Activism hits even the less flashy tech companies

Among these firms are IBM, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Qualcomm, Cisco, Dell and Oracle

As soon as President Trump signed his executive order on immigration, some of the biggest tech companies went quiet. Their executives did not sign legal briefs, brandish statements or dissent on Twitter. They strove for business as usual.

This was the older, stodgier, less glamourous part of the tech universe. These executives are generally not household names. Most of the companies have little presence in the excitable consumer marketplace. Some are government contractors. Their workers tend to be more settled, less tempted by cool start-ups. Despite the companies’ sizable employment, the spotlight is not on them.