EDS Celebrates 45 Years of Growth, Innovation
27 Jun 2007
In the 1960s, COBOL computer language was nascent, magnetic tapes and punch cards were mainstream technology, and it took 12 flat bed trucks to carry a computer with only 64 kilobytes of memory.
This was the world of technology Electronic Data Systems (EDS) was born into on June 27, 1962. EDS began as a data processing firm, and soon after pioneered the information technology outsourcing industry.
Now, 45 years later, EDS is a $21 billion global technology services firm. Its 130,000 employees in 64 countries deliver a broad portfolio of business and technology solutions to help clients worldwide improve their business performance.
All grown up
That's a long way from its humble beginnings, when H. Ross Perot founded EDS by incorporating the company in Texas with a mere $1,000 check and dreamed up the company's name by scribbling on a cocktail napkin.
Just ask EDS Vice Chairman Jeff Heller, who joined EDS in 1968 as a systems engineer.
"I needed a job, and from there, it was a matter of experience, learning and liking what they did and my capability to do it," he said. "That gave me more and more opportunity as the company grew."
When Heller joined EDS, the bulk of the company's business was in the healthcare industry. In 1969, EDS signed what was then its largest contract to date with Blue Shield of California to handle Medicare data processing. The $1 million-a-month-contract quadrupled the size of EDS, taking the employee count from 371 to 1,407, including Blue Shield employees transitioned to EDS.
From the start, the concept behind EDS was quite simple: Use computers to help clients manage their data so they could focus on their core businesses.
That has not changed. "EDS' commitment to its clients and approach to the marketplace that's ethical are two things that have remained consistent," Heller said.
Another constant? The commitment and dedication of the people of EDS, who time after time go above and beyond the call to help each other and deliver exceptional service to clients.
"From the beginning, this has been a people company," Heller said. "And everything that happens here came out of the initiative and the performance of those people."
Going global
In the late ‘70s, EDS began pursuing business outside of the U.S., signing contracts in Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Iran and Pakistan. A few years later, EDS set up offices abroad - in the United Kingdom (UK) and the Netherlands. The expansion marked the beginning of EDS' global growth.
Javier Ribas, an EDS client executive in Spain, joined EDS in 1980 because he was attracted to the new approach brought about through outsourcing. Ribas was sent to Spain to start EDS' business there. He was EDS' first employee in Spain, working under Mal Gudis, Gary Fernandes and Paul Chiapparone - the board of directors of EDS Spain.
In the 27 years since Ribas started EDS Spain, the region has grown to almost 3,000 employees. "We've gone from having zero business to having the most important Spanish corporations as clients. I am really proud of that," Ribas said.
Gaining new business
As EDS grew globally, the company continued expanding into new industries and markets, providing cutting edge services for its clients.
In 1984, EDS signed a contract with Unilever Computer Services Ltd. (UCSL) in the UK. It was the first time EDS would manage voice and data for a client.
Among the employees transitioned from UCSL to EDS was Chris Lee, who is currently a program deployment manager for business process outsourcing (BPO) in EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa).
"I was excited to be transitioned. Back in those days, PCs [personal computers] were just hitting the streets, five megabyte hard drives were big memory and floppy disks were really floppy," Lee recalled.
At the time, EDS was just introducing outsourcing to Europe.
"Our job was to show that we could handle core computing functions better and cheaper than our clients," Lee said. "We were showing them the business potential of all that technology investment. We were moving computing from the back room to the boardroom."
Soon after Lee transitioned to EDS, General Motors (GM) bought EDS in 1984 and the company became a wholly owned subsidiary of GM. In 1996, EDS became an independent company again. That same year, EDS signed a record number of contracts.
"In EMEA, GM gave us the foundation from which to build the business. And the subsequent de-acquisition moved us out of our comfort zone and into what had by then become a fiercely competitive world," Lee said.
Creating an industry
Looking back, many of EDS' milestones were not only a first for what was once a small Texas start up; they were firsts for a brand new information technology (IT) industry.
"The people learned how to execute on [Perot's] idea and take advantage of their opportunities better than the other people in the marketplace," Heller said. "Eventually [competitors] saw how successful it was and they came into the marketplace and made it tougher on us. But we have continually had areas of the business that we had a lead in and that's still true today."
Take privacy and security issues. EDS is a leader in helping clients safeguard their businesses, said EDS Fellow and Chief Risk Officer Rebecca Whitener.
"In the face of global changes and the risks of adverse events and uncertainty, we are constantly looking ahead on behalf of our clients in every industry we serve to anticipate, recognize and interpret trends, and to provide the solutions that will address our clients' needs and reduce their risks," Whitener said.
A ‘forever race'
Over the past 45 years, there has been constant change and advancement in the IT industry.
And, EDS continues to evolve as well, broadening its capabilities and pushing into new markets like China and India.
Still, EDS has more to accomplish. " We've made progress but we have not won that race," Heller said. "Once you win it, you've got an opportunity to stay there, but it's a forever race."
And, with 45 years under its belt, there's no doubt EDS is in the race for the long haul. Happy Anniversary EDS!