17-12-2012, 06:00 PM
29 Leadership Secrets from Jack Welch
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HARNESS THE POWER OF CHANGE
Is there a secret formula for succeeding in business? Probably
not. But it makes sense to study a master—the man widely
regarded as the ablest business leader of the modern era. And
that person is Jack Welch, the recently retired CEO and chairman
of General Electric.
“Perhaps the most admired CEO of his generation,” Fortune
magazine said of Welch in its May 1, 2000, edition.
How did Welch earn this kind of praise?
BRINGING IN BIG NUMBERS
When he took over at General Electric in 1981, the company
had sales of “only” $25 billion. In 1999, GE’s sales reached nearly
$112 billion. Its profits in 1981 were $1.5 billion; Welch grew
the bottom line to nearly $11 billion in 1999.
Welch wasn’t just “doing something right.” To hit those kinds
of numbers, he did many things right. He had great ideas, and
he implemented them.
In the balance of this book, we spell out those ideas in detail.
Yes, Welch led a huge enterprise with 340,000 employees, but we
believe that his ideas can be put to work in organizations of all
sizes.
Of all of Jack Welch’s ideas, none carries more weight than
this: Change, before it’s too late!
Change is easy, right? The boss makes a decision, and employees
implement it—right?
If you’re in business, you know that change almost never
works like that. In fact, it can be the most difficult thing in the
world. Welch understood this fact, and yet he pushed for change
almost from the minute he took over at GE in the spring of
1981.
CHANGE WAS EVERYWHERE
Change was rampant in the early 1980s. Inflation was raging,
and global competitors were capturing unprecedented market
shares.
MAKE EACH DAY YOUR FIRST DAY ON THE JOB
Welch loved to tell GE executives to start their day as if it were
their first day on the job.
In other words, always think fresh thoughts. Make it a habit
to think about your business. Don’t rest on your laurels.
Make whatever changes are necessary to improve things. Reexamine
your agenda, and rewrite what needs to be rewritten.
To many both inside and outside the company, it appeared
that Welch could have left well enough alone. After all, GE was
a model corporation, right?