Interview with IBM CFO Jim Kavanaugh

IBM's strategic transformation under Arvind Krishna is the focus, shifting from legacy services to a software-led, platform-centric company capitalizing on hybrid cloud, AI, and quantum computing. CFO Jim Kavanaugh highlights IBM's improved financial performance, including revenue growth, margin expansion, and free cash flow, leading to significant shareholder value creation. Agentic AI's impact on productivity and competitive advantage is explored, with consulting playing a crucial role in workflow optimization and business model changes. Kavanaugh discusses the AI book of business, driven by software and consulting, and the strategic acquisition of Confluent to enhance data streaming and AI scalability. Capital allocation priorities include investing in organic and inorganic growth, maintaining a commitment to dividends, and strategically diversifying shareholder value distribution.