James C. McGroddy

James C. McGroddy is an American physicist. His early focus was on the electronic structure of metals. His Ph.D. thesis title was "Polar Reflection Faraday Effects in Aluminum".

Career
He joined IBM’s Thomas J. Watson Research Center in Yorktown Heights as a Research Staff Member in 1965.

In November 1977, he was named IBM Research Division Vice President of Semiconductor Science and technology.

In May 1989 he became IBM Director of IBM Research ("IBM Research Magazine", Summer 1989) and was responsible for IBM's Research Division which consisted of approximately 3,500 employees at 5 main laboratories (Yorktown Heights, NY, Almaden CA, Zurich, Switzerland, Yamato, Japan and Haifa, Israel). Soon after his appointment, he drove the effort to overhaul the patent process at IBM, leading the company become the largest producer of patents for the next 25 years and adding billions of dollars to the bottom line.

Recognition
In 1991 he was elected a member of the US National Academy of Engineering

In 1995, he was the recipient of the American Physical Soceity's George E. Pake Prize.

In 1999 the American Physical Society International Prize for New Materials was renamed the James C. McGroddy Prize for New Materials and endowed by IBM.

Retirement
McGroddy retired from IBM at the end of 1996.