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In 1953, after issuing Policy Letter No.4, IBM President Thomas J. Watson Jr. used it as a foundation of company policy in later negotiations to build plants in two southern states.
And he never missed an opportunity to remind employees of IBM's commitment to the policy which stated that IBM will hire people based on their ability, regardless of race, color or creed.
 VIEW equal opportunity policy letter
Later, in a 1961 progress report to employees, Watson, Jr. said, "I feel strongly that there are some priceless ingredients in this business which we will never change -- things such as our concern for the individual, our sense of fair play and our belief in services. For our fine reputation as a company is based on nothing more and nothing less -- than respect for the individual, integrity and personal values of our people. You are, in fact, the IBM company."
Watson's Policy Letter was also reinforced through Management Briefing's including one in October, 1968 where he said,"In IBM, we have made progress in our commitment to equal opportunity for all, but the crisis the nation faces in race relations today demands that we make good on that pledge to the fullest extent with the least delay."
And IBM's commitment to equal opportunity continued through the years through the leadership of the company's CEOs.
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 In 1972, IBM CEO T. Vincent Learson hosted the first one-day meeting on women's workplace issues in IBM.
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 IBM CEO and Chairman Frank Cary said in a 1974 EO video, "I cannot stress too strongly the importance of IBM's employment practices.
They are based on the conviction that it is fair and right that all employees have the opportunity to make of themselves whatever they can. If we fail to deliver on that conviction, we are failing in one of our important obligations to all IBMers. Ladies and gentlemen, our goals can be achieved, but we will all have to work to make it happen. And we must make it happen, for IBM simply cannot accept less than equal and fair treatment for all its employees."
In 1975, Frank Cary, Rev. Leon Sullivan, a General Motors board member, and General Motors CEO Tom Murphy recruited 21 leaders from top American corporations to attend a historic meeting at IBM's Sands Point, N.Y., conference center to launch a decade-long effort by U.S. corporations to end apartheid in South Africa. This historic meeting led to the creation of the original Sullivan Principles.
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 In THINK magazine in 1984, Chairman and CEO John Opel stated, "Today, there is ample evidence that our commitment to equal opportunity is stronger than ever. We intend to continue our commitment to equal opportunity. And we do so with the knowledge that what we are doing is right for people and good for our business."
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 IBM Chairman and CEO John Akers reaffirmed IBM's Equal Opportunity Policy in a letter dated April, 1986.
"I expect IBM managers to hire and promote based on job-related requirements and an individual's qualifications. All personnel-related programs are administered without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, handicap, or age."
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 IBM Chairman and CEO Louis V. Gerstner, Jr. in 1994 told employees, "In order to serve markets, we have to understand them, reflect their diversity and build a workplace in which every individual knows their opportunity to contribute is gated only by the quality of their ideas and job performance, and the integrity of their work."
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Samuel J. Palmisano, IBM Chairman and CEO, 2003
 "People must be comfortable in their own skin. If you can't do that, how can you be effective at anything else? How can you lead? At IBM, we recognize that the contribution our employees make is derived from who they are and where they come from. We encourage people to be themselves and to express themselves freely no matter what their background. And we promote to leadership positions those people who are comfortable with who they are."
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VIEW equal opportunity policy letter
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