CA Technologies

CA Technologies, Inc., formerly Computer Associates International, Inc., and CA, Inc., was an American multinational enterprise software developer and publisher that existed from 1976 to 2018. CA grew to rank as one of the largest independent software corporations in the world, and at one point was the second largest. The company created systems software (and for a while applications software) that ran in IBM mainframe, distributed computing, virtual machine, and cloud computing environments. The company reflected the personality of its primary founder, Charles Wang. The main key to Computer Associates' fast growth was the acquisition of many lesser-sized software companies in the IBM mainframe industry segment. CA was known for large-scale dismissals of employees in the acquired firms, and for sometimes extracting cash flow from acquired products rather than enhancing them. Customers of CA often criticized the company for its poor technical support and somewhat hostile attitude. CA underwent a major accounting scandal in the early 2000s that led to several past executives being sent to prison. However by the 2010s, CA was ranked high by several corporate responsibility and recognition metrics. Computer Associates had its origins in both Switzerland (Zurich and Geneva) and in the United States (New York City). It was headquartered on Long Island for most of its history, at first Jericho and Garden City in Nassau County, then Suffolk County for two decades in Islandia before moving back to Manhattan in 2014. In 2018, the company was acquired by Broadcom Inc., a semiconductor manufacturer, for nearly $19 billion. The origins of Computer Associates International lie in a Swiss software products company and a New York data services company. Samuel W. Goodner was a Texan who was working for the American businessman Sam Wyly's company, University Computing Company (UCC). UCC had acquired the Swiss computer services company Automation Center A.G., founded by the Swiss businessman Walter Haefner, and Wyly despatched Goodner to Europe to watch over it.