Inventories were trimmed, bureaucracies dismantled, and inefficiencies attacked with a vengeance.
This is a testimony to a great business leader that had to make a decision to do the hard things to not only make the company survive, but thrive in the new economy.
Welch knew the difficulties ahead for American companies, particularly General Electric (GE), which competed in areas that were quickly becoming global arenas.
What makes a great leader of any kind, and a business leader specifically, is the willingness to make the tough decision which over the long haul, are best for a company.
Those that attempt to passify people and not deal with the reality that there will be some short-term pain, are those that are dangerous to a company, in that they are trying to be popular rather than do what's right.
Probably to the day he dies, and even afterwards, Welch will have the label "Neutron Jack" applied to him. I don't think he cares, but more importantly, he did with the company that which makes it one of the great businesses in the world today. If he hadn't done it, General Electric would be one of those mediocre "old" companies barely getting along and forgotten about in the world.
Over the long-term, and after his death, he'll still be considered one of the great managers in business history. He saw clearly what was company and made the tough decisions to prepare the company for the future that was rapidly coming upon them. It worked!
Other Jack Welch Resources:
Jack Welch's advice to MIT Sloan students
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» Business Slowing Down? Not for General Electric from ManagersRealm
One of the key, former business leaders we talk about here at managersrealm is Jack Welch. Even last post on Welch we talked about how he prepared General Electric (GE) for the global economy he saw emerging, and spent his... [Read More]
Tracked on: October 29, 2007 8:41 PM | Permalink to Trackback