How IBM’s Strategic Imperatives Segment Performed in 3Q17

Earlier in the series, we discussed IBM’s (IBM) Cognitive Solutions performance in fiscal 3Q17. Now, let’s look into the Strategic Imperatives segment performance in the last quarter. In 3Q17, the segment accounted for approximately 45% of IBM’s overall revenue, a 10% increase in constant currency terms. IBM’s Strategic Imperatives segment, which refers to its investments in SMAC (social, mobile, analytics, and cloud) and security technologies has security as its largest component.

Security offering revenues rose ~51%, driven by the company’s security software offerings and new z14 mainframe encryption capabilities. Cloud revenues rose 20% and now form 20% of IBM’s overall revenue. In fiscal 3Q17, revenue from as-a-service offerings rose 25%.

IBM’s Strategic Imperatives segment is increasingly focused on IoT (Internet of Things), AI (artificial intelligence), and blockchain technologies. IBM has emerged as the preferred player in the deployment of blockchain technology.

These technologies are expected to drive the $13 trillion in spending forecasts during the next computing cycle. Enterprise customer requirements have moved from just storage and monitoring to also insight and prediction abilities. These technologies along with cloud could meet these companies’ requirements.