I think it means they were losing money before they put Watson Jr. out to pasture and brought in the hatchet man Gerstner, who took millions per year and left a

I think it means they were losing money before they put Watson Jr. out to pasture and brought in the hatchet man Gerstner, who took millions per year and left after 13 years with a $189 million severance package. IBM seemed more successful by the early 2000s. I am not sure how the anti-poverty programs tie in but most likely they were just scrapped as no longer in fashion.