Finally - a Dog in the Fight

I have been saying that the best time to invest in IT (or any properly vetted capital investment) is when business is slow. Successful companies with good balance sheets have long used these periods as opportunities to pin their opposition to the mat. And, by the way, I think Ford Motor Company is doing that right now to GM and Chrysler.

Well, it seems that IBM is getting feisty, "We will not simply ride out the storm," CEO Samuel J. Palmisano said ... "Rather we will take a long-term view, and go on offense."

The link above is to an on-line Wall Street Journal article which may require a subscription. I'll cut-and-paste the text so follow the "read more" to see the rest.

By JESSICA HODGSON

The chairman and chief executive of International Business Machines Corp. issued an upbeat message to stockholders Monday, in marked contrast to the mood of other large tech companies.

IBM, whose stock has outperformed its large cap tech peers, said in a letter accompanying the company's annual report that it is "positioned to lead in the era that lies on the other side of the present crisis."

"We will not simply ride out the storm," CEO Samuel J. Palmisano said in the letter. "Rather we will take a long-term view, and go on offense."

Mr. Palmisano's letter stresses IBM's global exposure -- nearly two-thirds of the company's business comes from outside the U.S. -- and its investment in cloud computing as two trends which it believes will help the company keep its edge over peers and prosper not just in the current environment but after economic growth returns.

He also talked extensively about the way IBM has positioned itself to play a role in selling "smart meter" technology, underscoring its position at the heart of the company's growth strategy and the central role it is likely to play in rebuilding infrastructure across the world.

Mr. Palmisano said the devices, which plug analytical software into small devices that can be used in everything from traffic management systems to food traceability products, will play a central role in the efforts by governments and corporations to revive the world economy.

"Through pervasive instrumentation and interconnection, almost anything – any person, any object, any process or any service, for any organization, large or small -- can become digitally aware, networked and intelligent," he said.

IBM's focus on smart meters and analytics accompanies a move by many of the world's governments to boost their economies through investment. In the U.S., this has taken the form of earmarking cash for industries such as healthcare technology and other industries which IBM says could improve efficiencies by installing the meters.

IBM has diversified itself successfully over the past decade, emerging from its roots as a hardware maker to become the world's largest I.T. services organization, which also sells high end software to corporations and governments.

Separately, IBM said Mr. Palmisano received $21 million in salary, bonus, perks and stock-based awards in 2008, according to a filing with Securities & Exchange Commission. His compensation included a base salary of $1.8 million and a $5.5 million cash bonus. In May, IBM granted Mr. Palmisano $12.2 million in equity-based awards, a reward for performance in prior years.
—David J. Reynolds contributed to this article.