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| '''Thomas J. Watson''' (], ]–], ]) is considered to be the founder of IBM. He was one of the richest men of his time and called the world's greatest salesman when he died. | '''Thomas J. Watson''' (], ]–], ]) is considered to be the founder of ] (IBM). He was one of the richest men of his time and called the world's greatest ] when he died. | ||
| ].]] | ].]] | ||
| ⚫ | Watson was born in ]. His formal education consisted of only a course in the Elmira School of Commerce. His first job was at age 18 as a bookkeeper in Clarence Risley's Market in ]. Later he sold sewing machines and musical instruments before joining the ] as a salesman in Buffalo. He eventually worked his way up to general sales manager. Bent on inspiring the dispirited NCR sales force, Watson introduced the motto, "THINK," which later became a widely known symbol of IBM. | ||
| ==Early Life and Career== | |||
| ⚫ | Watson was born in ]. His formal education consisted of only a course in the Elmira School of Commerce. His first job was at age 18 as a bookkeeper in Clarence Risley's Market in ]. Later he sold sewing machines and musical instruments before joining the ] (NCR) as a salesman in Buffalo. He eventually worked his way up to general sales manager. Bent on inspiring the dispirited NCR sales force, Watson introduced the motto, "THINK," which later became a widely known symbol of IBM. | ||
| While at NCR, he was convicted for illegal anti-competitive sales practices (e.g. he used to have people sell deliberately faulty cash registers, either second-hand NCR or from competitors; soon after the second-hand NCR or competitors cash register failed, an NCR salesperson would arrive to sell them a brand new NCR cash register). He was sentenced, along with ] (the owner of NCR), to one year of imprisonment. Their conviction was unpopular with the public, due to the efforts of Patterson and Watson to help those affected by the 1913 ] floods, but efforts to have them pardoned by President ] were unsuccessful. However, the Court of Appeals overturned the conviction on appeal in 1915, on the grounds that important defense evidence should have been admitted. | While at NCR, he was convicted for illegal anti-competitive sales practices (e.g. he used to have people sell deliberately faulty cash registers, either second-hand NCR or from competitors; soon after the second-hand NCR or competitors cash register failed, an NCR salesperson would arrive to sell them a brand new NCR cash register). He was sentenced, along with ] (the owner of NCR), to one year of imprisonment. Their conviction was unpopular with the public, due to the efforts of Patterson and Watson to help those affected by the 1913 ] floods, but efforts to have them pardoned by President ] were unsuccessful. However, the Court of Appeals overturned the conviction on appeal in 1915, on the grounds that important defense evidence should have been admitted. | ||
| Watson married Jeanette M. Kittredge on April 17, 1913. The couple had two sons and two daughters. Both sons followed him into the family business, rising to top executive positions at IBM. The older son, ], became head of IBM shortly before his father's death. The younger son, Arthur K. Watson, served as president of IBM World Trade Corp., the company's international operations. | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| ==Head of IBM== | |||
| ⚫ | Watson became the president of the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company on May 1, 1914. This was a company that had only been in existence for three years. When he took the job, the company had fewer than 400 employees. In 1924 the company merged with the ] Corporation and took its name. Watson built IBM into such a powerful force that the federal government filed a civil antitrust suit against them in 1952. IBM owned more than 90 percent of all tabulating machines in the United States at the time. | ||
| He considered an important part of his job to motivate the sales force. As part of this, he was famous for making his salespeople at both NCR and IBM attend sing-a-longs (see The IBM Songbook below). | He considered an important part of his job to motivate the sales force. As part of this, he was famous for making his salespeople at both NCR and IBM attend sing-a-longs (see The IBM Songbook below). | ||
| Throughout his life, Watson maintained a deep interest in international relations. He adopted for IBM the slogan, "World Peace Through World Trade," worked closely with the International Chamber of Commerce and in 1937 was elected its president. For many years Mr. Watson served as a trustee of ] and ]. He was presented with honorary degrees by 27 colleges and universities in the United States and four abroad. This work, however, was not without |
Throughout his life, Watson maintained a deep interest in international relations. He adopted for IBM the slogan, "World Peace Through World Trade," worked closely with the International Chamber of Commerce and in 1937 was elected its president. For many years Mr. Watson served as a trustee of ] and ]. He was presented with honorary degrees by 27 colleges and universities in the United States and four abroad. This work, however, was not without controversy. In ], Watson received the Eagle with Star medal from German Chancellor ], for the help that IBM subsidiary Dehomag and its ] punchcard machines provided the ] regime for tabulating census data. After the outbreak of ], Watson returned the medal, yet IBM continued to profit from Dehomag. | ||
| Watson was named chairman of IBM in September 1949. A month before his death, Watson handed over the reins of the company to his older son, ] His other son, Arthur K. Watson, served as president of IBM World Trade Corp. | |||
| He lived at 4 East Seventy-fifth Street in Manhattan at the time of his death. |
He lived at 4 East Seventy-fifth Street in ] at the time of his death. He is buried in ] in ]. | ||
| ==Famous Misquote== | ==Famous Misquote== | ||
| Although |
Although Watson is well known for his alleged ] statement: "I think there is a world market for maybe five computers," there is no evidence he ever made it. The author Kevin Maney tried to find the origin of the quote, but has been unable to locate any speeches or documents of Watson's that contain this, nor are the words present in any contemporary articles about IBM. The earliest known citation is from 1986 on ] in the signature of a poster from Convex Computer Corporation as ''"I think there is a world market for about five computers" --Remark attributed to Thomas J. Watson (Chairman of the Board of International Business Machines), 1943''. | ||
| ==References== | ==References== | ||
| * Maney, Kevin (2003). ''The Maverick and His Machine: Thomas Watson, Sr. and the Making of IBM.'' John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 0471414638. | * Maney, Kevin (2003). ''The Maverick and His Machine: Thomas Watson, Sr. and the Making of IBM.'' John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 0471414638. | ||
| * Black, Edwin ''IBM and the ]'' | * Black, Edwin. ''IBM and the ]''. | ||
| ==External links== | ==External links== | ||
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Revision as of 18:19, 24 November 2004
Thomas J. Watson (February 17, 1874–June 19, 1956) is considered to be the founder of International Business Machines (IBM). He was one of the richest men of his time and called the world's greatest salesman when he died.
Early Life and Career
Watson was born in Campbell, New York. His formal education consisted of only a course in the Elmira School of Commerce. His first job was at age 18 as a bookkeeper in Clarence Risley's Market in Painted Post, New York. Later he sold sewing machines and musical instruments before joining the National Cash Register Company (NCR) as a salesman in Buffalo. He eventually worked his way up to general sales manager. Bent on inspiring the dispirited NCR sales force, Watson introduced the motto, "THINK," which later became a widely known symbol of IBM.
While at NCR, he was convicted for illegal anti-competitive sales practices (e.g. he used to have people sell deliberately faulty cash registers, either second-hand NCR or from competitors; soon after the second-hand NCR or competitors cash register failed, an NCR salesperson would arrive to sell them a brand new NCR cash register). He was sentenced, along with John H. Patterson (the owner of NCR), to one year of imprisonment. Their conviction was unpopular with the public, due to the efforts of Patterson and Watson to help those affected by the 1913 Dayton, Ohio floods, but efforts to have them pardoned by President Woodrow Wilson were unsuccessful. However, the Court of Appeals overturned the conviction on appeal in 1915, on the grounds that important defense evidence should have been admitted.
Watson married Jeanette M. Kittredge on April 17, 1913. The couple had two sons and two daughters. Both sons followed him into the family business, rising to top executive positions at IBM. The older son, Thomas J. Watson, Jr., became head of IBM shortly before his father's death. The younger son, Arthur K. Watson, served as president of IBM World Trade Corp., the company's international operations.
Head of IBM
Watson became the president of the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company on May 1, 1914. This was a company that had only been in existence for three years. When he took the job, the company had fewer than 400 employees. In 1924 the company merged with the International Business Machines Corporation and took its name. Watson built IBM into such a powerful force that the federal government filed a civil antitrust suit against them in 1952. IBM owned more than 90 percent of all tabulating machines in the United States at the time.
He considered an important part of his job to motivate the sales force. As part of this, he was famous for making his salespeople at both NCR and IBM attend sing-a-longs (see The IBM Songbook below).
Throughout his life, Watson maintained a deep interest in international relations. He adopted for IBM the slogan, "World Peace Through World Trade," worked closely with the International Chamber of Commerce and in 1937 was elected its president. For many years Mr. Watson served as a trustee of Columbia University and Lafayette College. He was presented with honorary degrees by 27 colleges and universities in the United States and four abroad. This work, however, was not without controversy. In 1937, Watson received the Eagle with Star medal from German Chancellor Adolf Hitler, for the help that IBM subsidiary Dehomag and its Hollerith punchcard machines provided the Nazi regime for tabulating census data. After the outbreak of World War Two, Watson returned the medal, yet IBM continued to profit from Dehomag.
Watson was named chairman of IBM in September 1949. A month before his death, Watson handed over the reins of the company to his older son, Thomas J. Watson, Jr. His other son, Arthur K. Watson, served as president of IBM World Trade Corp.
He lived at 4 East Seventy-fifth Street in Manhattan at the time of his death. He is buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, New York.
Famous Misquote
Although Watson is well known for his alleged 1943 statement: "I think there is a world market for maybe five computers," there is no evidence he ever made it. The author Kevin Maney tried to find the origin of the quote, but has been unable to locate any speeches or documents of Watson's that contain this, nor are the words present in any contemporary articles about IBM. The earliest known citation is from 1986 on Usenet in the signature of a poster from Convex Computer Corporation as "I think there is a world market for about five computers" --Remark attributed to Thomas J. Watson (Chairman of the Board of International Business Machines), 1943.
References
- Maney, Kevin (2003). The Maverick and His Machine: Thomas Watson, Sr. and the Making of IBM. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 0471414638.
- Black, Edwin. IBM and the Holocaust.