IBM has revealed Kyndryl will be the name of the new, independent company that will be created following the separation of its Managed Infrastructure Services business.
The separation is expected to be complete by the end of 2021.
IBM announced the separation back in October. The company said at the time that the creation of the new business would help IBM streamline its operating model, consolidate shared services, and concentrate on cloud and new markets, including artificial intelligence and its hybrid cloud business, which includes Red Hat.
When the managed infrastructure company is spun off, IBM will transition from being a company with half its revenue in services to one with more than 50% of sales from recurring revenue.
Kyndryl will be headquartered in New York City.
“Kyndryl evokes the spirit of true partnership and growth,” Kyndryl CEO Martin Schroeter said. “Customers around the world will come to know Kyndryl as a brand that runs the vital systems at the heart of progress, and an independent company with the best global talent in the industry.”
Schroeter was announced as heading up the spin-off in January. He previously served as IBM’s senior VP of Global Markets and also acted as chief financial officer between 2014 and 2017.
Further justifying its new name, IBM said Kyndryl is a “modern adaptation of two words that are central to the new company’s identity and mission”.
“‘Kyn’ is derived from the word ‘kinship’, referencing the belief that relationships with people — employees, customers, and partners — are at the centre of the strategy, and that long-lasting relationships must be built and nurtured,” Big Blue wrote in a press release.
“‘Dryl’ comes from ‘tendril’, bringing to mind new growth and the idea that — together with customers and partners — the business is always working toward advancing human progress.”
IBM touts Kyndryl as boasting a global base of 4,600 customers.
“Creating a name is just the start of our journey as a brand,” Kyndryl chief marketing officer Maria Bartolome Winans added. “Our vision is to be the leading company that designs, runs and modernises the critical technology infrastructure of the world’s most important businesses and institutions, ultimately powering human progress.”
