With reinforced team, IBM achieves record of exports in Brazil
Valor Econômico 03/10/2009
In these times of mass layoffs, what would you say if: 1 - the company you work for had 300 job openings after hiring 2 thousand people last year; 2 - you could indicate a friend to one of these job openings; 3 - you received a bonus of up to R$ 3 thousand if such friend were hired? It seems too good to be truth, but it is what is happening in the Brazilian subsidiary of IBM. The company, which ended 2008 with 17.4 thousand employees in the country, adopted a program - called "rewarded job opening" - in order to continue the hiring and avoiding the risk of losing a deal due to the lack of workforce. It would be difficult to find room for so many people at the old IBM, focused on large-size computers and software, but this urgency in hiring is an essential part of the new design the "Big Blue" has been pursuing in the past years: that of a services' company on information technology (IT). The clearest proof of that change of personality is the record in the export of services: IBM ended 2008 with US$ 400 million in exports from Brazil - the highest point in a trajectory that started accelerating four years ago: they were US$ 100 million in 2005, US$ 175 million in 2006 and US$ 300 million in 2007. It is not new that large American and European companies, from the most varied areas of activity, have realized it was easier and cheaper to outsource the IT services. On the other side, the service suppliers soon realized the opportunity of having such work performed in countries with less expensive workforce, for obvious reasons. Few IT companies, however, had the right size for the mission and grabbed the opportunity with as much motivation as IBM. Proof of that is the global financial performance of the company. In 2008, the income achieved a record of US$ 103.6 billion and the net profit increased 18.4% to US$ 12.3 billion. Here comes the role of Brazil in the new route of the company. The Brazilian bet was successful. "In the fourth quarter of last year, while making a comment on the global performance of IBM, the main financial officer of the company mentioned specifically the contribution of Brazil and India, which presented growth at a two digit rate", tells Pelegrini. One of the ten main markets of IBM, Brazil is currently part of a new organization, created by the company in July last year. Referred to as "growth market" the unit is headquartered in Shanghai and it is commanded by the Peruvian Bruno Di Leo, who has already been the CEO of IBM in Brazil. The change assures more freedom of action, affirms the executive. "While in mature markets IT follows the GDP, in the countries of the ‘growth market' growth is two or three times faster. In order to capture such growth, it is necessary to invest", affirms Pelegrini. Pelegrini's fire proof was in October of last year, when he spent an hour and 45 minutes before the Council of IBM, including the Chief Executive Officer Sam Palmisano, showing the projects for Brazil. A great deal of the time was spent showing the advantages of the country, from the economic stability to the natural resources. The presentation was successful. "We managed to get everything we wanted for 2009", says Pelegrini, keeping the plans in secret without hiding his happiness.