IBM are ditching their US customers left and right. My husband now works for another company and most of his service calls are the same ones he had when he was with IBM. he runs into store managers he used to know back in his IBM days. Also a goodly number of the guys he works with now are also former IBMers.
Other way around IMHO. IBM products have become too expensive for the US Market, so customers are resorting to cheaper and, IMHO inferior, products. IBM's unquestioned position as a leader in Quality is no longer sufficient to keep customers.
he runs into store managers he used to know back in his IBM days. Also a goodly number of the guys he works with now are also former IBMers.
Which only proves that the companies with market "growth" also hire to meet demand.
Is IBM making a mistake by reducing US Operations? Possibly. But I have the distinct impression that IBM is simply completing plans it has been pursueing for quite a long time now. IMHO, IBM will become a foreign entity with a US presence in the next 10 years.