"Gerstner ran IBM from 1993 to 2002, arriving at a time when the company was under severe pressure, and its future was in doubt. IBM was losing money, the tech industry was shifting rapidly, and there was widespread expectation that the company would be broken up. Instead, Gerstner chose to keep IBM together. He pushed the company to organize around customer needs rather than internal divisions, helping reposition IBM as a provider of integrated technology and services for large enterprises. That decision became central to IBM's recovery and renewed relevance."
"Gerstner also drove cultural change inside the company. He emphasized direct decision-making, accountability, and execution, while insisting that innovation mattered only if it translated into real value for clients. The approach marked a sharp break from IBM's inward-looking habits that had taken hold before his arrival, IBM said in its announcement of Gerstner's death. His tenure included painful restructuring."
Lou Gerstner led IBM from 1993 to 2002 during a severe financial and industry crisis. He decided against breaking up the company and instead kept IBM intact while reorganizing it around customer needs rather than internal divisions. He repositioned IBM as a provider of integrated technology and services for large enterprises. He drove cultural change by emphasizing direct decision-making, accountability, execution, and tying innovation to client value. His tenure involved painful restructuring, including ending the decades-long no-layoff policy, to stabilize finances. After IBM, he chaired the Carlyle Group and engaged in philanthropy focused on education and biomedicine.
Read at Business Insider
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