Tandem Computers Unplugged: a People's History
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Tandem Computers Unplugged: A People’s History company’s leadership in general and the charisma oF Jimmy Treybig, the company’s key Founder, in specific? Again a resounding yes, but not entirely as Jimmy hasn’t been the only charismatic leader in Silicon Valley - a number come to mind. Was it because oF the company’s offbeat corporate culture such as no private parking places, an on campus swimming pool and oF course the inFamous beer busts. Well yes, but!!! How can it be that over 16 years since From an insiders point of view it was its merger with Compaq and nearly a all oF these things wrapped in a decade since it’s reabsorption back cocoon of an integrated corporate into Hewlett Packard a vibrant and value system that permeated all active online Tandem Computers corners oF the company, world wide alumni community still exists on and deeply touched the souls and Yahoo!Groups and Linked In? How can minds oF all employees through the it be that in many countries in the good and bad times. world groups oF Tandem Alumni still get together in local pubs or other Tandem Computers Unplugged – A types oF venues at least yearly? How People’s History is an attempt to can it be that many Former employees capture not just the history of an maintain their collection oF T-shirts, important foundational contributor to double-handled cups, pens, and what is today’s Silicon Valley, but to trophies almost like shrines oF some share the experience through the eyes kind? How can it be that so many and hearts oF the employees and employees when asked to look back through this process bring to light on their working liFe almost to a some oF the important ‘lessons person claim that working at Tandem learned’ about how to manage and was one oF the best places they have motivate talent. As Jimmy has said: ever worked and a highlight of their “This is valuable insight for CEO’s careers? trying to decide what kind of company to build and for employees trying to Was it because oF its really cool on- decide what kind of company to work line real -time transaction processing for.” technology designed to solve a really conFounding business problem – that Some excerpts on Tandem history, oF computer systems Failure? Yes, but technology, leadership and corporate not entirely as many companies in culture: Silicon Valley have created ‘cool’ technology. Was it because oF the Tandem History Treybig that developing the needed Having a plan, even if it was very software would be straightforward, preliminary, enabled Jimmy to start but that building the hardware would the process oF Finding the right sorts oF be tough. Of course, each thought that Folks to help him achieve his vision. he had the easiest job, neither of Two oF his key early recruits were Jim which turned out to be true. All oF it Katzman and Michael Green.….. ended up being difficult—but not impossible. According to Katzman, Katzman’s recollections oF the some time later, Treybig divulged “he day they met, provides some had thought that both hardware and interesting color. software would be terribly difficult, but that if he could get someone to build it “In 1974, I got a call from Tom Perkins he could sell it” inviting me to lunch. I figured he was doing due-diligence on Amdahl whom I ….One Funny story that Tom [Perkins] knew was looking for investors. But often shared was of their first when Perkins picked me up, he had experience going to Wall Street to another former HP colleague with him. seek investors. As Tom shared: This guy, Jim Treybig started talking about an idea he had for a new "Jimmy was straight out of Texas, and I computer company. With him was a didn’t think that he’d go over very well thick notebook filled with newspaper on Wall Street. So I took him to Brooks and magazine horror stories about Brother and bought him shoes, socks, computers crashing, about the loss of suit, the works. Alas it didn’t help as the business and occasionally life such first thing that came out of Jimmy’s technical failures caused. He told me mouth when meeting the Wall Street that he was interested in developing a bankers was, 'So How do I look, Tom computer that wouldn’t fail, that had dressed me!'" backup systems in case of emergency. Did I think it was possible from a Needless to say, the East Coast technical standpoint, to design moneymen were likely a little taken hardware to do it? I said it would be a aback by Jimmy. But Kleiner Perkins challenge, but it could be done, but the never doubted the plan or the software was going to be very difficult. management and decided the odds oF He asked me who was the best software success were good enough to put in $1 guy I’d known. I said Mike Green, who million oF their own Funds to carry the had designed the minicomputer company through 1975. This was a industry’s first time-sharing system for sizable investment as their total Fund the HP2000. ‘I figured you’d say that!’ at the time only amounted to $8M. As Treybig said. ‘I’ve got lunch with him Tom Perkins shared many years later: tomorrow.’” If Tandem hadn't been a success, there Needless to say, Katzman was never would have been a second intrigued and the next day called Kleiner Perkins [venture] fund.' Green to ask how the lunch had gone. Green told him that he’d advised Tandem Leadership Gates and Jobs come to mind. At heart, Jimmy was quite the character. OF these men are not extroverts, although average height, stocky in body type they show off occasionally. But Treybig and always slightly rumpled, Treybig was and probably still is. He was like a as described in Fortune magazine in young east Texan coonhound. He would May 1987, had this shock of fuzzy hair try and tree anything and bay and bay that would “explode from the side of his and bay. You had to love him and get head in a curly frizz. His eyeglasses excited and run around, even though he refused to perch properly on the bridge had treed the ugliest damn coon you of his nose, preferring to park ever saw." themselves crazily on the other end. He hated knotting his tie and only did so Tandem Technology when he had to meet customers, or With the company now settled on members oF the Financial community. 20605 Valley Green Drive in His sleeves were always rolled up and Cupertino and described so elegantly his shirttails had great difficulty by Tony Turner: remaining tucked in. According to Fortune magazine in 1982, his “hands- “What emerged from the hands and in-pocket slouch gave him this minds of the 'Tandem Ten' was a way incongruous air of a teenager hanging to tie 16 separate minicomputers out on Main Street.’’ With that look together by means of a high speed bus. came a serious Texas accent and a Called the Tandem T16 based on a Texan “aw shucks” manner.…This unique operating system they called image disguised a man who was Guardian, it was built from the ground extremely bright and quick-witted. As up as message- based, peer-coupled, Fortune Magazine put it in 1982, shared-nothing piece of design “freewheeling theorizing came excellence. Not only was it fault naturally to Jimmy T., as Tandemites tolerant, it was also geographically called him. He was no idle independent and linearly scalable daydreamer.” Many would think on (almost) and contained primitives for first introduction that Treybig was data integrity and transaction either a bullshitter, just shucking and consistency. Where most computers jiving or a country bumpkin out oF his were ugly through and through, 'The element. Behind the country-boy Tandem’ was only plain on the outside. demeanor was a driven, aggressive Inside it was elegant. You could look at and extremely competent the backplane and see how it worked businessman. One oF his important and from there what it could be used gifts was an ability to see quickly and for. How much of that was intentional easily to the heart oF a problem and an would be a good discussion to have ability to apply a laser Focus on solving someday at a bar.” it. Jimmy was a charismatic evangelist and a First-class salesman through and It was called “NonStop” because its through. As Tony Turner shared: multiprocessor arrangement provided nonstop computing such that iF one oF "A few [technology leaders] have stood the processor’s components were to astride product, company and people. break down, the other processors would observe the Failure and absorb • Every employee must beneFit From the workload oF that processor. The the company’s success First Tandem 16 system was delivered • Management must create an to Citibank in May 1976. Bob environment where all oF the above Marshall (#32) shared some can happen. perspectives on that First system: Most technology companies today "The first order to Citibank was for have similar statements that describe $116,000, a two-processor system in a their culture, so it’s hard For most to single cabinet. Each processor had 64 understand just how unique and kilobites of core memory with 32 bit on groundbreaking these statements each of two 16” by 18” circuit were in the mid-1970s. The Tandem boards, two 10 MB disc drives and a 60 Philosophy, as it was known, came line per minute printer (made by into being when the four founders Control Data).