Bill is moving to Wash DC from Illinois 11/27

11/16/2009 6 PM Central

It is with both satisfaction and sadness that I request you initiate my retirement from IBM after 32 + years of service*.

My last day with our company will be 11/30/2009.

It has been a real pleasure to work with you these last six months.

I joined IBM in August of 1977 in DP Division (DPD) as a trainee in the S/370 division. I attended IBM training for a year in Endicott, Dallas, and Poughkeepsie. I made my first eight “Hundred Percent Clubs” in a row in DPD and National Marketing Division (NMD). One of my best accounts back then was Star-Kist Foods, a division of H.J. Heinz. A few years in the “Customer Center” for in-bound marketing were followed by assignment with an account with an OS/2 project – Avco Financial Services. One of my customers from then is still a good friend. As the business world swung to PCs and OS/2, I made the move, too. Great success with PCs in California was followed with modest success with PCs in Illinois, and then a return to my heritage, with a total of 16 Hundred Percent Clubs under my belt, to S/390 Growth Initiatives. A short but exciting tour with IGS, followed by an interesting assignment to launch a new product, based on the NUMA-Q and Flex-ES … I was the adventurous one, wasn’t I? ... and then to the Linux Impact Team and then the Linux Middleware Team, and Launch of WebSphere Community Edition. All of that led me to the best assignment of my career, System z I/T Architect.

It has been quite a ride, and I wouldn’t trade a minute of it away. I am sure you will say the same when you are ready to retire.

As for me, the time has come to retire, and I thank all the IBM managers I worked for over the years for their guidance, patience and support, I appreciate the fellowship of team mates, current and past, and the cherish the respect of my customers.

Thank you, Don, for all your help these last six months.

Sincerely,

Bill

• approximately 11,795 days.

a POD costs $2000 for a one month move and store.
if I have to store stuff four more months, $1000 more.
a dumpster costs $500

so, if my stuff is worth more than $2500, move it. Otherwise, toss it and buy new stuff.

something to think about for a day or two.

and so it’s agreed. the sweetened the deal with a higher offer and a signing bonus and four weeks of vacation.

I will live and work in DC. I will make more money than I do now, even with my best guess for commissions and bonuses from my current job. It will be a salary, working 40 hours a week at a desk job.

Now I need to pack and move.