"I never thought of IBM as a democratic organization, so it might be difficult to believe that Thomas J. Watson Sr. founded “The IBM” on democratic ideals. Books such as The Maverick and his Machine by Kevin Maney and The Watson Dynasty by Richard Tedlow paint IBM’s founder as more egocentric, egoistic and egotistic than democratic. But Tom Watson Sr., never one to leave anything to chance, defined democracy-in-business for his company. He forged this definition negotiating a path through the recessionary fires of 1913, 1918, 1920, 1923 and 1926. His definition ignited a business expansion in the greatest economic contraction of the 20th Century— the Great Depression."