A 100 years of IBM

IBM is marking the 100-year anniversary of its founding on June 16, 2011 with a year-long initiative that engages local communities and thought leaders around the world on the theme of changing the way the world works. Over its century of existence, IBM has played a leading role in transforming business, science and society. These dimensions form the basis for the three themes driving IBM’s Centennial: Reinventing the Modern Corporation, Pioneering the Science of Information and Making the World Work Better. Together they provide a basis for understanding how the rise of information technology has changed society and the world.
IBM Centennial celebration highlights will include:
IBM Lecture Series IBM will partner with leading universities around the globe to engage the next-generation of leaders in a discussion about driving change and innovation. The lectures will offer an instructive view of the role IBM has played in transforming the dimensions of the modern era over the past 100 years, based on our key learnings about leadership and progress in an increasingly integrated and technologically enabled world.
Digital Experience IBM will create a new digital experience to celebrate IBM’s Centennial with rich, interactive experiences. It provides a destination for IBMers, clients, partners, alumni and friends around the world to engage in IBM Centennial-related programs. The site will feature 100 Icons of Progress – signature stories that describe IBM’s impact on the world during the last century including archival assets and the opportunity, where relevant, to engage IBM experts about how the past is going to propel IBM into the future. The Web site URL is: www.ibm100.com
100 Marks, 100 Stories IBM has created 100 unique visual “marks" to represent the 100 Icons of Progress. Each mark incorporates the number 100 plus illustration and photography to represent a key breakthrough or milestone, such as the First Salaried Workforce, the Punched Card and Space Exploration. They are designed to be shown individually to tell a single story or as a collection to tell multiple stories about the richness of IBM's history. Each week, IBM will publish new Icons of Progress. The design work was lead by VSA Partners in collaboration with Ogilvy & Mather and SYPartners.
IBM Colloquia Through a series of business and academic forums around the world, IBM will convene key influencers to share insights and spur conversations about future advances in science and technology and how they will affect such fields as health care, natural resource management and the IT industry. The colloquia will bring together scientists, academics, business and government leaders at IBM Research laboratories around the world to discuss how these emerging trends will impact business and society.