Who Says Elephants Can't Dance - The Autobiography of IBM Chairman Lou Gerstner

Author: (American)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-07-01
Features: IBM has long been at the forefront of the computer world, regarded as a symbol of American technological strength and a bastion of national competitiveness. Even The Economist magazine noted, "The failure of IBM is always seen as America's failure." In 1993, when just took over IBM, this massive company had become sluggish due to its bloated structure and isolated, closed corporate culture, with losses reaching 16 billion dollars and facing the risk of being dismantled. The media described it as "one foot already in the grave." During the nine years led IBM, the company continued to be profitable, its stock price rose tenfold, and it became one of the most profitable companies in the world. Some have commented that's two most outstanding contributions were: 1) preserving the integrity of IBM, this giant elephant of a company; 2) successfully transforming IBM from hardware production to service provision, making it the world's largest computer company that does not manufacture computers. In the book, recounts the glorious years of transforming IBM, combining firsthand internal materials—such as meeting records, subtle signs of impending changes, and decisions made under intense pressure—with high-level, well-thought-out management insights for leading a massive company forward. is a layman in technology, yet he revitalized a globally significant IT company through a series of strategic adjustments. In this thrilling management saga, weaves his profound insights into management, corporate culture, corporate scale and competitiveness, and corporate transformation into vivid narratives, making them rich, detailed, and candid, offering the most perfect and compelling interpretation of how traditional enterprises can transform into modern, pragmatic, and flexible businesses aligned with the global economy.