Gretchen Robinson (born 1935) is an American businesswoman, who was director of capital formation-business development at IBM from 1982 until her retirement in 1998. She was responsible for the company’s financing and acquisition activity.

In May 1982, Robinson became director of capital formation-business development at IBM. In this position she managed all of the company’s financing and acquisition activity, including investments in equipment manufacturers outside of the computer industry as well as in other computer manufacturers such as Apple Computer and Tandy Corporation Partnerships with overseas companies were also facilitated by her efforts.

In her twenty years with IBM, Robinson led 5 acquisitions valued at more than $350 million that helped establish trade relations between American companies and foreign firms in China. Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation, an American corporation that held a majority ownership of the Roosevelt Hotel, was purchased by IBM in 1983. In 1984, Robinson helped negotiate a deal between Italy’s Olivetti and IBM to establish an Italian-American partnership. She also helped facilitate the sale of Italian computer maker Olivetti to Siemens AG in 1989.

The company acquired Japanese calculator maker Busicom in 1992 for $125 million. In 1993, Robinson worked on arranging a joint venture between IBM and Singapore Technologies Engineering Corporation – Singapore’s largest engineering firm – that sought to develop software applications for use by government agencies. The following year, IBM took over Ryo Computer Corporation in Japan from Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation, which was originally 51% owned by IBM, was sold to a private equity group in 1996.

Robinson retired from IBM in 1998. She received several humanitarian awards from International Business Machines Corporation and the American Association of Business Women for her efforts on behalf of women in corporate employment and for her work on behalf of children worldwide. In 2011, the International Center for Women and Enterprise awarded Robinson the 2003 Woman of Distinction Award as she was recognized as one of five “executives who have shaped modern international business through entrepreneurial leadership while women have played an essential role.

Gretchen Robinson is married to Dr. Joseph A. Robinson, an associate professor of medicine at the Weill Cornell School of Medicine, and has daughters Rebecca Robinson, Susan Robinson and Kate Robinson.

Robinson is a director of the UJA Federation, the American Society for Clinical Investigation, a trustee of the Asia Society and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. In addition to serving as President of The Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation in New York City from 1990-1996, she has also served as President of Friends of Roosevelt Island in that time period.