"Food Fights" and "Free-for-alls"
When's the last time you heard that a meeting of the to 30 officers of a company being called "food fights" or "free-for-alls?" Those are some of the words used to describe the quarterly sessions that General Electric (GE) had under Welch's reign.
At these Corportate Executive Council meetings, that's exactly what happened. They were the opposite of the common, staged events that usually result in nothing happening or stifled yawns.
With nothing being considered sacred, and that attitude starting with Welch himself, it was an explosive atmosphere where the barriers were leveled and unfiltered information flowed between everybody. Not only was Welch tested, but he used these to test his top people and to ensure that information was openly shared by everybody.
Welch said about them that "I may be kidding myself, but going to a CEC meeting f
or me is like going to a fraternity party and hanging around friends."
That was the bottom line. It was robust, challenging, open, transparent, feisty, disrespectful (healthily), raucous and lively. What happened hear permeated the whole company.
You weren't only in a room full of fellow managers, you were in a room full of different businesses, which these managers represented. The atmosphere was electric as idea after idea flowed and new businesses, products and services came out of the explosive, dynamic interactions between the 30 leaders.
This goes far beyond technology and techniques ... this was a friendly street fight - a neighborhood bash.
To create an atmosphere like that in a company like GE takes a lot of guts, determination and understanding of what any company - no matter what size - really needs to succeed and compete. This was the true core of the company and its success as it was the foundation upon which the rest of the company was built off of.
Other Jack Welch Resources:
Jack Welch's advice to MIT Sloan students
Sponsored link: The outsourcing every manager requires - Tampa Locksmith
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