Jeffrey Immelt
CHAIRMAN AND CEO, GENERAL ELECTRIC
By David Wurth
Photo by Steven Vote
Getting personal...
Favorite travel destination?
Connecticut. It means I’m home.
How do you stay fit?
StairMaster. It keeps me in my old, football-playing condition, for when I have to negotiate a lighting deal with Jerry Jones.
#1 management tip?
Don’t be afraid to fail. But fail boldly, quickly, and learn from it. If you don’t, your next time may be your last.
How many days of business travel in 2009?
Let’s just say my passport has more pages than the Delhi phonebook and more stamps than the U.S. Postal Service.
The Original Dow 12
On May 26, 1896, Charles Dow founded the Dow Jones Industrial Index which reflected the Dow average of 12 stocks from leading American industries.Out of the 12 stocks that made up the Index, the only company still a member is General Electric.
Then and Now
- American Cotton Oil Company Unilever
- American Sugar Company
Domino Foods, Inc.
- American Tobacco Company
broken up in a 1911 antitrust action
- Chicago Gas Company
Integrys Energy Group
- Distilling & Cattle Feeding Company Millennium Chemicals
- Laclede Gas Company
Laclede Group, Inc.
- National Lead Company
NL Industries
- North American Company an electric utility holding company, broken up by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in 1946
- Tennessee Coal
Iron and Railroad Company, bought by U.S. Steel in 1907
- U.S. Leather Company
dissolved in 1952
- United States Rubber Company bought by Michelin in 1990
GE turned their lights on in 1878.
Some facts and figures:
Ticker Symbol GE (NYSE)
Headquarters Fairfield, CT
Founded in 1878
Founded by Thomas Edison, Elihu Thomson, and Edwin J. Houston
2009 Revenues $156.78b
2009 Market Cap $160.49b
2009 Ranking on the Fortune 500 6
2009 Charitable Contributions
The entire GE family — including businesses, employees, retirees, and GE Foundation — contributed more than an estimated $220 million to community and educational programs, including more than $100 million from the GE Foundation.
For more than 130 years, General Electric has welcomed some of the world’s toughest challenges, from the first light bulb to the first flight, to landing man on the moon. Not a spectator, but rather a participant in more than a century of history, the continuous thread that binds their leadership is the desire to meet and improve some of the world’s toughest challenges.
Today, led by Chairman and CEO Jeffrey R. Immelt, GE has been recognized by Fortune Magazine as “America’s Most Admired Company” in polls conducted by Barron’s and The Financial Times.
Taking his role as an American leader seriously, Immelt recently took an aggressive stance, announcing the donation on behalf of GE, of $10 million toward a two-year program celebrating President Reagan’s 100th birthday appropriately called the Ronald Reagan Centennial Celebration. Additionally, another $5 million will go to a GE-backed, four-year scholarship program designed to assist leadership programs run by the Foundation for students.
In a recent interview with CSQ Magazine, Mr. Immelt spoke about GE’s relationship with President Reagan, as well as some of his views about leadership of one of the world’s most important companies.
On the partnership with the Reagan Foundation
Why did you decide to partner with the Ronald Reagan Centennial Celebration?
President Reagan said that the second most important 8-year job he ever had were the years that he was GE’s spokesman. During his time as spokesman, he visited all our factories and met our employees. At the end of every meeting he would say our company slogan, at the time, “Progress is our most important product.” That remains true today. So we were a natural fit to partner with the Foundation, given our affinity with President Reagan over the last 50 years.
How does the Reagan Foundation as a cause or philanthropy rank among some of your other partnerships – such as the Olympics?
The Reagan Foundation sponsorship is a unique opportunity to align our brand with a person. This is different from our broader sponsorships such as the Olympics. It allows us to highlight the human stories of the lives President Reagan touched as GE’s spokesman and therefore allows us to highlight the values of optimism and progress.
I’ve noticed your sponsorship of the Reagan Centennial will last more than a year, through the end of 2011. What are some of the events or initiatives you have planned to highlight the history of GE’s relationship with President Reagan during that time?
We are very excited about our upcoming plans to host meetings in cities around the country with Reagan administration alumni and Reagan historians to discuss how progress and optimism can lead to universal change as well as what we can learn about leadership and communications from President Reagan’s days in office and days at GE.
On GE
What was the best decision you’ve made at GE? Why?
I had been CEO of GE for three days when the September 11th attacks took place. I was responsible for 300,000 employees, their families, our retirees and our shareowners. Standing still – while the easiest thing to do – just was not an option, for our company or our country. On September 12th, we dug down and fought through the anguish, kept the assembly lines running when many had gone silent, invested and innovated when every instinct was to stop. I like to think that, in some small way, these tough decisions helped some people through one of the toughest times our country has ever known. I do know that they made our company what it is today: better, stronger, tougher – and prouder than ever to be headquartered in the United States.
What would you say is the biggest challenge that you face today and how will you overcome it?
We are emerging right now from one of the toughest challenges seen in 100 years. But over the last three decades, GE has earned $265 billion in profit and generated about $300 billion of cash. We are very confident in our future.
There is always talk of having a work/life balance, and running a $200 billion dollar company can be demanding at times, to say the least. How do you find time to spend life with your friends and family?
Simple: I don’t have any hobbies. I am either running GE or with my family -- and they run me.
You are one of the most revered CEOs in the world. What is the best advice you’ve ever received to help you through tough times?
Always listen. Always try to learn. Always try to improve. Stay humble. Make those around you better. Appreciate your responsibility to perform with integrity and to make things better. Just a few lessons I learned from Ronald Reagan.
What is next for Jeffrey Immelt?
Continuing to grow GE – for our customers, our employees, our shareowners and our country. Then off to a movie with my wife and daughter. Probably a comedy from NBC Universal – we could all use a laugh about now, right?
A Toast to
America’s Mayor
By Claude Ruibal
Chairman, Universal Sports
Mayor Rudy Giuliani is truly “America’s Mayor.” After spending an evening seated beside him at a dinner at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in February, I can attest this appellation is true.
We were both guests of Mrs. Reagan. The former First Lady was as lovely as ever as she honored Jeff Immelt for his gift to the Reagan Foundation on GE’s behalf. Of course she was. We were in her home. The impressively decorated “private quarters” of the Reagan Library, normally closed to the public, were matched only by the caliber of guests in the room, T. Boone Pickens, George Schultz, John Herrington, Ted Olson, and Ted Craver to name just a few.
Near the end of the evening, as toasts were being exchanged, Mayor Giuliani rose and surprised us all. He was spellbinding as he told the story of how, on September 12, 2001, Jeff Immelt offered GE’s help. Jeff had been CEO of GE for only four days. Immediately Jeff offered a pledge of support that included generators to light ongoing ground zero rescue attempts and a generous donation to the families of fallen New York City police and fire departments. At the end, Mayor Giuliani leaned over to me and whispered, “I never really got a chance to thank him for that.” It was quite a thank you and tribute.
Like a true leader, Mayor Giuliani not only raised his glass but lifted our spirits.
Nancy Reagan hosts a dinner at the Reagan Library in honor of Jeff Immelt to thank GE
for a $15 Million charitable gift
First Lady Nancy Reagan and Jeff Immelt, Chairman and CEO of GE Looking through a photo album of GE Theater stills donated by GE. Photo by Cliff David, Freeze Frame
Trustee of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation Brad Freeman, Chairman and CEO a GE Jeff Immelt, Reagan Trustee T. Boone Pickens, Madeleine Pickens In the Private Quarters at the Reagan Library. Photo by Cliff David, Freeze Frame
From right to left: First Lady Nancy Reagan, Secretary George Shultz (former Secretary of State), Jeff Immelt (Chairman and CEO, GE), and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Visiting in Mrs. Reagan’s Private Quarters at the Reagan Library.Photo by Cliff David, Freeze Frame
