IBM's Two-Decade Long Stall and Fall in Employee ProductivityAt the end of 2021, every single 21st Century IBM employee produced 25% less revenue and when adjusted for inflation, 54% less; every single 21st Century IBM employee produced 14% less profit and when adjusted for inflation, 47% less. The revenue and profit productivity "tortoises" have overtaken the Gerstner-Palmisano-Rometty-Krishna profit hare. The "Productivity Insights" on each of the charts provided get across the impact of these productivity losses on revenue and profits. It seems to be a lost message in the 21st Century but productivity matters. Or as Tom Watson used to say, "Employee enthusiasm matters." Peter E. Greulich, A View from Beneath the Dancing Elephant Select image or link provided below to read the full article.
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Thomas J. Watson Sr. on the Importance of Employee Encouragement and Instruction.By keeping the importance of the man in mind, I find that we can promote self-supervision and cooperation, which I consider the most important assets of any organization. The man is more important to me than the title. Nearly every captain of American industry was “just a man” in some organization a few years ago and carries his title and position today because he proved to be the right kind of a man. The first principle of our policy is to stand back of the man and, by instruction, encouragement and aid, help him to develop himself. When this is done, and men are needed to take positions which carry the titles and greater responsibility, it is not necessary to go outside of the organization to find them. Every man in any organization should be taught that his most important duty to himself and his company is to cooperate with his fellow workers. He should be taught that, regardless of his ability, his efforts must mesh . . . without friction . . . with the other gears of the business machine of which he is a part, if he is to be of value to the organization. Thomas J. Watson Sr., "Personality in Business," 1917 Somehow, I always find it interesting that what we take for granted in what makes a winning "sports" team, we fail to consider critical in building a winning "business" team: A disciplined, cooperative football "team" will beat a bunch of "franchise players" posing as a team any day of the week. Peter E. Greulich
George M. Verity Discusses Success and Its Impact on Character."Success is the greatest test of character. "Some can stand very little success, others a great deal, but the history of the lives and accomplishments of men give much evidence to prove that almost every man has a limit to the degree of success that he can attain without losing control of one or more of the factors or powers that have made him successful. "The world needs men who can stand success and who, when they have found it, will use it in the interest of mankind." George M. Verity on "Success and Character" Select the image or link below to read the entire article. Buck Rodgers, IBM Vice-President, Desired IBM Wild Ducks Called "Royal Dissenter."Mr. Buck Rodgers, an amazing IBM executive marketing manager, defined the type of Wild Duck that was known within IBM as a "Royal Dissenter." After years of study and experience around Wild Ducks, I often wonder which of these two was the harder:
"If what the wild goose tried to do is to be commended in any way, then it must above all watch out for one thing--that it hold on to itself. As soon as it notices that the tame geese have any kind of power over it, then away, away in migratory flight." In simple words: If you are surrounded by tame ducks, find another company to work for! Fly away from the tame ducks—geese. Peter E. Greulich, THINK Again! The Rometty Edition Select the image or icon provided below to read more about Buck Rodgers "Royal Dissenters." Book Review and Quotes from John Gunther's "Eisenhower: The Man and the Symbol""In our hatred of war—in our repudiation of rule by force which means enslavement—we still cannot forget those ennobling traits of human character which alone can carry men forward to victory, when war is thrust upon us. … Weakness cannot cooperate with anything. "We have got to be strong." General Dwight D. Eisenhower The following are a few words from John Gunther's book entitled, "Eisenhower: The Man and the Symbol" that describe our former President.
Peter E. Greulich, Book Review of Eisenhower: The Man and the Symbol Select the image or link provided below to read the full book review. Book Reviews of Three B. C. Forbes Business Anthologies.Links are provided below to three books by B. C. Forbes: (1) "Scrapbook of Thoughts on the Business of Life," (2) "Little Bits about Big Men," and (3) "America's 50 Foremost Business Leaders."
Select the image for B. C. Forbes' publishing and books home page or select one of the links below the image for an individual B. C. Forbes' book review. President Calvin Coolidge Quotes that are "Old Thoughts but Forever Truths.""Little progress can be made by merely attempting to repress what is evil; our great hope lies in developing what is good." "We do not need more national development, we need more spiritual development. We do not need more intellectual power, we need more spiritual power. We do not need more knowledge, we need more character. We do not need more law, we need more religion. We do not need more of the things that are seen, we need more of the things that are unseen." "No person was ever honored for what he received. Honor has been the reward for what he gave." Calvin Coolidge, 30th President of the United States I have just finished reading Volume I of "The Forbes Scrapbook of Thoughts on the Business of Life." It is amazing how just reading a few of the thoughts of a man or woman can be enough to make me wonder why I was never taught more about great men and women of American history … or, maybe, to keep the blame where it best rests: Why I have been negligent in my studies until I am an old man who can see the end of days ahead? Do not waste thy youth, young man or woman! Peter E. Greulich
Do You See the World as a "Rosebush with Thorns" or a "Thornbush with Roses?""I can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or I can rejoice because thorn bushes have roses. . . . It's how you look at it." J. Kenfield Morley, THINK Magazine, February 1936 This quote also shows up credited to Mr. Morley in B. C. Forbes' Scrapbook of Thoughts: Volume I from 1953. Trying to find information on Mr. Morley proved challenging. It seems that if Wikipedia doesn't know about you, you just don't exist, eh? Which means I don't exist either, right? (Thank God!) So, I did a little digging, and this is what I found. Who was J. Kenfield Morley? J. Kenfield Morley was a Sales Promotion Manager for the Bell & Howell Company, Chicago, Illinois. He wrote the article, "Some Things I Believe" that was printed in the February, 1937 issue of The Rotarian. This quote was not in this article, but there are a multitude of other quotes. Here are a few that seem as relevant today, as they seemed to Mr. Morley some 85 years ago.
A rose bush with thorns or a thorn bush with roses? On Memorial Day 2024: For Those Who Never Returned."In a world where so much seems to be hidden by the smoke of falsity and moral degeneration, we Americans must grasp firmly the ideals which have made this country great. A revival of old-fashioned patriotism and a grateful acknowledgment of what our country has done for us would be good for all our souls. "We must reaffirm the basic human values that have guided our forefathers." General Manton S. Eddy, The Forbes Scrapbook of Thoughts, Volume I, 1950 A thought to consider as Memorial Day is upon us one more time. "What our country has done for us" is "what each of us (and our forefathers) have done as individuals for their fellow citizens." Many have given their lives for our freedoms. Select the image or link below to read about Peter E. Greulich's experience with one man who didn't die but never returned from the Vietnam war. Phelps Adams on the Difference between Capitalism and Socialism"Capitalism and socialism stand at opposite poles. Their essential difference is this:
Adapted and updated by Peter E. Greulich from a Phelps Adams' quotation
The Forbes Scrapbook of Thoughts, 1950 Woodrow Wilson's Last Words from His Death Bed: "The Road Away from Revolution.""By justice the lawyer generally means the prompt, fair, and open application of impartial rules: but we call ours a Christian civilization, and a Christian conception of justice must be much higher. It must include sympathy and helpfulness and a willingness to forego self-interest in order to promote the welfare, happiness, and contentment of others and of the community as a whole. "The sum of the whole matter is this, that our civilization cannot survive materially unless it be redeemed spiritually." Woodrow Wilson, "The Road Away from Revolution" Select the image or link below to read the entire article by Woodrow Wilson. Home Page for Reviews of Books about Andrew CarnegieAfter reading and reviewing "The Life of Andrew Carnegie," a magnificent biography of the industrialist and philanthropist by Burton J. Hendrick and the "Autobiography of Andrew Carnegie" edited by John C. Van Dyke, it seemed appropriate to set up a home page for these book reviews and other works about and by Andrew (Andy) Carnegie. Andrew Carnegie was the builder of U.S. Steel Corporation, not J. P. Morgan, and even though the great steel manufacturer is no longer around to guide today’s business leaders, his spirit and his insights live in his biographies, an autobiography, speeches, press interviews, and published articles. Even as his words have become more electronically accessible with the modern-day internet, his thoughts are the internet's equivalent of little-referenced manuscripts gathering dust on a bookshelf. Unfortunately, his talent, business skills, and humanity are less in vogue with today's chief executive officers. We need to blow the dust off these old biographies, books and publications. If you care to learn more, select the image or one of the links provided below. Andrew Carnegie Speaking about the Character of Booker T. Washington.“My connection with Hampton and Tuskegee Institutes, which promote the elevation of the colored race we formerly kept in slavery, has been a source of satisfaction and pleasure, and to know Booker Washington is a rare privilege. We should all take our hats off to the man who not only raised himself from slavery but helped raise millions of his race to a higher stage of civilization. ... “No truer, more self-sacrificing hero ever lived: a man compounded of all the virtues. It makes one better just to know such pure and noble souls—human nature in its highest types is already divine here on earth. If it be asked which man of our age, or even of the past ages, has risen from the lowest to the highest, the answer must be Booker Washington. “He rose from slavery to the leadership of his people—a modern Moses and Joshua combined, leading his people both onward and upward." B. J. Hendrick's "The Life of Andrew Carnegie" Select the image or link below for Booker T. Washington's "Book Review Home Page." General Ulysses S. Grant Takes a Stand Against a Sitting President: President JohnsonAs a nation, we are proud that our top political leader does not adorn him or herself in medals and military splendor. The respect for the position of President of the United States is not based on the might of the sword but the political will of the people. Ours is a civilian leader, and we would never take lightly the stand of a general against the directions of his or her duly-elected Commander in Chief. But, in this incident captured by A. B. Farquhar it did happen . . . and maybe other times never captured in print. Integrity many times demands a stand of personal conviction and, in this instance, General Grant stood strong. A. B. Farquhar was a mid-19th Century to early 20th Century American Industrialist. He knew Lincoln. He knew all the presidents thereafter until his death. He knew General Ulysses S. Grant. This is a modified excerpt from Mr. Farquhar’s book, An Autobiography of A. B. Farquhar. Select the image or link below to read the full article. Andrew Carnegie's Thoughts on How to Get the Best Out of an Employee.“There lie latent unsuspected powers in willing men [and women] around us which only need appreciation and development to produce surprising results. Money rewards alone will not however insure these, for to the most sensitive and ambitious natures there must be the note of sympathy, appreciation, friendship. "Genius is sensitive in all its forms, and it is unusual ability—not ordinary ability, that tells [achieves results]. You must capture and keep the 'heart' of the original and supremely able man [or woman] before his [or her] brain can do its best.” Burton J. Hendrick, The Life of Andrew Carnegie As with Thomas J. Watson Sr., Andrew Carnegie grows in my admiration as I study more of the early 19th and 20th Century American Industrialists. Select the image or link provided below to read more of Andrew Carnegies' business wisdom. Review of Ida M. Tarbell's, "A History of American Life: The Nationalizing of Business."I was once again impressed by Ida M. Tarbell’s’ balanced approach to history and her description of the actors who interacted—and sometimes fought—with each other. She covers the individuals with Emerson’s Lengthening Shadow who led capital, business, and labor during this time. The Nationalizing of Business 1878–1898: Volume IX is on par with Mark Sullivan’s Our Times. Mr. Sullivan’s series of six volumes focuses on the opening twenty-five years of the 20th Century, where this series takes a more expansive look at American life from 1492 through, initially, 1928 with Volume XII, which was then extended through 1941 and The Great Depression with Volume XIII. Chose the image or the icon below to read this full review and reviews of her other works. IBM Chief Executive Officer Arvind Krishna's Performance through 2021Peter E. Greulich has updated IBM's and Arvind Krishna's key performance indicators (KPIs) through the end of 2021. They are summarized on the "Arvind Krishna Overall Performance Home Page." IBM released its 2021 Annual Report in March 2022 and these pages were updated in early April 2022. The next set of updates to these specific pages should be in April 2023 after the release of the IBM 2022 Annual Report. Select the image or the link below to read about Arvind Krishna's performance from the end of 2019 when Virginia M. Rometty relinquished the corner officer through 2021. Comparing IBM's 20th and 21st Century Key Performance IndicatorsEach year after IBM releases its annual report, this chart is updated to document the difference between two sets of IBM chief executive officers: (1) two 20th Century leaders who managed a business and (2) four 21st Century leaders who are managing a business to a stock price or to a stock price metric such as earnings-per-share. In the 20th Century, IBM made a sixteen-year transition that set it apart from and ahead of its competition for almost a half century [Read: The Greatest Business Gamble of the 20th Century]. Some analysts believe that IBM is in a similar transition in the 21st Century. This author disagrees. Over the last sixteen years how have IBM's chief executive officers performed against some similar critical key performance metrics? The answer should not be a surprise to any IBMer or analyst that understands what it took to build the 20th Century IBM. The Watsons invested in making people more productive, processes more effective and products more valuable. This is what happens when you invest in paper (stock buybacks/repurchases) instead. Select the image or the link below to read the full story presented in a single chart. The Impact of Social Media on the Best of Humanity"In this new era of social media, we have yet to rise to the point of displaying the best of our humanity. … Instead, in our social interactions, we are little more than a family … of animals. "Set an example for your children … be better!" Peter E. Greulich, April 1, 2022 Select the image or the icon below to read other business witticisms. To Hear the Truth, LinkedIn's Customers Need an Anonymous "Incognito Mode"In 2021, I left LinkedIn. The feedback that I was getting on my articles was "muted." By this I mean that too many individuals had come to realize that LinkedIn--as a social media platform--will not necessarily get you a job, but it sure can keep you from getting one: just the "like" of an article may come back to haunt you in a job search. So, "Does LinkedIn Need an Anonymous 'Incognito Mode?' " Just a few years ago, my answer to this question would have been an emphatic, “No!” My initial experience with anonymous forums was not pleasant. I am, now, just as insistent in my “Yes!” … with some qualifications. LinkedIn needs to provide its users, not with a “cloak of secrecy,” but a “veil of protection” to encourage honest, intelligent feedback on matters that should be of a real concern to the economic welfare of our country. This article discusses why, with an initial suggestion of how it might work. Select the image or link below to read about a suggested "LinkedIn Anonymous Mode." What Topics Were Important to America's Early 20th Century Industrialists?In 1950, B. C. Forbes published the first of what would ultimately become over two decades a three-volume set of quotes, epilogues, and statements on “The Business of Life.” Initially, I started to list some of my favorite quotes from Volume I, but a question came to mind: What was the overall impression—the big picture—of all the quotes in this first volume? What was on the mind of these early industrialists, philosophers, and business founders (and B. C. Forbes) when these short business-life idioms were written, collected and published? This is an ordered list of the number of times each subject is included in the “Subject Index.” I believe this list, in a small way, shows where the heads of some great individuals were at when it came to business in the generations living before 1950—many thoughts were post World War I and World War II. It appears obvious that for many (1) business was “life,” (2) “God” and “Happiness” were close seconds—seemingly to provide guidance or a balance, and (3) “work, success, character, mind, education, faith, truth and wisdom” were top of mind too. Great food for thought in the 21st Century, eh? A footnote: Consider that each subject may be more expansive than what is listed here. For instance, the category “Action” does not include “Act, Actions, Deeds, or Doing.” Neither does the category “God” include subjects such as “Faith, Religion or the Golden Rule.” Also, little effort has been made to count the exact number of mentions in the index. These were cut/paste into a Word document and the number of words then extracted. The actual count may be off by one or two—forgive me as this was a trade-off on my part between accuracy and effort.
Maybe, if I were a university professor who could put a graduate understudy to work on it, eh? A Charles Schwab Story of How to Test Your Corporate Culture—MBWAThis is a story adapted from an insight by Charles M. Schwab. The executive tale provides a unique perspective into what made the 20th Century IBM so great—employees were building cathedrals, and what is causing the slow deterioration of the 21st Century IBM—employees are laying brick or working for a buck. As Charles M. Schwab was walking a work site he saw three men were laying brick. He asked each of the men in succession: "What are you doing? "
Download and read this free article by Peter E. Greulich. It is his research into Watson Sr.'s philosophy of instilling a democratic spirit into his business—the 20th Century IBM. Democracy can and should be your corporate atmosphere. Build cathedrals: Manage By Wandering Around! Select the image or link below to download Thomas J. Watson Sr.'s "Democracy in Business." Who Were the Early 20th Century Industrialists Who Built American Capitalism?More must be done to develop a deeper, well-rounded understanding of—and admiration for—our country’s early business founders. We need to write of their trials, tribulations and successes. Writing figuratively: We need to etch their images in stone just as we have our early political founders. In January 1926, A. W. Shaw published in System: The Magazine of Business this survey. It is an amazing look inside the minds of some of America's greatest industrialists. If we do this, maybe our twenty-first century chief executives will once again—like their twentieth-century counterparts, learn to measure success by ideals and not by dollars and cents. To read the entire article select the image or link provided below. The Golden Rule in Business: Thomas J. Watson Sr. and J. C. PenneyTwo men—J. C. (James Cash) Penney and Thomas J. Watson Sr.—from uniquely different backgrounds founded two of the 20th Century’s greatest corporate brands. These two men seemed unlikely kindred spirits. Yet operating independent of, and unknown to each other until later in life, they built two unique business brands—one in retail and one in business machines—on the same belief system: treat customers, employees, shareholders and society the way you want to be treated. Select the image above or the link below to read the rest of the story: A Corporate 101 story. Thomas J. Watson Sr. Confronts Bigotry and Anti-Semitism as a University TrusteeIn January of 1950, America’s press lit up with indignation over a Lafayette College benefactor’s last will and testament. His dying wish was to provide for his alma mater—as long as his benefaction did not provide scholarship money for a Catholic, a Jew, or any first-generation American. The college’s president and lawyer initially implemented a way around the will’s discriminatory provisions—skirting the biased restrictions. The school intended to deposit all proceeds into the general endowment fund. This would enable the organization to avoid any discriminatory usage of the money—a legal, last-will-and-testament loophole. A total sum of $140,000 brought to the forefront many of the same discussions we are still having seven decades later. Tom Watson Sr. was involved in this controversy. Select the image or link provided below to read the entire history of this event. |
Peter E. GreulichPeter E. has been studying IBM and early American corporate history since his retirement in 2011. These are his thoughts and musings, and of those whose biographies and autobiographies he has read with links to articles and book reviews on this website. Contact the author directly.
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