Institute for Business Value
Encyclopedia
The IBM Institute for Business Value is a business research organization that focuses on managerial and economic issues faced by companies and governments around the world. It has offices in China
, India
, Ireland
, Japan
, The Netherlands, South Africa
and The United States, and It publishes between 35 and 50 major studies each year.
that were part of the firm’s management consulting organization. These predecessors included the IBM Institute for Knowledge Management
(IKM) and the IBM e-business
Innovation Institute (ebII). The IKM, founded in 1999, was a membership consortium of private and public organizations that conducted research on the managerial and organizational aspects of knowledge management. The ebII was formed in 2000 with a small group of IBM consultants doing research into the impact of current and future technologies on business issues across a wide range of industries. In August 2001, IBM acquired Mainspring, a small strategy consulting firm headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts
, and in October combined its research capabilities with the IKM and ebII to create the IBM Institute for Business Value (IBV).
From its early years the IBV focused on topics relevant to senior executives. It began publishing studies on business trends and management issues in such core industries as banking, automotive, and telecommunications. Most of the studies were global in scope, although a few focused on issues specific to a region, such as Western Europe
or North America
. Additionally, the IBV began to conduct research concerning cross-industry issues, such as customer relationship management
(CRM).
In 2002, IBM acquired PriceWaterhouseCoopers Consulting (PwCC), the consulting arm of PriceWaterhouseCoopers
, thereby increasing IBM’s consulting population by some 30,000 employees and augmenting its expertise in the business issues of over a dozen industries and key functions, such as financial management
, and supply chain management
. The IBV became part of the merged consulting organization, now known as IBM Global Business Services (GBS).
The inclusion of PwCC into IBM led to important changes in the IBV. First, the number of full-time consultants working at the IBV grew from about 35 in 2002 to about 55 by 2008 and with the addition of specialized groups in Japan, India and China to about 80 in 2011. Second, many came in with a combination of advanced academic research degrees and consulting experience. Third, the staff became more international, although two main offices were established: one in Cambridge, Massachusetts and the other in Amsterdam
. Studies were now organized more expansively by industry and management function (e.g., finance, HR). One type of study brought over from PwCC was the “future agenda” that explored the economic and business trends affecting an industry over a 5 to 10 year period. Within several years, the IBV had published nearly a dozen of such studies. The staff also published books dealing with such issues as knowledge management
, the electronics
industry, and the role of IT
in myriad American
industries.
The IBV continues to conduct primary research, publish white papers, present research findings at industry conferences, and write bylined articles for trade and business publications. Global activities continue to expand through IBV satellite programs in China, Japan, India and South Africa.
A high profile collaboration, begun in 2001, with the Economist Intelligence Unit
(EIU) produces a ranking of scores of nations in their use of IT
, called the E-Readiness
Ranking. Published annually in the spring, by 2008 it was the longest-running review of economic, political, social and technological issues affecting countries around the world
The IBV also has continued and broadened a series of CxO studies originated by PwCC. The CxO studies conduct extensive (often involving over 1,000 participants from across the world and from a wide range of sectors) in-office surveys and interviews with senior executives around the globe – CEOs , Chief Information Officer
s (CIOs), Chief Financial Officer
s (CFOs), Chief Human Resource Officer
s (CHROs), Chief Supply Chain Officers (CSCOs) and Chief Marketing Officer
s (CMOs), – publishing the results every two years for CEOs and CIOs in May and every four years for CFOs, CHROs, CSCOs and CMOs in October.
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, The Netherlands, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and The United States, and It publishes between 35 and 50 major studies each year.
History
The IBM Institute for Business Value grew out of earlier research programs at IBMIBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
that were part of the firm’s management consulting organization. These predecessors included the IBM Institute for Knowledge Management
Knowledge management
Knowledge management comprises a range of strategies and practices used in an organization to identify, create, represent, distribute, and enable adoption of insights and experiences...
(IKM) and the IBM e-business
Electronic business
Electronic business, commonly referred to as "eBusiness" or "e-business", or an internet business, may be defined as the application of information and communication technologies in support of all the activities of business...
Innovation Institute (ebII). The IKM, founded in 1999, was a membership consortium of private and public organizations that conducted research on the managerial and organizational aspects of knowledge management. The ebII was formed in 2000 with a small group of IBM consultants doing research into the impact of current and future technologies on business issues across a wide range of industries. In August 2001, IBM acquired Mainspring, a small strategy consulting firm headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
, and in October combined its research capabilities with the IKM and ebII to create the IBM Institute for Business Value (IBV).
From its early years the IBV focused on topics relevant to senior executives. It began publishing studies on business trends and management issues in such core industries as banking, automotive, and telecommunications. Most of the studies were global in scope, although a few focused on issues specific to a region, such as Western Europe
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...
or North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
. Additionally, the IBV began to conduct research concerning cross-industry issues, such as customer relationship management
Customer relationship management
Customer relationship management is a widely implemented strategy for managing a company’s interactions with customers, clients and sales prospects. It involves using technology to organize, automate, and synchronize business processes—principally sales activities, but also those for marketing,...
(CRM).
In 2002, IBM acquired PriceWaterhouseCoopers Consulting (PwCC), the consulting arm of PriceWaterhouseCoopers
PricewaterhouseCoopers
PricewaterhouseCoopers is a global professional services firm headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest professional services firm measured by revenues and one of the "Big Four" accountancy firms....
, thereby increasing IBM’s consulting population by some 30,000 employees and augmenting its expertise in the business issues of over a dozen industries and key functions, such as financial management
Managerial finance
Managerial finance is the branch of finance that concerns itself with the managerial significance of finance techniques. It is focused on assessment rather than technique....
, and supply chain management
Supply chain management
Supply chain management is the management of a network of interconnected businesses involved in the ultimate provision of product and service packages required by end customers...
. The IBV became part of the merged consulting organization, now known as IBM Global Business Services (GBS).
The inclusion of PwCC into IBM led to important changes in the IBV. First, the number of full-time consultants working at the IBV grew from about 35 in 2002 to about 55 by 2008 and with the addition of specialized groups in Japan, India and China to about 80 in 2011. Second, many came in with a combination of advanced academic research degrees and consulting experience. Third, the staff became more international, although two main offices were established: one in Cambridge, Massachusetts and the other in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
. Studies were now organized more expansively by industry and management function (e.g., finance, HR). One type of study brought over from PwCC was the “future agenda” that explored the economic and business trends affecting an industry over a 5 to 10 year period. Within several years, the IBV had published nearly a dozen of such studies. The staff also published books dealing with such issues as knowledge management
Knowledge management
Knowledge management comprises a range of strategies and practices used in an organization to identify, create, represent, distribute, and enable adoption of insights and experiences...
, the electronics
Electronics
Electronics is the branch of science, engineering and technology that deals with electrical circuits involving active electrical components such as vacuum tubes, transistors, diodes and integrated circuits, and associated passive interconnection technologies...
industry, and the role of IT
Information technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
in myriad American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
industries.
Key Activities
The IBV continues to conduct primary research, publish white papers, present research findings at industry conferences, and write bylined articles for trade and business publications. Global activities continue to expand through IBV satellite programs in China, Japan, India and South Africa.
A high profile collaboration, begun in 2001, with the Economist Intelligence Unit
Economist Intelligence Unit
The Economist Intelligence Unit is part of the Economist Group.It is a research and advisory company providing country, industry and management analysis worldwide and incorporates the former Business International Corporation, a U.S. company acquired by the parent organization in 1986...
(EIU) produces a ranking of scores of nations in their use of IT
Information technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
, called the E-Readiness
E-readiness
E-Readiness is the ability to use information and communication technologies to develop one's economy and to foster one's welfare.There are several benchmarking indices at the macro level, e.g., those calculated by the UNPAN, World Bank, Economist Intelligence Unit etc.Because what appear on the...
Ranking. Published annually in the spring, by 2008 it was the longest-running review of economic, political, social and technological issues affecting countries around the world
The IBV also has continued and broadened a series of CxO studies originated by PwCC. The CxO studies conduct extensive (often involving over 1,000 participants from across the world and from a wide range of sectors) in-office surveys and interviews with senior executives around the globe – CEOs , Chief Information Officer
Chief information officer
Chief information officer , or information technology director, is a job title commonly given to the most senior executive in an enterprise responsible for the information technology and computer systems that support enterprise goals...
s (CIOs), Chief Financial Officer
Chief financial officer
The chief financial officer or Chief financial and operating officer is a corporate officer primarily responsible for managing the financial risks of the corporation. This officer is also responsible for financial planning and record-keeping, as well as financial reporting to higher management...
s (CFOs), Chief Human Resource Officer
Chief human resources officer
A Chief Human Resources Officer is a corporate officer who oversees all HR and industrial relations operations for an organization. Similar job titles include: Chief People Officer, Chief Personnel Officer, Executive Vice President of Human Resources and Senior Vice President of Human Resources...
s (CHROs), Chief Supply Chain Officers (CSCOs) and Chief Marketing Officer
Chief marketing officer
Chief Marketing Officer is a corporate title referring to an executive responsible for various marketing activities in an organization...
s (CMOs), – publishing the results every two years for CEOs and CIOs in May and every four years for CFOs, CHROs, CSCOs and CMOs in October.
External links
- Institute for Business Value http://www-935.ibm.com/services/us/gbs/thoughtleadership/