Legendary CEO Jack Welch has died. Welch led GE for 20 years from its then-headquarters in Fairfield, Connecticut.
Welch grew up in a working-class family in Salem, Massachusetts. He became GE’s CEO in 1981.
Under his leadership, GE expanded from appliances like lightbulbs and washing machines into financial services, health care and more. Its market value grew from $12 billion to more than $400 billion during his tenure. Fortune Magazine named him its "Manager of the Century."
Welch retired from GE in 2001. He gave advice to managers last year in a video for the Jack Welch Management Institute.
“Be yourself. Be authentic. You gotta be you, saying what you think, recognizing your audience, and being honest and candid as best as you possibly can be.”
Welch founded the institute in 2009 after leaving GE.
Current GE CEO Larry Culp told CNBC Welch was a larger-than-life figure at the company.
“Jack was first and foremost about talent and the team, and he had a deep passion for winning. The greatest tribute we can pay Jack going forward, and Jack was always focused on the future, is to continue to strengthen this company with an eye toward winning.”
Welch’s contribution to Sacred Heart University in 2006 led to the creation of the Jack Welch College of Business and Technology. The school sits on the old site of GE’s headquarters. Jack Welch was 84-years-old.
