Eve's suggestion sounds like a reasonable one. Would that be a possibility? People I know who work at IBM seem to enjoy a lot of flexibility reagrds home-working and flexi-time so your DH could communte out of rush hour traffic on his days in the office.
My DH and I moved out of Portsmouth (Southsea) last year. IBM isn't actually located in central Portsmouth so I certainly wouldn't recommend a move to central Portsmouth or even Southsea.
Southsea is a place best visited on a Sunday when it is quiet. Traffic and parking, poor schools are the negatives of Portsmouth. House prices are still high and as cities go it is woefully lacking in the benefits you usually get as a trade off for living in a city.
Just my opinion of course
Nearly everywhere along the M27 corridor is congested and you don't get a lot of house for your money. For the amount you pay for a house, you'd expect a lot of the schools to be good but they're not, so if you do move, it is wise to do your homework (as you are doing)
My recommendations would be the Horndean school cathcment area (Lovedean/Horndean/Catherington - in Waterlooville) The Cams Hall catchment area in Fareham/one end of Portchester.
A little further south of Fareham there is a large village called Stubbington/Hillhead which has 2 decent primaries which feed into one decent Secondary school called Crofton School. The village is well equipped with some nice and useful shops in a village centre. It's a little further away from the motorway but it is beside the beach - albeit a pebbly one.
I'd second Chichester as being very nice. I'm sort of near there now but I'm not in the catchment for a good secondary school so will be moving before that life-stage is upon us.
Hope that helps.