I think this is a first. Link to the letter.
Has anyone ever heard or seen this happen before? I have not. For those of you who can't go to the site, here is the content:
IBM CEO Ginni Rometty's Letter to the U.S. President-Elect
Washington, D.C. - IBM Chairman, President and CEO Ginni Rometty this week sent the following letter to the president-elect of the United States:
International Business Machines Corporation
Office of the Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
One New Orchard Road
Armonk, New York 10504-1783
November 14, 2016
Mr. Donald J. Trump
Office of the Presidential Transition
1800 G Street, NW
Washington, D.C. 20006
Dear Mr. President-elect:
Congratulations on your election as the 45th president of the United States.
Last
Tuesday night you spoke about bringing the country together to build a
better future, and the opportunity to harness the creative talent of
people for the benefit of all. I know that you are committed to help
America’s economy grow in ways that are good for all its people.
I
am writing to offer ideas that I believe will help achieve the
aspiration you articulated and that can advance a national agenda in a
time of profound change. I do so as the leader of the nation’s largest
technology employer, its leading patent creator, and the company that
for more than 105 years has believed that prosperity and progress can be
achieved by unleashing the potential of all people. Permit me to offer a
few specific suggestions:
Creating “New Collar” Jobs
Getting
a job at today’s IBM does not always require a college degree; at some
of our centers in the United States, as many as one third of employees
have less than a four-year degree. What matters most is relevant skills,
sometimes obtained through vocational training. In addition, we are
creating and hiring to fill “new collar” jobs – entirely new roles in
areas as such cybersecurity, data science, artificial intelligence and
cognitive business.
You’ve spoken about the importance of
vocational education, and we agree. IBM has championed a new educational
model for the United States – six-year public high schools that combine
traditional education with the best of community colleges, mentoring,
and real-world job experience. The first of these schools opened with
IBM’s support 5 years ago in New York; we have hired some of the first
graduates. There will soon be 100 such schools across the country. With
your support, we could do much more. Let’s work together to scale up
this approach of vocational training, creating a national corps of
skilled workers trained to take the “new collar” IT jobs that are in
demand here in America.
Building Intelligent, Secure Infrastructure
You’ve
said we need to invest in America’s infrastructure, and we agree. As we
build big, let’s also build smart. The country should focus on
infrastructure investments that incorporate Internet of Things (IoT)
technology and artificial intelligence to improve performance. And as
infrastructure gets smarter, it also increases the need for
cybersecurity, so that vital networks cannot be compromised. We
recommend that your infrastructure package include incentives for states
and localities to build intelligent – and secure – roads, bridges,
buildings, and other public facilities.
Healthcare: Applying Lessons from Private Sector Experience
IBM
operates one of the largest employer-sponsored health plans in the
United States. In 2009, IBM offered 15 specific ideas for how America
could save more than $900 billion over ten years through common-sense
reforms to the healthcare system, leveraging lessons learned in the
private sector. These included using data analytics to reduce fraudulent
Medicare claims, improving the exchange of healthcare information among
providers, and leveraging the government’s purchasing power to lower
the cost of drugs and care. IBM will update its recommendations for the
healthcare system and hopes to work with Congress and your HHS Secretary
to drive better healthcare at lower cost.
Using Data to Fight Government Waste and Inefficiency
Eight
years ago, IBM helped lead an effort to identify $1 trillion in savings
the federal government could achieve through using advanced data
analytics, data center consolidation, and the use of cloud technologies
to improve the cybersecurity of key government systems. As part of the
Technology CEO Council of which I am a member, we will prepare an
updated set of recommendations for how you could use technology and
fraud analytics to save the government more than $1 trillion.
Bringing Money Home to Invest in America
IBM
supports your proposal to make American’s tax system more competitive.
Many billions of dollars of American companies’ earnings do not come
home because of an outdated and punitive tax system. Your tax reform
proposal will free up capital that companies of all sizes can reinvest
in their U.S. operations, training and education programs for their
employees, and research and development programs. We will support the
efforts of your administration and Congress to pass tax reform early in
2017.
Taking Care of Our Veterans – With the World’s Best Technology
All
of us at IBM share your gratitude and devotion to the men, women and
families who serve our country. More must be done to give our vets the
best medical care possible. So we recently announced a pilot program
with the Department of Veterans Affairs to help its oncologists treat
10,000 veterans through the power of precision medicine and genomic
analysis powered by IBM’s cognitive computing system, Watson. We hope to
work with your VA Secretary to expand this collaboration.
Mr.
President-elect, IBM’s roots are in the United States. We are investing,
hiring, and continuing to reinvent our company for long-term
competitiveness. At more than 50 major locations across the country, we
hired more U.S. employees last year than in the previous five years. We
are opening new innovation centers and business units across the
country. We are proud of the work we do here in the United States, just
as we are proud of the work we do in more than 175 countries around the
world.
In the years ahead there will be issues on which we agree, and issues
on which we do not. But as you prepare to take office as our new
president, I hope the ideas I have offered in this letter represent ways
that we can work together to achieve prosperity that is broadly shared
in our society.
Sincerely,
Ginni Rometty
Chairman, President and CEO, IBM