“The only way people learn is through stories and being vulnerable,” Ginni Rometty, IBM's former CEO, told Fortune’s Michal Lev-Ram at Fortune’s Most Powerful Women Next Gen conference in San Diego on Wednesday. “I've been raised by strong women. My great grandma was the last person in her family to leave Belarus. She never spoke English. She would clean bathrooms during the night shift, and put every dime she made into U.S. savings bonds.”
Rometty’s grandma—twice widowed—hand-made lampshades to make ends meet. Then, her father left her mother penniless. She’d never worked a day outside her home, or had a traditional job. But she managed to get a little bit of education, land an hourly job, and provide for the family via food stamps and government assistance. Watching those three generations of women struggle to succeed set the tone for the leadership Rometty has brought to IBM. She pointed to three main lessons.
