Jerry Kaplan, found of GO Corporation, an early pen computing firm, criticized the process by which IBM invested in his firm. In his book “Startup” (reprint ed., penguin 1996), Kaplan writes, “Rather than empowering the responsible party to make the deal, IBM assigns a professional negotiator, who usually knows or care little for the substance of the agreement but has absolute authority. The negotiator begins by assembling a list of interested internal constituents, all of whom are free to add new requirements or block some minor concession.”