#362 – Ginni Rometty: IBM CEO on Leadership, Power, and Adversity
Mar 2, 2023
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Ginni Rometty, the former CEO of IBM and author of "Good Power," shares her insights on leadership and resilience in the tech industry. She discusses the importance of preparing for challenges, emphasizing empathy and community service as key leadership traits. Ginni highlights the ethical implications of AI advancements and the value of diversity in decision-making. She also delves into her personal journey, navigating the complexities of corporate transformation and addressing imposter syndrome, particularly for women in leadership roles.
Good power involves embracing tension, diversity, and collaboration to positively impact society.
Running a large company requires balancing change with stability and navigating complexities.
Diversity and inclusion drive positive change and meaningful outcomes.
To resist the negative influences of power, leaders must stay grounded, serve others, and embrace different viewpoints.
Deep dives
The Essence of Good Power
Good power is about doing something hard or meaningful in a positive way. It involves embracing and navigating tension, bridging divides, and uniting people. Good power celebrates progress and focuses on the how, not just the what. It values diversity, inclusion, and collaboration. It involves being in service of something greater than oneself and making choices that benefit multiple stakeholders. Good power also involves being responsible in the use of technology, considering the impact and balancing the upside and downside. Ultimately, good power is about doing something that positively impacts society.
Navigating Challenges of Running a Large Company
Running a large company involves not just managing it, but also changing it. One of the biggest challenges is not in running the company, but in changing it. This involves determining what should endure and what needs to change, and then changing how work gets done. It requires reducing bureaucratic layers, increasing speed and autonomy, and embracing new ways of working like agile. It also involves making hard and often unpopular decisions, sacrificing short-term comfort for long-term growth, and managing tension between different stakeholders. Overall, the challenge is to balance the need for change with the need for stability and to navigate the complexities of a large organization.
The Importance of Diversity and Inclusion
Diversity and inclusion are not just buzzwords, but fundamental elements of good power and leadership. Diversity means valuing different perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences. It goes beyond surface-level characteristics and includes diversity of thought, background, struggle, and motivation. Diversity brings different views, better solutions, and a more enriched life. Inclusivity is about creating a culture and environment where everyone feels valued, respected, and empowered to contribute. It involves actively seeking out diversity, creating opportunities for all, and making choices that consider the needs of a variety of stakeholders. Diversity and inclusion are critical for driving positive change and achieving meaningful outcomes.
Resisting the Corrupting Influence of Power
Power can be a double-edged sword, and there is always a risk of it corrupting one's thinking. To resist this influence, it is important to surround oneself with people who will hold the mirror up and provide honest feedback. Transparency, humility, and a willingness to learn are crucial in maintaining a healthy balance of power. It is also essential to focus on serving others, being in service of something greater than oneself, and embracing diversity and different viewpoints. By staying grounded and constantly learning, leaders can resist the negative influences of power and make choices that drive positive change.
The Importance of Reinvention
Gini Rometty discusses the significance of reinvention for IBM, explaining how the company had to evolve and adapt to survive. She emphasizes the need to embrace change and reinvent oneself to stay relevant in a rapidly changing world.
The Journey to Hybrid Cloud
Rometty shares the challenges IBM faced in finding its place in the cloud computing market. She mentions the acquisition of Red Hat as a pivotal moment that led IBM to focus on hybrid cloud solutions. By recognizing the limitations of public cloud and the importance of mission-critical work, IBM found a way to blend traditional and cloud-based technologies.
Reflections on Leadership and Perseverance
Rometty reflects on her experiences as a leader and the importance of perseverance. She discusses the imposter syndrome and the need to overcome self-doubt. Rometty believes in staying true to oneself, being confident in one's decisions, and embracing challenges with conviction.
Ethics and Transparency in AI
Rometty emphasizes the importance of ethics and transparency in the development and use of AI. She advocates for open sourcing and transparency to build trust in AI technologies. Rometty shares her belief that AI can improve decision-making but acknowledges the challenges of trust, human biases, and responsible deployment.
OUTLINE:
Here’s the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time.
(00:00) – Introduction
(05:22) – IBM
(15:02) – Hiring
(20:19) – Leadership
(27:02) – Hard work
(32:43) – Adversity
(39:41) – Power
(53:07) – Sacrifice
(58:13) – Taking over as CEO
(1:16:27) – Negotiating
(1:21:34) – Deep Blue vs Garry Kasparov
(1:26:52) – IBM Watson
(1:46:45) – Work-life balance
(1:53:49) – Advice for young people
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