My recent column about a reader’s contract haggling with IBM over privacy language elicited a number of stories from readers about their own dealings with Big Blue.
Several readers reported IBM had attempted to insert the same privacy term in their agreements. "I had the same thing happen and negotiated it out of the contract successfully," wrote one reader. "They didn't give me a hard time about it, but they did try to explain what the intention was. However, I told them intention and actual were too very different things, so without further argument, they conceded."
Many said IBM is not nearly as tough as it was back in the mainframe era. "IBM didn’t just own your contact information, they owned you lock, stock and barrel," recalled another reader. "They would come with a whole laundry list of requirements, and if you showed any sign of resistance, you could be sure your boss or your boss’s boss would be getting a phone call later that day complaining about your attitude."
But others warned Big Blue still has its negotiating tricks. "Most every contract they have is one-sided, to the IBM side," wrote a reader who worked for IBM for 15 years. "Even when they let you dictate the terms, you’d better be good at writing contracts, because IBM is GREAT at it. They’ll fry you on your own terms, and bleed you to death if you need something outside your contract. Wanna play with sharks? Cool -- just don’t look like bait."
11:27:38 AM 
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