General Electric Company (GE) was a major conglomerate and one of the biggest

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Principles and Practice of Managementinfo_at_casestu
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• Principles and Practice of Management
•  
• Case (20 Marks)
• General Electric Company (GE) was a major
  conglomerate and one of the biggest companies in
  the world. One of the factors that was believed
  to be responsible for the company's steady growth
  for more than a century was its tradition of
  stable and long term leadership. One of the most
  successful phases in GE's history began when Jack
  Welch became its CEO in 1981. Welch attempted to
  make GE one of the top companies in every segment
  in which it operated. He also supervised several
  acquisitions that added value to the business
  portfolio and was instrumental in creating a
  performance oriented culture at the company.
  Welch retired in 2001 after 20 years at the helm.

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• He was succeeded by Jeffrey Immelt, who was
  chosen by GE's board after a long and careful
  succession planning activity supervised by Welch
  himself. In September 2001, Jeffrey Immelt
  (Immelt) became the Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
  of the General Electric Company (GE). He
  succeeded Jack Welch (Welch), who was
  acknowledged as one of the most successful CEOs
  in business history for his management of GE in
  the twenty years he headed the company (1981 to
  2001). Welch studied chemical engineering at the
  University of Massachusetts, from where he
  graduated in 1957.

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• He then moved to the University of Illinois,
  where he received his Masters and PhD in chemical
  engineering. Welch joined GE in 1960 as a junior
  engineer. After a year, Welch wanted to leave the
  company, unhappy with the bureaucratic culture of
  the company, but was convinced by his superior to
  stay back... This case discusses the strategic
  and cultural changes at GE as a result of the
  change in leadership. It compares GE's strategy
  and operations under Welch, with those under
  Immelt. It also talks about the changes in the
  company's culture under Immelt. The case
  concludes with a discussion on the challenges
  facing Immelt, as of mid-2006.

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• Answer the following question.
•  
• Q1. Discuss the relationship between leadership
  and growth in large and diversified companies.
•  
• Q2. Debate the effects of a change in leadership
  on company strategy and culture.
•  
• Q3. Compare the leadership styles of two leaders
  in the above case.
•  
• Q4. Analyze the effectiveness of their individual
  styles.
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