“When my father left us, my mother went back to school immediately. She went to school in the day while we were at school, and she worked at night. She worked very hard to never let someone define her as a victim or a failure.”

American business executive

Ginni Rometty is an American business executive, known for leading IBM and for becoming the company’s first woman chief executive. Born Virginia Marie Rometty, she built a near-40-year career at IBM, where she rose from systems engineer to the top of the company. She joined IBM in 1981 and later led global sales, marketing and strategy before becoming president and CEO in January 2012. After stepping down as CEO on April 1, 2020, she served as executive chairman until retiring from IBM on December 31, 2020.