Former IBM CEO Lou Gerstner Passes Away At 83

(RTTNews) - Lou Gerstner, who served as IBM's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer from 1993 to 2002, passed away on Saturday at the age of 83.

In an email sent to all IBM employees by Chairman and CEO Arvind Krishna, said that Gerstner joined IBM at a time when the company's future was deeply uncertain. The industry was undergoing rapid change, the business was under significant pressure, and there was serious debate about whether IBM should remain intact. His leadership during this period reshaped the company by focusing relentlessly on client needs rather than internal concerns.

Gerstner believed IBM had become too centered on its own processes and structures rather than on client outcomes. He emphasized the fundamental truth of business: understanding the customer and delivering what the customer values. This insight drove cultural and operational changes, making meetings more direct, decisions more fact-based, and innovation more relevant to client needs.