"In his biography, "Who Says Elephants Can't Dance?" Gerstner recounted his middle-class upbringing and time at Dartmouth University and Harvard Business School. At 23, he went to work for management consultancy McKinsey and within nine years became a senior partner before taking a senior role at American Express. During his 11 years at American Express, Gerstner had his first encounter with IBM when one of the divisions he oversaw adopted computers from Amdahl in addition to its Big Blue mainframes."
"Gerstner tried to contact IBM's CEO, only to be met with bureaucratic indifference despite American Express being a very significant customer at the time. "Cooler heads prevailed at IBM and the incident passed," he wrote. "Nevertheless, it did not go out of my memory." Gerstner next became CEO of RJR Nabisco, a chastening experience as its new venture capitalist owners demanded performance the business was not set up to deliver. After four years in the job, he began to contemplate his next move."
"Burke persisted and told Gerstner "You owe it to America to take the job." He and others convinced Gerstner that his work at American Express meant he had the experience to reform IBM, and that his approach of focusing on business fundamentals - strong cashflow and focusing on customers' needs - would be applicable. Gerstner decided IBM was a great challenge, took the job, and started work in April 1993."
Lou Gerstner died aged 83. He grew up in a middle-class family and studied at Dartmouth and Harvard Business School. He joined McKinsey at 23 and became a senior partner within nine years before moving to American Express. At American Express he encountered IBM when a division adopted Amdahl computers alongside IBM mainframes, prompting friction with IBM over support. He later led RJR Nabisco and faced pressure from venture capital owners. Johnson & Johnson CEO Jim Burke and others urged him to lead IBM; he accepted, emphasizing cashflow and customer focus, and began as IBM CEO in April 1993.
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