Innovative Company Of The Year

You may not know it, but IBM's innovation has helped millions of people see better--literally. That's right. The excimer laser procedure used in LASIK eye surgeries was actually created and patented by IBM researchers.

Of course, IBM innovation may be more synonymous with supercomputing and its Blue Gene initiative. In fact, its installation at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) tops supercomputing lists with a sustained performance of 280.6 teraflops. LLNL is managed by the University of California for the U.S. government.

When it comes down to it, Big Blue invests more than $5 billion annually in R&D in many areas and has registered more patents than any other technology vendor.

"My peers and I innovate because we love it," says Mark Dean, IBM fellow and vice president at the IBM Almaden Research Center. "If they just fed us and gave us a place to sleep, we'd still be doing it."

It's all about passion, Dean says, and IBM is teeming with passionate innovators, which is key to its honor this year as the VARBusiness Tech Innovators Innovative Company of the Year.

Even as a behemoth, IBM is still able to work its innovative magic with new products and new market penetration that's undeniable. From its push deeper into managed and professional services to its growing security and storage offerings, it's driving innovation for the market and for its partners.

NEXT: IBM's three key areas of innovation