Case studies are to be performed as described in the syllabus and in the Chapter 1 lecture notes. The questions provided here are NOT designed to be comprehensive steps, just some of the points I’d expect you to address while doing the case studies. So please go beyond the issues identified here; these are just help to get you started.
1. Case Study I-1 IBM’s Decade of Transformation: Turnaround to Growth (starts on page 5)
This case study addresses several problems over the history of IBM, so it’s more like a series of little case studies. Focus your attention on the state of IBM when Louis Gerstner took over in April 1993, and address how he could have proceeded from that point. Of course the actual answer is the creation of One IBM, but what other options could he have pursued? Only use the exhibit data through 1994, and you can ignore the discussion of EBOs and other events well after 1994.
Since IBM is both a user of IT, as well as an innovator and creator of IT equipment, they have an unusual position compared to many organizations.
Focus on the problems IBM faced during this time and the alternatives they faced for dealing with the problems. What is the origin of the problem? Is it a technical issue, or customer relations, or competition, or something else? What functional areas within IBM were responsible for handling each problem (e.g. HR, accounting, marketing, engineering, etc.)?
Some areas to consider:
• What caused IBM to lose money in the early 1990’s? What options did they face to handle that problem?
• Why was the System/360 platform significant? How did it affect the IT industry?
• How was marketing for the IBM PC different from the way it handled mainframes?
• Was IBM a leader in client/server and networked computing?
• In Exhibit 2, look for trends,
