the intersection of business, technology, and society.
IBM considers growing markets to be of high importance for the corporation. Now it is going to enter Africa region, India has already become one of the most efficient region for the corporation.
Resources committed and resources applied[4]
Every year IBM spends $6 billion for research and inventions.
IBM invests a lot of money into emerging markets. For ex, over the last three years IBM invested in China market $23.5 million.
IBM Corporation spent nearly $1.1 million on federal government lobbying in the third quarter of 2011 on issues such as security and trade, according to a disclosure report. It was $50,000 more than it spent a year ago and $130,000 more than in the second quarter. During the quarter, IBM lobbied Congress, the Defense Department, the Energy Department, the Homeland Security Department, the National Security Agency, the U. S. Trade Representative and other federal agencies, according to a report filed Oct. 20 with the House clerk's office.
The impact IBM has demonstrated on the Global Public Policy arena
The research of IBM activities, structure, expansion intensions, and method of promoting its products, services and expertise has shown that this corporation is global actor. One more significant proof is the fact that IBM managed to establish relations with key actors it needs to promote its technologies, services, ideas. IBM is in partnership both with governments and non-governmental communities, with civil society and academic institutions, think tanks sector members and other policy makers.
IBM contributes a lot in world improvement due to its broad programs in different, all-around areas. We already have mentioned Smarter City concept IBM inserted to its mission, present and future projects. Corporation is doing a lot to contribute to local communities all over the world and its corporate citizenship is devoted to the same goal. IBM is responsible for itself, for its employees and for communities it operates in.
[1] References:
http:///ibm/history/history/decade_2000.html
http://www. en. wikipedia. org/wiki/IBM
http:///ibm/history/witexhibit/pdf/wit_timeline. pdf
http://www. /ibm100/us/en/icons/apollo/breakthroughs/
http://www. /ibm/ideasfromibm/us/apollo//index. shtml
[2] References:
http://www. /ibm/responsibility/?lnk=ftai
http://www. /ibm/us/en/
http://www. /ibm/responsibility/report/2010/communities/service-communities. html
http://www. worldcommunitygrid. org/index. jsp
http://www. /ibm/responsibility/report/2010/communities/technology-communities. html#world_community_grid
http://www. /investor/governance/
[3] References:
http://www. /smarterplanet/us/en/overview/ideas/index. html? re=ussph2.1
http:///services/us/gbs/industries/
http:///innovation/us/watson/?lnk=ftpl
http://www. /ibm/ideasfromibm/us/library/index. shtml
http://www. /developerworks/university/
http://www. /ibm/governmentalprograms/
https://smartercitieschallenge. org/index. html
http://cityforward. org/static_content/files/project_overview_en_us. pdf
http:///services/us/gbs/industries/government/?re=gihome67gov
[4] References:
http://www. /ibm/responsibility/market_profile. shtml
http://www. /id/
