Реферат: Ibm Company Essay Research Paper I Current
à TSM brings IBM Global Services systems management experts together with a customer’s IT executives to assess the customer’s information technology environment against its business goals and identify the key IT areas that are critical to achieving those objectives.
IBM develops a customized services solution to enhance the customer’s system-wide operations and enable its IT infrastructure to better support its business goals, such as e-business.
1.7 All IBM interfaces, going from PC servers to supercomputers can be connected to Internet.
1.8 Teamwork: watch the video cassette.
2. Weaknesses:
2.1 Gerstner, the new IBM CEO, focused on forming both a decentralized and interlinked company. Therefore, it was difficult to counter the strong competition IBM divisions are facing from meaner rivals.
2.2. There is a slow pace of product introductions due to slow market researches: one of the most difficult challenges of IT markets is that products must be updated in a regular and very frequent basis. As you may have already noticed, a brand new computer will lead the market for only 5 to 6 months. That’s why researchers must continually look for new technologies to apply to their products. However, the research process at IBM takes too much time, and this costs huge amounts of money, leading to a higher price than that of competitors, and finally to decrease in sales.
2.3.IBM uses a shotgun approach, meaning that products are launched in the market without any previous information. This can be perceived as a weakness since it would be preferable to make people know about the evolution of IBM technology. Customers need to know what is to be expected from IBM.
3. Marketing:
3.1.One of the main characteristics and weakness of IBM marketing approach is that it is based on updating and recycling older systems architectures. Instead of creating a 100% new product, the company chooses some obsolete products and try to upgrade them. This shows that there is a lack of communication and understanding between IBM and its customers, since there is no or little interest in what are the real needs. It is just with the arrival of Gerstner that this marketing approach changed, when he ordered 25 executives to meet customers.
4.Management:
4.1.IBM maintains an effective internal control structure that consists of:
Ø Organizational arrangements with clearly defined lines of responsibility and delegation of authority
Ø Comprehensive systems and control procedures.
à the objective of this structure is to provide reasonable assurance that transactions are executed in accordance with management authorization, and that they are appropriately recorded, in order to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles and to adequately safeguard, verify and maintain accountability of assets.
5.HRM:
5.1. To assure the effective administration of internal control, IBM carefully selects and train its employees, develops and disseminates written policies and procedures, and provides appropriate communication channels.
5.2.To compete and win the global marketplace, IBM needs to attract and retain talented and motivated professionals from practically every country, community and background. IBM provides a cash compensation opportunity that will attract, retain and motivate high performing employees. Their pay will be strongly influenced by the results obtained by each one of them.
5.3 Among other benefits: medical, dental and vision benefits; income protection; work and personal life balancing; stock purchase; IBM club, etc..
6.Accounting:
6.1.The Audit Committee of the Board of Directors is composed solely of outside directors. It recommends to the Board the independent firm that will conduct the company’s auditing. The Audit Committee meets periodically and privately with the independent accountants, as well as with IBM managers to review accounting, auditing, internal control structure and financial reporting matters. Usually, IBM is helped by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP to review the whole internal structure of the company and to test its accounting procedures.
6.2.With this approach, neutrality and objectivity are respected, so IBM managers are sure that the results obtained are not influenced by inside auditors.
7.Porter?s competition model
1. The computer industry is still young and expanding, so there is a big threat from potential new entrants.
2. The industry is competitive, so IBM has to satisfy both industrial buyers and consumers.
3. IBM faces high threats from substitute products because computer products have a short lifecycle. PC networks are replacing mainframes.
4. There are increasing numbers of competitors in the industry spurring both price competition, and product innovation.
III. Strategic Alternatives
1. Outsourcing can be one good solution for IBM to cut its costs so that it can sell at a competitive price. The hardware can be manufactured where there is cheap labor and equipment for instance.