Ginni Rometty wird neue CEO der IBM Corp.

Kommentar: Nun ist es perfekt: Palmisano feierte zum 100. seinen 60. - und nun darf er die Bühne freigeben für eine Frau: für Virgina M. Rometty. Und so wird man in den Geschichtsbüchern der Zukunft schreiben. "Und in dem Jahr, in dem IBM 100 Jahre alt ward, wurde erstmals in der Geschichte der IBM eine Frau für die höchsten Ämter des Computergiganten erkoren."
Wollen wir hoffen, dass mehr als nur PR dahinter steht. Wollen wir hoffen, dass IBM mehr als nur smart ist. Wollen wir hoffen, dass man in zweieinhalb Jahren, wenn sich der Tag zum 100. Mal jährt, an dem der eigentliche Gründer der Company, Thomas J. Watson Sr., die Amtsgeschäfte übernahm, sagen wird: Endlich steht eine richtige Unternehmerin an der Spitze der IBM, eine Frau, die mehr kann als nur Financial Engineering. Wollen wir hoffen, dass jeder dann sagen wird: "IBM ist wieder eine Wachstumsfirma".

Pressemitteilung
ARMONK, N.Y. - 25 Oct 2011: The IBM (NYSE: IBM) board of directors has
elected Virginia M. Rometty president and chief executive officer of the
company, effective January 1, 2012. She was also elected a member of the
board of directors, effective at that time. Ms. Rometty is currently IBM
senior vice president and group executive for sales, marketing and
strategy. She succeeds Samuel J. Palmisano, who currently is IBM chairman,
president and chief executive officer. Mr. Palmisano will remain chairman
of the board
"Ginni Rometty has successfully led several of IBM?s most important
businesses over the past decade - from the formation of IBM Global
Business Services to the build-out of our Growth Markets Unit.
Ginni Rometty has successfully led several of IBM's most important
businesses over the past decade - from the formation of IBM Global
Business Services to the build-out of our Growth Markets Unit", Mr.
Palmisano said. "But she is more than a superb operational executive. With
every leadership role, she has strengthened our ability to integrate IBM's
capabilities for our clients. She has spurred us to keep pace with the
needs and aspirations of our clients by deepening our expertise and
industry knowledge. Ginni's long-term strategic thinking and client focus
are seen in our growth initiatives, from cloud computing and analytics to
the commercialization of Watson. She brings to the role of CEO a unique
combination of vision, client focus, unrelenting drive, and passion for
IBMers and the company's future. I know the board agrees with me that
Ginni is the ideal CEO to lead IBM into its second century.?
Ms. Rometty said: "There is no greater privilege in business than to be
asked to lead IBM, especially at this moment. Sam had the courage to
transform the company based on his belief that computing technology, our
industry, even world economies would shift in historic ways. All of that
has come to pass. Today, IBM's strategies and business model are correct.
Our ability to execute and deliver consistent results for clients and
shareholders is strong. This is due to Sam's leadership, his discipline,
and his unshakable belief in the ability of IBM and IBMers to lead into
the future. Sam taught us, above all, that we must never stop reinventing
IBM."
Mr. Palmisano, 60, became IBM chief executive officer in 2002 and chairman
of the board in 2003. During his tenure, IBM exited commoditizing
businesses, including PCs, printers and hard disk drives, and greatly
increased investments in high-value businesses and technologies. He has
overseen the significant expansion of IBM in the emerging markets of
China, India, Brazil, Russia and dozens of other developing countries,
transforming IBM from a multinational into a globally integrated
enterprise. In 2008, he launched IBM?s Smarter Planet strategy, which
describes the company?s view of the next era of information technology and
its impact on business and society.
Since Mr. Palmisano became CEO, IBM has set records in pre-tax earnings,
earnings per share, and free cash flow. During Mr. Palmisano?s tenure, IBM
increased EPS by almost five times, generated over $100 billion in free
cash flow, and invested more than $50 billion in research and development
- creating over $100 billion of shareholder value since 2002 through an
increase in market capitalization and dividends paid.
As global sales leader for IBM, Ms. Rometty, 54, is accountable for
revenue, profit, and client satisfaction in the 170 global markets in
which IBM does business. She is responsible for IBM's worldwide results,
which exceeded $99 billion in 2010. She also is responsible for leading
IBM's global strategy, marketing and communications functions. Previously,
Ms. Rometty was senior vice president of IBM Global Business Services. In
that role, she led the successful integration of PricewaterhouseCoopers
Consulting -- the largest acquisition in professional services history,
building a global team of more than 100,000 business consultants and
services experts. She has also served as general manager of IBM Global
Services, Americas, and of IBM's Global Insurance and Financial Services
Sector.
Ms. Rometty joined IBM in 1981 as a systems engineer. She holds a Bachelor
of Science degree with high honors in computer science and electrical
engineering from Northwestern University.