Know thy numbers FORBES dissented in 1996 when Wall Street was hymning the praises of wheeler-dealer Henry Silverman and what is now Cendant Corp. (then HFS).

FORBES: Follow Through

HFS, based in Parsippany, New Jersey, has in recent years snapped up a variety of franchising businesses, among them Avis car-rentals, Super 8 motels, Days Inn and Ramada hotels, and Century 21 and Coldwell Banker property agencies.

ECONOMIST: All in the same bunch

The move could allow IBM to show off its unique depth in research at its consulting level in a field crowded with top level consulting, says Jonathan Yarmis, a research fellow at HfS, a business and IT research firm based in Boston.

FORBES: With New Research Labs, IBM Brings CEOs Face-To-Face With Watson

HFS's hotels each year.

ECONOMIST: All in the same bunch