by Thomas Gryta
First published 2020
General Electric once stood as America's most valuable corporation, a symbol of industrial might that powered the nation from lightbulbs to massive turbines. For over a century, GE represented job security and solid investment returns. Under Jack Welch's two-decade reign, the company reached unprecedented heights. Then came Jeff Immelt, Welch's chosen successor, who inherited a profit machine with hidden flaws. Wall Street Journal reporters Thomas Gryta and his colleague trace Immelt's attempts to repair Welch's legacy while making critical errors of his own. The company's aggressive, win-at-all-costs culture began losing direction. Personal ambitions clashed with organizational needs. Strategic missteps compounded. The reporters reveal how management decisions, cultural shifts, and market forces combined to bring down an American icon. This account shows how GE transformed from a cornerstone of American business into a warning about corporate overreach and mismanagement.
Genres: history, business, american, economics, non-fiction, 21st-century, american-history
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: corporate-downfall, organizational-decline
Setting: America
Period: 20th-century, 21st-century
368 pages · Hardcover · Houghton Mifflin Harcourt