IBM Studio Opens in London to Transform the Client Experience

LONDON, Feb. 20, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced the opening of IBM Studio London, where IBM design and digital experts will work with clients to help them engage with customers using big data, mobile, cloud and social innovations.

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Located in the IBM Southbank location on the banks of the River Thames, the Studio will be the hub of IBM Design in London and will host local teams from IBM Interactive Experience, the largest digital agency in the world, IBM Marketing Innovation Group, which enables digital discovery and marketing to build new engagement models, as well as local IBM product designers.

Teams in IBM Studio London will collaborate on projects to support the global demand for data-driven experiences. Nearly 20 IBM Studios around the world have already produced innovations including a machine-to-machine connected car platform, IBM Bluemix, the open platform that enables developers to rapidly build, deploy and manage their cloud applications, and IBM Verse, which re-imagines email for the age of analytics and cognitive computing.

IBM Studio London will be a space for clients in industries such as healthcare, financial services and retail to work side-by-side with IBM consultants, researchers, digital marketing and experience design experts to analyze business challenges and integrate next-generation mobile, social, analytics and cloud technologies.

"Today's most successful companies have design embedded in their DNA," said John Mathers, CEO, Design Council. "Good quality design improves people's lives and creates value for businesses. This is why we work to bring the design and business communities together, and help develop the skills which are a vitally important to our economy. We support and encourage companies such as IBM that recognise and value the importance of design, bringing it into the heart of what they do."

IBM Studio London represents the new world of work and a model environment for co-located, creative cross-functional teams. User experience design and personalization are driving digital engagement and product development at IBM, as exceptional customer experiences create value for IBM clients.

IBM Design applies the principles of IBM Design Thinking, which takes a rapid prototyping approach to user-centric product development, as well as IBM Design Language, a framework to inspire bold and engaging experiences.

"London is a creative epicenter that now boasts a powerful digital economy," said Matt Candy, European Leader, IBM Interactive Experience. "IBM Studio London will bring exceptional digital experiences to our exceptional digital city, where some of our most forward-looking clients reside. Through the IBM Studios we are transforming the client experience of our products and services and how the company engages with the world at large."

NOTES FOR EDITORS
Leading skill sets in IBM Studios include User Interface/Visual Design, Graphic Artists, User Experience Designers, Design Developers, including Mobile Developers, Industrial Designers, Agile Scrum, Social Media experts, Data Scientists and Marketing specialists with constant additions to the capabilities of the IBM Studios.

IBM Studio London is a further investment in IBM's worldwide design capability and a space where IBM Design, Consulting and Marketing coexist to maximize collaboration and value to IBM clients.

IBM has a longstanding history of design excellence from its iconic 8-bar logo, to the sleekly modern Thomas J. Watson Research Center, to its new IBM Verse collaboration platform, combined with a century's experience in technology and leadership in cloud, mobile, big data and cognitive computing capabilities. IBM Studio London joins nearly 20 IBM Studios in locations including Austin, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Toronto, Groningen, Melbourne, Mexico City, Hursley, New York, Dallas, Ehningen and La Gaude, with more IBM Studios to open this year. More details about the IBM Studios can be found at: www.ibm.com/studios

About IBM
For more about IBM, visit www.ibm.com

For more information please contact:
Sally Forge, IBM UK Communications
Tel: +44 (0) 7500 794 723
sally.forge@uk.ibm.com