Rating: 
Summary: Worth a quick read if you have an interest in IBM in the 90s
Review: The book is interesting in describing the world of a CEO tasked with turning around of worlds the biggest, most visible companies. A universe most of us cannot hope to get personal insight into. If the world of the CEO or top-level IBM management is a topic that interests you will enjoy reading through this book. However do not expect a page-turner thriller or much depth in the description of the day-to-day management.The individual chapters are well written however they do not mesh strongly enough giving a feeling of the parts being better then the whole.
Rating: 
Summary: good primer on business basics, but not a compelling yarn
Review: This is a fairly good book by an immensely talented CEO. It takes up more or less a few decades after the retirement of one of the greatest businessmen of the 20C (TWatson Jr.), when the business had lost its way and was under attack by extremely nimble rivals. Gerstner took over the failing, almost bankrupt, company and both re-made its startegy and culture, re-focusing it on customer needs and re-engineering it (i.e. laying off an awful lot of people). In this book, he tells the outlines of how he did it, which is indeed extremely interesting. In particular, he stresses that while a strategy is needed, implementation of it is far more important. Unfortunately, he does not go into enough detail for the reader to fully understand what he faced and how he did it. Neither the technology nor the brutal methods he had to employ were adequately addressed, at least for me. I read it carefully and did not feel I had had quite the full meal I expected. The reader also gets virtually no insight into what makes Gerstner tick, other than that he "wants to win" with passion. THe book was also entirely written by Gerstner; his style is competent, if somewhat like a business memo: good analyses are "actionable" and effective actions are "impactful." Nonetheless, this is a very good primer on basic strategy and organizational behavior. He has lots of valuable advice to give and pinpoints many important issues. I will keep it and return to it. THere were some things that I found questionable and surprising, if also unintentionally revealing. FOr example, he made IBM both an honest broker in offering comprehensive technology-based business solutions - for the first time, its employees could recommend the hardware of competitors if they better suited the customers' needs - while another part of the company continued to strive to produce the best hardware. This flatly contradicts both what Porter advises and Gerstner himself argues elsewhere in the book regarding the self-reinforcing compatibility of the elements of a business strategy and makes me question if Gerstner really thought it all thru. In addition, he astonishingly posits that Japanese business reporters are the best in the world, when in fact - and I worked in Japan for Nikkei, a leading business news wire service - they are merely part of the PR apparatus of firms, reporting verbatim what they were told to report by companies! If that is what Gerstner expected of Western reporters, then he was naive. But then, he was a benevolent dictator and is open about his dislike and lack of trust of the press. REcommended. But if you really want a rivetting account of IBM, I would recommend Watson's autobio, Father Son & Co. There is also an excellent account of the turnaround of Xerox, using TQM, that is far more compelling a read than this book.
Rating:
Summary: A good book to look back in 2002 and look forward to 2003
Review: Surely, Mr. Gerstner wouldn't (or can't) reveal all the details and secrets about how he and the IBM people turned this American icon around. However, the last few chapters are worth reading and make the modern business people think over and over again.
Rating: 
Summary: Business Poetry
Review: Mr. Gerstner poetry lies in his direct, simple, and precise way to frame the challenges he faced at IBM, on the measures taken by him and his leadership team, as well on a selfless and honest assessment of their results. I'm a manager far away in the corporate ladder from the perch where Mr. Gerstner's perspectives comes from. Regardless, my copy is full of marks that I'm now trying to distill into lessons that I will use to assist me in my leadership challenges. One of the most salient points addressed by Mr. Gerstner is that of belonging. Can someone ever be an insider at a company like IBM? Can someone ever be an insider at a company like mine (less than 200 employees)? It seems to me that, according to Mr. Gerstner, it does not matter; what really matters is to have compentency, passion, commitment, and the wish to win.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Credible. (Computer) Science Fiction?
Review: The initial history as presented is interesting, but much of the rest seems to lack consistency with what one reads in the press. Lou Gerstner began his career at IBM with one of the biggest layoffs in history, and finished by moving out roughly equal numbers. In between the culture changed; the new "culture" lost more ground to Microsoft & Sun, gave up billions of $'s to upstart EMC, slipped Lotus' marketshare, gave away networking to Cisco, bailed out of the "unprofitable" PC business while Dell was growing like gangbusters, spun off "unprofitable" printers via Lexmark, sold off big segments of the business to competitors, etc. (And now want to get into highly competitive consulting practices.) I'd like to get an accuracy check of the book from some of the consultants who follow IBM for a living...
Rating:
Summary: Read It!
Review: Two five - Durham, NC, an engineer Read it! I joined IBM two months before Gerstner and it needed a swift kick in the pants. I had a unique perspective coming out of graduate school because my dad work for Pan Am and we all know they went belly up. I was never going to depend on a company for my well being. Go to work do a great job and most of all save on your own and keep your skills current. I sensed a tremendous amount of entitlement amongst the employee ranks. I would have left in under a year if gerstner hadn't planted his foot in the rear end of this company. He made some decisions that many employees feel were unfair and unjust but if you look at our benefits package and perk system compared to many of our peers in industry it is still one of the best. We have more employees at IBM now then when he joined. Even after the big layoff. He was good for IBM. Is he a god of business? No... but all in all he was good for IBM..... Every CEO makes too much money. No one person is worth as much as many of our elite CEO's are being paid.
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Summary: Win, Execute, Team - He did it, He Tells It
Review: A previous reader review suggested that Mr. Gerstner's was out of touch and if readers want the real story they should read Soldier of Fortune 500. Who better than Mr. Gerstner, the man responsible for turning IBM around to write about it? Who Say's Elephants Can Dance is wonderfully candid and well written (and by Mr. Gerstner himself, without the assistance of a ghost writer). I particularly liked the passages on "inspect versus expect," managing by principles vs. process, focus on core competency and impact of culture and how to change it. These can be applied to any company. I am author of Soldier of Fortune 500. In fact, my book is very positive about Mr. Gerstner and what he did for IBM. I think the Gerstner book is brilliant and would recommend it to all. Rather than contradicting, my book echoes similar themes, albeit the employee view vs. CEO. Steve Romaine
Author, Soldier of Fortune 500
Rating:
Summary: I Dont Think That Elephant was "Dancing"
Review: Of course elephants dont dance - they drop stuff on the floor and everyone walks around it pretending not to notice the stink. The problem with Lou Gerstner is that he didnt realize everyone was pretending not to notice his smell. I go with the reviewers who will not buy this book - I looked at it and it made me sick. Why? Because it honors he who did not honor his employees. This book is about a self-centered megalomaniac who thinks in this most aggrandizing way that change comes from the top. First there was no change here. IBM grew during a period where anyone in the computer business would grow. Secondly, anyone who knows anything about leadership knows that real business change and innovation does not cascade down through the organization from the top, any more than change cascades through all of society. If you look closely at successful change efforts in American organizations, you will see that the innovation started from the middle and spread outward. I just wonder how well IBM would have done had Gerstner actually been being a real leader? Don't buy this book thinking you will learn how to manage an organization for the benefit of anyone but yourself. If you plan to get rich at the expense of your employers and stockholders, if you plan to reduce the size and morale of your organization, if you intend to create fear or doubt in your employees, or if you just like to stay out of touch with your employees and pass down non-sensical management edicts to hear yourself talk and impress yourself - hey this book and this mentor is for you. Good luck.
Rating:
Summary: Could have been so much better
Review: I wasn't surprised by the admission that IBM consisted of multiple fiefdoms with little communication between segments. I respect the man for what he accomplished, but there was so much more insight that could've been added. He should've used a ghost writer.
Rating:
Summary: Could have been much better
Review: Considering the career path that Lou Gerstner has followed this book doesnt come close to its potential.
That being said it is an interesting book about the turnaround for IBM and a few key insights of a high level CEO is shared with the reader. The book never comes really under the skin of neither IBM or Lou Gerstner, but ofcourse thats an opening for a sequal.
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