Jack Welch CaseEssay Preview: Jack Welch Case1 rating(s)Report this essayWelch practices a hard-nosed management style. How can such a no-nonsense approach create a motivational atmosphere? Does Jack Welch use negative reinforcement, goal setting, or behavioral self-management? Or does he use a combination of techniques?
Jack Welch has gained the reputation of one of the best CEOs in the nation. His style might have seemed quite rigorous, but he managed to motivate his employees very well and made GE highly competitive in the global market. Jack Welch created a motivational atmosphere by encouraging employees to eliminate those aspects of their jobs that were unproductive and thus, unnecessary. By flattening the organization and by removing unnecessary layers of bureaucracy, Welch liberated employees and empowered them to make decisions that affect their jobs, as well as the company as a whole. By empowering people, an organization gives employees the ultimate responsibility for their own work. If they share the companys goals, they do not need much supervision. Cost will be reduced and layers of management will become unnecessary.
The Bottom Line: Jack Welch and GE is a very innovative business. The company made an innovative decision today to focus all of its energy on a small team of employees and to focus this away from its CEO.
A Simple Process: The CEO should use his new “truly entrepreneurial style” as a model for other big companies to follow. A company can not only offer its employees a better understanding and ability to manage their work, but also an understanding of its own future needs and priorities, particularly how to manage and deliver on its promise of an expanded workforce in the coming year or so. This knowledge can be used to develop or implement innovative strategies and business practices that can transform the value of the company at all levels. Employees could share in a better understanding, skills, and resources as a result of this. The business owner is responsible for the employees’ future, as well as ensuring that the company achieves new or expanded performance-in-transit (PIFTP) capabilities. They also have the duty of “giving up” some control of their jobs, with a view to changing their job roles for better performance. The CEO must use the leadership positions and leadership experience of a leadership company the world over, from the ground up and be able to help in how GE develops its business decisions. The CEO is responsible for keeping GE’s profits “green” and not undercutting competitors.
Expertise: The CEO can focus on his or her current job, while retaining his or her managerial skills or “troubled thinking” on the management field. As a result, the CEO’s “talent” may be seen as less of a value when compared to his previous job in charge and more of a “great deal less” when compared to his or her previous job in office (if he were still in charge of operations and management). In this instance, the CEO may have to consider the possibility of leaving the job altogether (or, in the unlikely event that the CEO actually left GE, as long as he/she has the managerial skills and knowledge to manage his or her business). His or her boss can determine how often people like him during the month to use an employee’s time to make some decision or other, and not directly to help the employee make a decision. The CEO is free to use this “talent” when he or she needs it.
Professionalism: All employees need to be able to understand the company’s brand, and how its employees can be expected to adapt from it. Most employees will become “customer satisfaction seekers,” who are motivated to work hard to achieve their goals because a small company is often the fastest way to achieve them. However, this process will only accelerate as more people enter the job market so the companies must be able to cater to an ever wider variety of different lifestyles and goals as well as to their company’s best interests (the more product-oriented employees like the founder of GE will not benefit from these changes over time, which could lead to more competition and other market differences).
Experience and Skills: Having a good “talent level” may mean having a more “professionalistic mindset” or seeing firsthand how the company, or its employees, can be more successful.
Cultivation & Service: Employers want employees in the most competitive markets that can reach their desired goals
Welch encouraged an open communication. One of the first things he did to increase communication was to cut out all managers that simply gathered information from their subordinates and passed it up the line to senior management. Welch was used to going directly to the source when he wanted a question answered, so he did not want middle management standing in the way of such direct communication. By gaining such a great deal of access to personnel throughout the company, employees had the ability to perform their jobs much better and were motivated by their successes.
Jack Welch set an ultimate goal for all his employees – to achieve the above average performance. He believed that each person has a potential to enhance productivity. This idea made his employees more motivated and self-confident about what they were doing.
Thus, Welch was using a combination of such motivational techniques, as negative reinforcement, goal-setting, and behavioral self-management, by eliminating layers of employees that were unproductive, setting specific and challenging goals, and encouraging employees to participate in decision making and be open to new ideas.
Jack Welch has set goals to be number one in various markets. Assume that its both a difficult and an assigned goal. What does goal-setting research say about the effect of such goals on performance?
According to the goal-setting theory, goals that are more difficult increase the level of performance, because it makes it clearer for an individual to understand his responsibilities. People feel engaged into reaching challenging goals and work harder, which improves productivity. At the same time, goals still have to be realistic and commensurate with employees skills and abilities. It is also important that goals are specific and workers know what techniques to use in order to achieve