A most hearty congratulations on your retirement from IBM after more than 35 years of stellar service! Your orientation period is now complete and you can get down to some real work!

John, you know that the contributions you have made to our company's evolution and leadership have been many, and have been remarkable. I suspect your time here will be remembered most for what I think you would WANT it to be remembered most -- and that is helping our company and our employees leverage the potential of the Internet to new heights of productivity, efficiency and enabling it to be a 21st-century tool for business. You leave behind a legacy of excellence and new ways of thinking from which generations of IBMers will learn and grow.

There are not many people who can say they have excelled through the glory, the doom, and the total resurgence of the world's greatest business enterprise, but you are one of them, John, and the resurgence part would never have happened without you.

As you chart new waters, I know you will always be steering in the right direction. As you do, I wish you and your family all the best for the future. You've earned it.