The Downfall of IBM

By Robert X. Cringely – The direct impetus for this column is IBM’s internal plan to grow earnings-per-share (EPS) to $20 by 2015. The primary method for accomplishing this feat, according to the plan, will be by reducing US employee head count by 78 percent in that time frame.

This is the first thing to understand about the IBM of today: the company is being run by executives who for...