Jack Welch example essay topic
Few have personified corporate leadership more dramatically. Fewer still have so consistently delivered on the results of that leadership. For 17 years, while big companies and their chieftains have come and gone, Welch has led GE to one revenue and earnings record after another. What can be inferred from this case study is the fact that Jack Welch does it through sheer force of personality, coupled with an unbridled passion for winning the game of business and a keen attention to details many chieftains would simply overlook. He does it because he encourages near-brutal candor in the meetings he holds to guide the company through each work year.
And he does it because, above all else, he's a fierce believer in the power of his people. Welch likes to call GE the "grocery store". The metaphor, however quirky for such a large firm, allows Welch to mentally roll up his sleeves, slip into an apron, and get behind the counter. There, he can get to know every employee and serve every customer.
After being extremely skeptical of quality programs, what's going on at GE now is Six Sigma. Jack Welch felt that quality programs were too heavy on slogans and to short on results. Yet, Six Sigma is different. A Six Sigma quality level in a company like GE can save a company a great deal of money. The program is being utilized and doing extremely well for GE.
In the end, after 2 1/2 years, Welch will lose that kick when he steps down as chairman and CEO of General Electric after nearly 20 years at the top, as he reaches the mandatory retirement age of 65. No one, not even Welch, knows who his successor will be. Nonetheless, Welch's leadership style has become so embedded in the organization that even his retirement is unlikely to erode his impact.