Pat McGovern talks to TiE members about the worldwide growth of IDG group of companies at the Burlington Marriott on October 26, 2004, while the Red Sox were on the way to becoming World Champions.

Patrick McGovern is Founder and Chairman of International Data Group (IDG), the 2nd largest private company in Massachusetts, which had 2003 revenues of $2.4 billion. Graduating from MIT in 1959, in 1964 McGovern founded International Data Corporation (IDC), now an IDG research subsidiary, to serve information technology (IT) markets. Three years later, McGovern launched Computerworld to report on computer industry and product news. Today, IDG has more than 250 publications, 300 online sites, 170 events and 470 market research programs across 85 countries.
In addition to IDC and ComputerWorld, its properties include NetworkWorld, InfoWorld, CIO, CSO, CMO and BioIT World.

Pat also serves on the Board of Trustees of MIT along with Desh Deshpande. Pat grew up in Philadelphia. Even though his aim was to study the brain/human systems at MIT, he got hooked to the field of publishing, as his roommate was the Editor of Tech.

He started International Data Corporation (IDC) in the 1960s as a computer market research company and then moved to publication of computer related magazines to bring to together computer manufactures, software developers and users. Early on in his career, he realized that the best way to grow as a company is to Empower people. His job as CEO is to find fertile markets, hire people with the same passion and social value and treat them as you would like to be treated and with trust.

Innovation may come from anywhere and one must be ready to tap. His rule of thumb is that if 50% of the operating costs in the first year can be recovered from customers, it is a go-ahead for starting a new publication. On the other hand, it a not a good reason to enter a market just because the competition is doing it. This assumes that the competition knows everything, which might not be the case. It is important to be encouraging, but not aggressive to the extent that one starts to be unreasonable in their actions. In any business, the real Board of Directors are your best customers. In addition, the optimum size is 150-180 people in a unit within a company. Once it grows beyond that, one looses personal contacts with all the employees.

Every year we work on a 7-year plan. What is surprising is what most of the times we achieve our revenue goals within a few percent, but how we reach there is very different. Sometimes it is through growth in business, new product developments and acquisitions, in other cases it is through increase in market value of real estate or return in investments in new companies. In every case, the goal should be to help people all over the world.

IDG has been in India as a research unit since 1990. The market intelligence associated with it is helpful to network and start publications at the appropriate time. Now that Indian media market is open for direct investment since January 2004, IDG is ready to launch its first set of publications there.   

In summary, empower people, be on the lookout for innovations and keep the company units between 150 – 180 employees.

|