Recap | Steven Takes You Inside IBM

Hello everyone, I'm Steven. It's a great honor to share some insights about IBM GBS with you today.

● IBM: First Impressions ●

What kind of company is IBM? Before joining, like many people, my impression of IBM was limited to servers, ThinkPad’s iconic red trackpoint, and the occasional "Smarter Planet" commercials in movies. But after truly understanding this century-old company—founded around the time of the Xinhai Revolution—I can only describe it as great.

IBM is the world’s largest IT and business solutions company, with over 310,000 employees across 160+ countries. Throughout history, IBM has:

• Assisted NASA in building the Apollo 11 database for the moon landing.

• Developed cross-bank transaction systems.

• Created the largest online airline ticketing system.

• Pioneered AI with Watson, led in blockchain, and become the world’s third-largest cloud provider.

• Taken a leading role in quantum computing, a field that could redefine the future.

  
  

● IBM: Consulting Capabilities ●

Today, I want to focus on IBM’s consulting prowess. IBM is the world’s largest consulting firm, and its consulting arm is IBM GBS (Global Business Services)—a team of business, strategy, and technology consultants, along with industry experts, delivering end-to-end services from strategy to implementation.

Two key milestones in IBM’s consulting history:

1. PwC Acquisition (2002): IBM bought PwC’s consulting division, catapulting itself to the top.

2. Huawei’s Transformation (1997–2008): IBM guided Huawei through IPD (Integrated Product Development) and ISC (Integrated Supply Chain), cutting R&D cycles and costs. Later, it helped establish Huawei’s EMT (Executive Management Team) and financial oversight systems. The total cost? Over 4 billion RMB—proof of IBM’s role in shaping Huawei into the giant it is today.

● IBM: Consulting Types ●

Consulting can be categorized by service focus:

1. External Consulting (solving problems for clients):

   • Management Consulting: Tier 1 (MBB), Tier 2 (e.g., Accenture, Kearney).

   • Non-Management Consulting:

     • Financial (Big Four), HR (Mercer), etc.

   • Hybrids like IBM GBS: Dominates IT consulting but also ranks #10 globally in strategy consulting (Vault).

2. Internal Consulting (supporting in-house products/businesses, e.g., Siemens’ sales-driven consulting).

   
   

Strategy Consulting at IBM

Strategy—originally a military term ("the art of war")—now refers to maximizing outcomes with limited resources. At IBM, strategy projects fall into four categories:

1. Business Strategy

2. Operations Strategy

3. Technology Strategy

4. Talent & Function Strategy

   
   

Methodology Example: IBM’s Digital Lens model assesses a company’s digital maturity, emphasizing customer-centric transformation in operations, workflows, and business models. Solutions are iterated using IBM Design Thinking: hypothesize, empathize, prototype, and validate.

● How to Become a Strategy Consultant? ●

Three key dimensions:

1. Behavior: Think like a CEO—brainstorm decisions from a leadership perspective.

2. Skills:

   • Business analysis, logical structuring, and technical application.

   • You don’t need to master everything, but excel in at least one area.

3. Knowledge:

   • As one interviewer told me: "We don’t care about what you know now—we care about how fast you can learn."

Final Thought: Whether you’re eyeing IBM or consulting in general, the key is adaptability and strategic thinking.

If you’re curious about IBM GBS or consulting careers, feel free to ask!