Welch is gone from GE. Now the only thing, more or less, we hear about American business leadership (save for miscreants) is the daily tales of Welch Junior, Jeff Immelt.
GE is of interest. They do a lot of things right—I talk about them with borderline reverence, I must admit.
But, for instance, what about: FRED SMITH. FedEx has grown to be a $30 billion company. Their service is still good. They innovate left and right. And contrary to my dearly held beliefs, they have masterfully integrated major acquisitions such as Flying Tigers, Roadway Express and, more recently, Kinko’s. And, without doubt, they have re-invented logistics for the entire world, including the likes of the military—such a monumental “disruptive” innovation hasn’t occurred at GE in decades.
But, for instance, what about: the late SHEIK MAKTUM and, today, his successor SHEIK MOHAMMED. They are the current and immediately past rulers of Dubai. Short on oil, with matchless vision and energy they have built, more or less overnight, one of the world’s great cities-hubs of global commerce. (One trivial illustration: Dubai’s Emirates Air has placed the largest order so far for the monster Airbus 380.) The Dubai tale, to my mind, far outshines the Singapore story—and, again, GE.
Though I think Big Companies dominate the news far more than they should, among the giants there are giant success stories. I simply can’t remember the last time I saw Fred Smith on a major magazine cover; and I don’t think I’ve ever seen Sheik Mohammed on a Big Mag cover. Surely they and a host of others are worthy of our acclaim and perhaps emulation.
GE? Who they?