IBM & Iron-Willed Watson

IBM & Iron-Willed Watson

"Tonight we’re completing a four-month worldwide tribute to the most admired man in our company. In truth I believe he’s the most admired businessman in the world. But more importantly I am presenting a man who has done more for preserving and building the dignity of the individual in American industry than any other man in history —Mr. Thomas Watson."

This glowing tribute by his son at IBM’s 40th anniversary in 1954 celebrated 1 Thomas Watson’s status as international business legend. How he reached that great summit is an extraordinary 1)rags-to-riches story.

2)Thomas Watson senior was born in 1874. He grew up in terrible poverty. The young Watson was determined 2 to be more successful than his 3)overbearing, violently-tempered father. When he was 18 he took to the road seeing some hope of escape in the life of a traveling salesman. The reality failed to match his expectations.

In 1895 after three years of hardship, Watson was saved. Aged 3 21 he was offered a job at 4)National Cash Registers—at the time one of the most aggressive and 5)expansionist businesses in America. It was run by John Patterson, Watson’s first great mentor 4. He would exert a lasting 5 influence on both Watson the man and businessman. At NCR Watson was reborn: he was intelligent, 6)subservient 6 and nakedly ambitious. Watson became a rising star. A decade later, Watson, Patterson and others were found guilty of underpricing, payoffs, bribery 7 and 7)sabotage 8. Watson refused to accept his crimes; he wrote, “I have not done anything that I am in the least ashamed of.” Then out of the blue, his great mentor and friend fired him. These two 8)traumatic events would mark Watson for life.

By now there was another great influence in Watson’s life — at the height of the trial, he married Janette Kettridge. Her stern 9)Presbyterian values would help temper the ruthless commercialism he’d absorbed at NCR.

The opportunity he was waiting for came in 1914, Watson was made general manager of 10)CTR, the Computing 9, 11)Tabulating and Recording 10 Company. Watson re-branded the company with a name that embodied 11 his vision of the future, International Business Machines—and so in 1924 IBM was born.

Legendary 12 salesman, visionary entrepreneur and colossus of capitalism 13, Watson helped lay the foundations of the information age. He was driven by one consuming ambition: to build a new model of corporation, one that would conquer the world and create an immortal 14 IBM. Within IBM, Watson created a corporate 15 ethos that reflected his own values and beliefs.

注释：
1) rags-to-riches: rags是“破烂的衣裳”的意思，代指穷人。riches意思是“富人”。rags-to-riches形容由穷至富的一种类转变。
2) 之所以称他为“老沃森”（Thomas Watson senior, 1874~1956），是为了有别于与他同名的长子小沃森（Thomas Watson Jr.,1914~1993）。小沃森领导IBM进行了跨越传统的根本性改革，把IBM推进计算机行业。1956年取代父亲成为首席执行官后，他引领公司迈向一个前所未有的长期的、惊人的迅猛增长时期。
3) overbearing [7EuvE5bZEriN] a. 傲慢的，专横的
4) NCR意译为“全国收款机公司”，创立于1884年，现发展为致力于客户关系管理解决方案、提供信息技术服务的全球性公司。总部设在美国俄亥俄州。
5) expansionist [ik5spAnFEnist] n. 扩张主义者
6) subservient [sQb5sE:viEnt] a. 卑躬屈膝的，巴结奉承的
7) sabotage [5sAbEtB:V] n. 破坏，损害              
8) traumatic [trE5mAtik] a. 损伤的；治疗外伤的
9) Presbyterian [7prezbi5tiEriEn] a. （宗）长老制的
10) CTR 意译为“计算机制表公司”，创立于1911年。
11) tabulate 16 [5tAbjuleit] v. 把……列成表

IBM之父:壮志雄心闯天下

    “今晚，我们将结束为期四个月的对我们公司最备受尊崇的人所作出的全球敬礼。我认为他的确是全世界最备受尊崇的企业家。不过更为重要的是，我即将介绍的这位人士在树立和维护美国工业中的个体尊严方面，比历史上的任何其他人都做得更多。他就是托马斯·沃森先生。”
    这段热情洋溢的颂词是托马斯·沃森的儿子在1954年IBM公司成立四十周年庆祝会上说的，托马斯·沃森被视为全球商界的传奇。他取得如此杰出成就的经历，是一个非凡的白手起家奋斗成功的故事。
    老托马斯•沃森出生于1874年，他是在极度的贫困中长大的。年轻的沃森下决心要比他专横、暴躁的父亲更有成就。在他18岁时，他把巡回推销员的工作看成是他逃离苦海的希望，于是就独自上路了。然而现实却并没有如他所愿。
    三年的艰难时期过后，1895年，沃森脱离了苦海。21岁的他在NCR公司(全国收款机公司）获得一份工作。当时NCR是美国最有生气、富于进取的公司之一，它的创办人约翰·帕特森是沃森的第一个优秀导师; 无论在做人还是做生意方面，他都给予沃森持久的影响。在NCR公司沃森获得了新生：他头脑灵活，任劳任怨，志向远大。沃森成为后起之秀。十年后，沃森、帕特森以及其他人被判犯有定价过低、贿赂、蓄意破坏的罪行。沃森拒绝承认对他的指控，他写道，“我没有做过任何让自己感到丝毫羞愧的事。”完全出乎意外的是，他的伟大导师兼朋友解雇了他。这两起创伤性事件让沃森终生铭记。
    这时发生了另一件对沃森的生活影响重大的事情。在他的官司最激烈的时候，他和珍妮特·凯特里奇结婚了。她坚定的长老会价值观有助于调和沃森在NCR公司养成的在商言商、不讲人情的性格。
    1914年，他一直等待的机会到来了。沃森被任命为CTR公司（计算制表记录公司）的总经理。沃森更换了公司名字，他采用了一个展现他对未来梦想的名字：国际商用机器公司——就这样IBM公司在1924年诞生了。
    作为一名富有传奇色彩的推销员、富有远见的企业家和资本主义的巨头，沃森为奠定信息时代的基础做出了贡献。他被一个强烈的抱负所驱使：去创建一种新的企业典范，一种能征服世界、让IBM成为不朽传奇的典范。在IBM公司内部，沃森开创了一种反映了他自身信仰和价值信念的企业精神。