Thank You Mr. Immelt

When the headlined flashed on my screen this morning that Jeff Immelt was stepping down as GE’s CEO, two emotions swept over me. The first was sadness because I knew that most articles written today about Jeff would describe him as “Jack Welch’s successor” who “dismantled” much of what Jack built. This implicit comparison does a disservice to both men because, despite many differences, Jack and Jeff share a common zealotry that has empowered GE to thrive, adapt, and survive across an extraordinary period of history—an unwavering commitment to leadership development.

Jack and Jeff served 20 and 16 years respectively as CEO (versus an average of 5+ for their peers). During that period, the economy and GE’s markets experienced tectonic shocks such as:

• Financial upheaval including the LatAM sovereign debt crisis, S&L crisis, 1987 stock market crash, the junk bond crash, the Tequila crisis, and the Asia crisis and the global financial crisis;
• Five recessions including the great recession and third worst recession in our history;
• A new form of violent conflict including 9/11 and multiple wars in the middle east; and,
• Economic transformation starting with the rise of the internet, through the dotcom bubble burst, to today's wave of digitization. 

Through all of this disruption, Jack and Jeff used leadership development to drive GE forward. They believed that everyone could lead regardless of role. They believed that leadership development would differentiate GE from their competitors and create the institutional agility to weather crisis and transformation. And I believe their greatest gift to the professional world was evangelizing globally the importance of people and leadership. Some of the practices they adopted now emulated by thousands of other organizations because of their evangelism include:

1. Investing outsized time and resources in their Crotonville-based corporate university;
2. Increasing the prominence of talent management by making the Chief Human Resources Officer a trusted advisor and direct report;
3. Distributing equity broadly so that employees at all levels of GE feel like winners when GE succeeds;
4. Committing disproportionate personal time in performance reviews and leadership development;
5. Constantly averaging up their leadership talent by managing out the 10% with the lowest potential; and,
6. Elevating succession planning through public visibility of Jeff’s selection (including his skip-level promotion).

While never flawless, I’m confident that these efforts created huge value because I’ve had the privilege of working with many GE leaders and heard their stories. Keith Sherin, who later became CEO of GE Capital, once told me his colleagues at GE were so accomplished that he could spend all of his time doing nothing but learning from them and he wouldn’t exhaust what they had to teach. Another leader once shared with me that the CEO invested two days every year with him focused on his development — at the end of day one he would feel unworthy to lead, but by the end of day two he was inspired to take conquer the world.

Jeff’s critics will argue that Jack implemented these practice. Much of it did start with Jack, but Jeff played a significant role in their development, and has extended them and improved them across his tenure. Moreover, Jeff’s commitment has been in the face of much more difficult economic times. At many companies, leadership development is the first casualty at a company looking to streamline, but Jeff hasn't waiver.

Jack’s critics will say that “neutron Jack’s” downsizing and “performance bell curve” prove that he doesn't really care about people. Having spent some time with Jack, I know that he ardently believes in the value of people and creating an environment where they can thrive. That means though that GE can't be a home to everyone.

All that brings me to the second emotion that struck me when I read the headline — gratitude. My life and career have benefited tremendously from the zealotry that Jack and Jeff have role modeled around leadership development. I’ve worked for organizations that have embraced their vision and invested in my professional development. Today, I have the privilege to work at a company that believes as fervently as they do in the paramount importance of leadership in an extremely challenging world. For that, I am grateful to Jack and Jeff and wish Jeff a retirement that reflects how much better I and millions of other leaders perform today because of his insights and commitment.

Thank you Mr. Immelt.