The maverick and his machine : Thomas Watson, Sr., and the making of IBM/
Kevin Maney.
- 1st ed.
- New York : J. Wiley & Sons, c2003.
- xxv, 485 p., 16 p. of plates : ill. ; 24 cm.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 447-448) and index.
Maverick kindling Lit by Flint Mess spelled C-T-R Bringing up baby IBM Daring and luck Friends, heroes, sycophants Enemies and delusions King and castle Watson the second Watson's war Old man, new age World conquest Maverick and his humanity Generations after
"IBM is one of the most successful companies in American history; it ushered in the Information Age and dominated the information industry for more than seventy years. Yet the builder of IBM has never been thoroughly examined and brought to life. Now, journalist Kevin Maney, using thousands of documents never before made public, reveals the lasting achievement of the man who forever changed the world of business." "Watson was the rare businessman who transcended business. His fame and power echoes that of Microsoft's Bill Gates today and Standard Oil's John D. Rockefeller in an earlier age. Watson, in fact, created the role of the celebrity CEO. On a grander scale, Watson invented the modern concept of the corporate culture, and proved its power to make a company great." "Watson's story plays out on a global stage, intersecting with the major events and people of his time. A business failure as a young man, he rocketed to the top levels of National Cash Register before a federal antitrust trial nearly brought down NCR and seemingly crushed his career. The moment forever shaped Watson's business sensibilities and drove him to reinvent the American corporation. In 1914, he took charge of a struggling little entity called the Computer-Tabulating-Recording Company, infused it with his values, his competitive drive, and his personality quirks, and transformed it into International Business Machines - IBM." "Over and over, Watson made daring bets and won, each time vaulting IBM to a new level of size and power. In the 1920s, when information wasn't obviously going to become a big industry, he bet IBM's future on tabulating machines - the mechanical forerunners to computers."
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Watson, Thomas John, 1874-1956. Watson, Thomas J., 1914-1993. Watson, Arthur Kittredge, 1919-1974. International Business Machines Corporation
Computer industry--History.--United States Businessmen--Biography.--United States