Leaderships Secrets employed by General Electric’s eighth chairman, Mr Jack Welch, in his two-decade journey to change the destiny of one of the world’s great corporations.
Excerpts from The Welch Way, The Employee Handbook for Enhancing Corporate Performance, by Jeffrey A. Krames. Lead
- - Articulate a vision, and spark others to execute it.
- - Don’t manage every excruciating detail.
- - Involve everyone and welcome great ideas from everywhere.
Get Less Formal
- - Brainstorm with colleagues and bosses
- - Hold more informal meetings
- - Consider a once-in-a-while informal get together
Blow up bureaucracy
- - Drop unnecessary work
- - Work with colleagues to streamline decision making
- - Make your workplace more informal
Face reality
- - Look at things with a fresh eye
- - Don’t fall into the ‘false scenarios’ trap.
- - Leave yourself with several options
Simplify
- - Simplify the workplace.
- - Make meetings simpler.
- - Eliminate complicated memos and letters.
See change as an opportunity
- - Know that change is here to stay.
- - Expect the least expected, but move quickly to stay a step ahead.
- - Prepare those around you for the inevitable change that will affect their lives.
Lead by energizing others
- - Never lead by intimidation.
- - Let others know exactly how their efforts are helping the organization.
- - Send handwritten thank-you notes to colleagues and customers.
Defy tradition
- - Hold a “why do we do it that way?” meeting.
- - Invite colleagues from your department to contribute one idea on changing something important at the company.
- - Don’t be afraid to buck conventional wisdom.
Make intellect rule
- - Spend an hour per week learning what competitors are doing.
- - Offer a reward for the best idea.
- - Work for organizations committed to training and learning.
Pounce every day
- - Live urgency
- - Make decisions faster
- - Work harder
Put values first
- - Don’t harp on numbers.
- - Lead by example.
- - Let values rule.
Manage less
- - Don’t get bogged down in meaningless details.
- - Manage less
- - Empower, delegate, get out of the way.
Involve everyone
- - Participate more
- - Make sure everyone feels free to speak out.
- - Suggest an informal brainstorming session.
Rewrite your agenda
- - Do not plan years ahead.
- - Develop alternative plans and options.
- - Expect the unexpected.
Live speed
- - Don’t “sit” on decisions.
- - Communicate faster.
- - Incorporate speed into every activity/process.
Instill confidence
- - Let people know that you value their ideas.
- - Simplify the workplace.
- - Focus on training.
Set stretch goals
- - Reach for the unreachable.
- - Forget decimal points.
- - Don’t punish yourself – or anyone else – for falling short of a stretch goal.
Eliminate the boundaries
- - Seek out new ideas from everyone.
- - Be sure to look outside the company for good ideas.
- - Never stop eliminating boundaries.
Articulate a vision
- - Write down the vision.
- - Avoid the minutiae.
- - Hire and promote those most capable of turning visions into reality.
Get good ideas from everywhere
- - Don’t think you or your company have all the answers.
- - Study competitors.
- - Make sure everyone around you knows that you are interested in all ideas, regardless of where they come from.
Spark others to perform
- - Never bully or intimidate.
- - Make sure to use all the intellect.
- - Make sure everyone knows that the best idea wins.
Quality is your job
- - Take great pride in your work.
- - Seek out quality training
- - Never think that quality is someone else’s job.
Change never ends
- - Face reality and know that change is here for good.
- - Suggest an informal “change meeting”.
- - Think short-term and long-term change.
Have fun
- - Make informality a way of life
- - Find a job that challenges you.
- - Don’t stay in the same job forever. That was an excellent read and hope the senior management shall benefit in an umpteen way from this read. Meera
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