Group-3

Kavita Patil
Risha Agrawal
Hrangbung Darthang Anal
Neha Sheenam GE’s Talent Machine: The Making
Monica Syal of CEO
Krishnakant Sarda Maheshwari
Mansi Agrawal
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About GE
– Founded by Thomas Edison in 1878
– GE promotes top leaders from its own
– Executive development practices made by CHARLES COFFIN, the CEO
– Coffins commitment towards measuring a performance.
– Observer called it GE “a CEO factory”
– In 2003 fortune magazine article named him (coffin) “the greatest CEO of all
time”
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Case Facts Contd..
– GE use human capital as a competitive advantage
– Continues improvements in the training and development of staff
– GE maintain being a revolutionary organisation; by hiring from within GE and
always looking out for new management talent
– Well defined succession management process which puts performing
employees in lower management positions, in a variety of industries
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Why Succession Planning?
– Works on proven leadership model
– Lesser risk because the person is familiar with culture
– Smooth business continuity
– High acceptability and high morale from staff
– Encourages ‘Hiring From Within’
– Better relation between top management and employees
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Major Actors

Jeff Immelt (CEO , 2001)

Key focus areas included
─ Technological leadership
─ Services Acceleration
─ Enduring customer relationships
─ Resource allocation
─ Globalization
─ Layoffs
─ Restructuring
─ Focused on ‘ Customer Centric’
─ Investment in R&D, growth with innovation in slow economic growth
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Jack Welch (CEO , 1981)
─ Immense restructuring by elimination of over 1 Lakh jobs
─ Vitality curve starts now: Reward scheme also changes
─ Special emphasis laid on the GE value system and managers who
didn’t adhere to the values were let gone
─ Letting go of the CEO candidates who couldn’t make it to the post to
avoid conflicts
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Fred Borsh, 1963

– Identified “Talent” as a general resource and not something that’s department specific:
“Hoarding” reduction.
– Created EMS( Executive Manpower Staff) and focused on PLs 13 to 27
– Introduced the participation of EMS in Session C

Ralph Cordiner 1950

– Implemented decentralization at a crucial juncture in the course of diversification, that
eased strains imposed on GE
– Introduction of Session C
– Created a succession plan for managers, helped identify successors in each level
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Welch Vs Immelt

– Welch [ Type – Charismatic ]

– Money Making
– Short term goals
– Job rotation

– Immelt [ Type – Natural leadrer ]

– Customer Centeric
– Retain Managers to make them specialist
– Long term goals
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Challenges

─ Will GE be able to sustain the success (after Welsch)

─ Minimizing the disturbance during the transition from one CEO to
other
─ Transforming the strategies followed to adapt itself to the changes in
external environment
─ Retaining and promoting non US managers
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Recommendations

– Making the rankings more flexible would allow 'B' Players to feel valued thus reducing
de-motivation and increasing output.
– Immelt should consider expanding the top level or introducing an additional band of
classification so that 'A' Players are differentiated from 'B' Players.
– GE should also consider a system of reward to all individuals' achievement of the
business; this will make majority of employees feel more rewarded for their efforts
and also increase retention.
– Immelt should focus on more international recruitment targeting the likes of Europe
and Asia. Since 40% of GE's revenues are generated offshore
– GE's should think consider adapting to provide employees with psychological reward
and also acknowledgment in these areas of cultural variation.
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Thank You