Welch: An American Icon

A rare perspective on the personal philosophy, business savvy, and future of the chairman of the most admired company in the world Jack Welch, chairman of General Electric, is due to retire this spring. Welch has transported GE into the new economy with his management style, his forward-thinking approach to new technology, and by encouraging creativity among his employees. This book provides a look at what the innovative powerhouse executive has brought to American business and what will ultimately be his legacy. Thorough, authoritative, and absorbing, Welch: An American Icon includes interviews with CEOs at other leading companies who have worked under Welch and been trained by him, as well as interviews with other GE executives. Janet Lowe (Del Mar, CA) is an investment writer and author who has written sixteen business and biographical works, including the recent Damn Right!: Behind the Scenes with Berkshire-Hathaway Billionaire Charlie Munger (0-471-24473-2). Ms. Lowe is past editor of the San Diego Daily Transcript and Financial Editor of the San Diego Tribune. More than 200 of her business articles have appeared in such publications as Newsweek, the Christian Science Monitor, Los Angeles Times, and the San Francisco Chronicle.

JANET LOWE is the bestselling author of several business books including Damn Right!: Behind the Scenes with Berkshire Hathaway Billionaire Charlie Munger (Wiley) and Value Investing Made Easy. Formerly the financial editor of the San Diego Tribune, she has written more than 200 business articles for such publications as Newsweek, the Christian Science Monitor, and the Los Angeles Times.

“Readable insights into one of the most admired, and exposed, corporate leaders of recent decades.” (Long Range Planning, June 2004)

Preface.

Acknowledgments.

PART I: THE JACK WELCH LEGACY.

The House of Magic: How Welch Became an American Icon.

The Gospel of Good Management.

PART II: GENERAL ELECTRIC THEN AND NOW.

The Companies General Electric Dumped.

The Companies General Electric Acquired.

Building from Within.

The Globalization of General Electric.

Wired Welch.

The Dark Side of the Legacy.

PART III: THE FUTURE.

The Meta-Corporation: General Electric after Welch.

Welch after General Electric.

Welch's Place in History.

Appendix A: General Electric and Jack Welch: The Chronology.

Appendix B: GE Values.

Appendix C: The CERES Principles.

Appendix D: General Electric Businesses.

Appendix E: General Electric--Nineteen-Year Performance Figures: 1980--1999.

Notes.

Index.