Lessons: An Autobiography
To understand An Wang, the best place to start is with his own words. Co-written with Eugene Linden and published in 1986, 'Lessons: An Autobiography' provides a firsthand account of his remarkable journey. The book chronicles his early life in Shanghai,
his immigration to the United States in 1945, and his education at Harvard, where he earned a Ph.D. in applied physics. Wang details his groundbreaking invention of magnetic core memory, a foundational technology for early computers that he eventually sold to IBM. The narrative is framed as a series of 'lessons' learned while building Wang Laboratories from a one-man shop in 1951 into a multi-billion dollar giant with over 30,000 employees at its peak. While written before the company's eventual collapse, it offers an invaluable, if paternalistic, perspective on his management philosophy, his drive, and his vision for a world of automated offices. It's the story of success as he saw it, full of pride, insight, and consistent common sense.
Riding the Runaway Horse: The Rise and Decline of Wang Laboratories
For the full picture, you need the story of the fall. Charles C. Kenney's 1992 book, 'Riding the Runaway Horse', delivers a journalistic post-mortem on the company that once dominated the word-processing market. Published just as Wang Laboratories filed for bankruptcy, it serves as the essential second half of the story that 'Lessons' could not tell. Where Wang's autobiography is a chronicle of success, Kenney's book is a case study in failure. It explores how the company that pioneered office technology failed to adapt to the personal computer revolution. Kenney, drawing on interviews with company insiders, examines the strategic missteps, the rigid adherence to proprietary technology, and the internal succession struggles—including the controversial decision to appoint his son, Fred Wang, as president—that contributed to the company's dramatic decline. This book is less about the man and more about the machine—the corporate entity he built and the market forces and internal decisions that ultimately brought it down. It’s a powerful cautionary tale for any business leader.
One Man's Dynasty: The Story of An Wang
For a more modern and holistic biography, May Lee’s 'One Man's Dynasty', published in 2024, bridges the gap between Wang's personal journey and his professional legacy. This book provides a complete arc, from his youth in war-torn China to his status as a role model for immigrant entrepreneurs and a giant of the global tech community. It explores the cultural duality Wang navigated as a Chinese native and an American business titan, a theme that often influenced his management style and philanthropic efforts. The book gives context to his immense contributions outside the office, such as his donations that led to Boston's Wang Center for the Performing Arts and the Wang Building at Massachusetts General Hospital. More than the other books, 'One Man's Dynasty' delves into the family dynamics and the 'inheritance crisis,' providing a personal lens on the challenges of legacy and succession. It frames his story—both the incredible rise and the swift decline—for a new generation, reminding readers of the man who, for a time, went toe-to-toe with the biggest names in technology and changed how the world worked.
