June 23 (Bloomberg) -- International Business Machines Corp., the world’s biggest computer-services provider, named Asia executive Elias Mendoza to oversee mergers and acquisitions strategy after his predecessor left for rival Dell Inc.

Mendoza, who joined IBM in 2006, became vice president of corporate development June 15, Doug Shelton, an spokesman for Armonk, New York-based IBM, said today. He will report to Chief Financial Officer Mark Loughridge.

Mendoza headed corporate development for Japan and growth markets, seeking partnerships and investments, Shelton said. Before joining IBM, Mendoza, 43, served as managing director at Morgan Stanley’s investment-banking division in Tokyo, working at the firm for more than a decade, according to Morgan Stanley spokesman Mark Lake.

David Johnson, who spent almost 30 years at IBM, resigned from the role of mergers-and-acquisitions chief in May to join personal-computer maker Dell. IBM has sued to stop Johnson, 55, from going to Round Rock, Texas-based Dell, saying the move would violate an agreement that restricts his employment with competitors. Johnson has said the contract isn’t valid.

IBM dropped 8 cents to $104.44 today in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The stock has gained 24 percent this year.

IBM acquisitions

Earlier this year, IBM pursued an acquisition of computer- server maker Sun Microsystems Inc., according to a person familiar with the matter. The bid, worth about $7 billion, failed when the two disagreed on the price. Oracle Corp., the world’s second-largest software maker, later agreed to acquire Sun for about $7.4 billion.

IBM has made more than 50 acquisitions since Chief Executive Officer Sam Palmisano took the reins in 2002. Most of those deals, including the $4.5 billion purchase of Cognos Inc., have built the company’s software portfolio, its most profitable business.

Palmisano has pledged to “go on offense,” pursuing acquisitions and investing in research. The company is focusing on analytics software, which combs data to help companies predict trends, and smart grids, which use censors to monitor infrastructure like utilities and traffic.

To contact the reporters on this story: Katie Hoffmann in New York at khoffmann4@bloomberg.net; Serena Saitto in New York at ssaitto@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: June 23, 2009 19:41 EDT