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After a challenging childhood, Ginni Rometty ʼ79, ʼ15 H arrived at Northwestern in 1975 and graduated four years later with a bachelor of science degree in computer sciences, with distinction. She went on to become the first woman to lead IBM and one of the world's most influential leaders.
Rometty will return to her alma mater Tuesday, April 25, for a wide-ranging fireside chat with President Michael H. Schill on the Evanston campus. They will discuss Rometty’s experience as a Northwestern undergraduate, her thoughts on leadership and the future of technology and her new bestselling book, “Good Power: Leading Positive Change in Our Lives, Work, and World” (Harvard Business Review Press, March 2023), on which she collaborated with fellow Northwestern alumna, Joanne Gordon ’97 MS.
The event, hosted by the Kellogg School of Management and McCormick School of Engineering, will begin at 12:15 p.m. in the White Auditorium of the Kellogg Global Hub, 2211 Campus Drive. The fireside chat is open to the Northwestern community, but registration is requested.
Rometty’s book is a combination of memoir, leadership lessons and big ideas. In it, she explores why she believes that how people work and lead is as important as what they achieve. During her conversation with President Schill, Rometty will share how “good power” — leading meaningful change in a positive way — can transform individuals, businesses and communities. She also will reflect on the barriers that remain for working women in the U.S. and around the world.
Rometty first joined IBM as a systems engineer in 1981 and subsequently built the consulting services business before heading global sales, marketing and strategy. Rometty’s nine years as president and CEO of IBM (from 2012 to 2020) came during a period of innovation and reinvention, which included establishing the company’s leadership in hybrid cloud, artificial intelligence and quantum computing. She retired as executive chairman of IBM in December 2020.
Supported by a gift from IBM, two computer science professorships at Northwestern were named in Rometty’s honor in 2021.
Rometty serves on multiple boards, including Northwestern’s Board of Trustees. She joined the University’s board in 2010 and currently serves as vice chair. Northwestern conferred an honorary doctorate to Rometty in 2015, when she delivered the main address at the University’s 157th commencement ceremony.
In 2020, Rometty co-founded OneTen, a coalition of companies and educators committed to getting 1 million Black Americans without four-year degrees into family-sustaining jobs and careers by 2030.
