IBM’s Commitment to Employee Leadership a Lesson for All

If you’ve been in this industry long enough, you know the running joke that every executive you meet — whether he or she hails from a vendor or solution provider — once worked at IBM. It’s not that far from the truth. IBM has in fact nurtured and launched legions of successful technology executives; many become lifers at Big Blue while others spend a short stint, oh, say 20 years, before moving on to greener pastures.

The model is not unlike having a great farm team in the major leagues. Many IBMers start out as engineers, working in product development or as part of the research team, then over the years move up the ranks to take on sales, marketing and management roles.

This week, IBM was ranked No. 1 in Fortune magazine‘s “Top Companies for Leaders” for 2009, the only technology company to make the top 20. (To read the full list, go here.) IBM’s standout trait, according to Fortune, is its aggressive investment in professional development and a clearly stated goal of not only improving employees’ skills, but turning people into leaders. IBM’s human resources chief, J. Randall MacDonald, told Fortune that the company spends nearly $700 million a year on leadership skills-building initiatives alone.

One of IBM’s other hallmarks: never letting you get too comfortable on the job. Ask anyone who has logged many years at IBM and they will tell you that, despite IBM’s reputation as staid, buttoned-down and by the books, the company does not tolerate a comfort zone. Just when you master one job, IBM will move abruptly move you to another position inside the company. You got a problem with that?

During the recession, IBM refused to scale back its investment in leadership training. This is a lesson that every company ought to follow. While the temptation during tough times is to stop investing in certain areas like sales training or marketing, it’s a mistake. A down economy is precisely when you want to make big investments in your best people, help them be better at what they do and engender loyalty.

Consider the following: Before the recession, around 2007, whenever I asked a roomful of solution providers what their chief obstacle to growth was, they overwhelmingly cited the inability to recruit, hire and retain highly skilled people. Today, there is talent all over the place, biding its time for the economy to improve sufficiently. Where will they land is the question.

The smart channel companies today are building a reputation based on people, investing in their employees’ career paths, making training strategic and not shying away from cultivating leaders. Companies with that reputation attract talent and make it better, like IBM.