Winning by Jack Welch

Essay by serif76University, Master'sA+, October 2007

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Every Day There Is A New Question"Winning" is written by Jack Welch and, whether you love him or hate him, the guy has real experience in running a large corporation successfully. This is unlike so many other authors who can be somewhat academic. Welch began his career with the General Electric Company in 1960, and in 1981 became the company's eighth chairman and CEO. During his tenure, GE's market capitalization increased by $400 billion, making it the world's most valuable corporation. Jack retired in 2001 and he is currently the head of Jack Welch, LLC, where he serves as an advisor to a small group of Fortune 500 CEOs and speaks to businesspeople and students around the world.

Overall, "Winning" stresses being positive at many levels, causing companies and individuals to thrive and grow, creating jobs and more opportunities for everyone.. It covers the broad expanse of Jack's business experience.

He devotes chapters to everything from mission statements to work-life balance. Jack claims that he set out to write this book to answer the repeated questions he gets at Q&A sessions around the world. This results in a tome that is timely, well-informed and relevant. Because of the scope of this book, I will try to focus on the sections that I found most relevant to leadership.

MissionAccording to Jack Welch, the words "mission and values" are among the most abstract, overused, and misunderstood terms in business today. However, they are also the most important. In his view, a good mission statement and supporting set of values must never come across as wishy-washy or too academic. He believes they have to be "so real they smack you in the face with their concreteness." Your mission statement needs to announce exactly where you are going. There should be no...