A Report on Leadership, Management, and Operations at General Electric

This report analyzes the leadership and management practices at General Electric (GE), examining the roles of leaders and managers within the organization. It explores specific situations where managerial skills and leadership qualities were demonstrated by GE's top executives, including Jack Welch, Jeff Immelt, and Henry Lawrence Culp Jr. The report delves into various aspects such as change adoption, conflict resolution, and revenue management, highlighting the application of leadership theories like situational, system, and contingency leadership. It differentiates between managerial skills like judicious resource usage, motivation, and coordination, and leadership qualities such as vision, interpersonal skills, and problem-solving abilities. The report also discusses different conflict-handling strategies and their effectiveness within the company. It provides a comprehensive overview of how GE's leaders have navigated complex business challenges and fostered a successful organizational environment.

Management and Operations

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
1) Managerial skills and leadership qualities within the organisational context.........................1
2) Different theories of leadership with their strength and weaknesses......................................4
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................5
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
Management and operations are two important business tools that is concerned with
designing and controlling the process of production and redesigning the business operations by
meeting the requirements of the customers(Girma, 2019). The role of operation management is
concerned with planning, organising and supervising the activities in order to facilitate the
smooth operations of a business. Each of these requires an ability to determine the present
situation with an aim of improving the effectiveness and efficiency of operations. General
Electric is one of the leading company in USA that deals with various segments such as venture
capital, renewable energy, digital industry, aviation, finance, lighting and so on. This firm has
expanded its operations in parts of the country to gain large access to customers. This report is
based on various theories of leadership such as situational, system and contingency as each play
different roles and responsibilities according to a prevailing situation within the company. The
role of leader is to lead the whole team while the mangers have people who work together for the
accomplishment of common goal. This report also comprises of various business situations that
determine the role of management and qualities of leadership and the way they handle a complex
situation. Good leadership skills are necessary to understand the philosophies of handling the
complicated situation in a workplace.
1) Managerial skills and leadership qualities within the organisational context
Good management skills are very important for an organisation as it help in coordinating
the activities and also facilitate the smooth operation of a business(Leaders and et. al., 2019).
The role of leader is to provide proper guidance so as to bring improvement in the overall
functioning of an organisation. The qualities of leader and skills of management are crucial for
various positions and at a different levels of a company. One important aspect is that leadership
and management skills are used interchangeably as they perform different functions such as
planning, decision making, problem solving and proper time management. The top managers of
General Electric used the various business situations which are described below:
Situation 1
Adoption of changes: In a digital era, changes is very important for an organisation as
there are changes in the taste and preferences of customer's mind, changes in culture, technology
1

and so on in order to ensure success in an organisation(Rastegar and et. al., 2019). The manager
of General Electric through proper and strategic planning provide direction of action that aids in
completing the task in a proper time. The leader has to be calm and patient while facilitating the
change and also provide effective training to the subordinates as it help in increasing the skills
and knowledge base of an employees and also inculcate positive attitude and confidence in them.
The CEO of General Electric could scrutinize the activities and overall performance of
employees so as to facilitate the smooth operation of a business.
Jack Welch-
Jack Welch was best known all over the world for serving as the CEO of General Electric
(G.E.) from 1981 to 2001. He led to a revolution in the company and the way it conducted its
business. He made the company the fastest growing company in the United States of America.
Actions & Achievements-
He focused on innovation and ideas to make company get ahead of its various
competitors in the market. During his tenure as the CEO of the firm the revenues rose by up to
4000%. In 2006, his net worth was estimated at $720 millions. The reason why he was
successful that he believed in decentralisation of authority and gave complete freedom to take
decisions to the staff.
Managerial skills used in different situations-
Interpersonal conflicts- In a big company like G.E. interpersonal conflicts happen
between different members in various teams. Jack Welch being an able manager used to resolve
these conflicts by taking a balanced approach and outlook and by using managerial skill of
organizing.
Decrease in revenue growth- There were times when the company faced slowdown in
its revenue growth. In this situation, Jack Welch identified the root cause of decrease and
immediately took rectifying steps by using managerial skill of controlling to increase the
revenue.
Negative feedback- Sometimes negative feedback was received by the clients of G.E.
which affected the image of the company. In such a situation, Jack Welch used to effectively
communicate with the clients using managerial skill of controlling to solve their problems and
issues.
Jeff Immelt-
2

Jeff Immelt is an American business executive working as a venture partner at New
Enterprise Associates. He was the successor of Jack Welch and was the CEO of General Electric
until 01/08/2017.
Actions & Achievements-
During his tenure as CEO, market value of G.E. rose to $300 billion making it one of the
largest companies in the world. The stocks of the company traded at an 8 year high. He took the
firm to achieving new heights. He led it to growth and diversification and focused on mega
restructuring of the business.
Managerial skills used in different situations-
Difficult demands of employees- Sometimes employees of firms have too many
demands which cannot be fulfilled. In such situations Jeff Immelt used to take a positive
approach by counselling employees and displayed managerial skill of organizing to deal with
this situation.
High competition- There is a time when the competition gets ahead of the firm. In such a
situation, Jeff Immelt being the CEO of the company used to use his managerial skill of planning
and developing strategies to get ahead of competition.
Budget problems- Sometimes it happens that the expenses of firm are not kept in check
and this creates problems related with budget. Therefore in such a situation, Jeff Immelt used his
controlling skill to control the situation and keep expenses in check.
Henry Lawrence Culp Jr.-
Henry Lawrence Culp Jr. is an American business executive. He is the current CEO of
the company since October 2018. He is the first person from outside of G.E. to run the
organisation.
Actions &Achievements-
During his current tenure as CEO of G.E. the company is witnessing a high growth rates
that it witnessed during the previous CEOs. Thus he has the leadership and management ability
to effectively lead the company. Currently, its revenue is more than 121 billion. It is the 14th most
profitable company all over the world.
Managerial skills used in different situations-
3

Lack of efficiency- As the current CEO of G.E., Henry Lawrence Culp Jr. sometimes
faces this problem. In this situation, he uses the managerial skill of staffing which includes
special training sessions for employees to improve their efficiency.
Subordinates not following instructions- This is a very common situation faced in the
companies. As the current CEO of G.E., Henry Lawrence Culp Jr. uses managerial skill of
directing to make sure that the subordinates follow the instructions.
Idea not working out- Sometimes the idea developed by the company does not works
out in the market. In such a situation, Henry Lawrence Culp Jr. uses the managerial skill of
planning which enables to develop a new idea using a new approach which will work out leading
to increase in profits of the company.
Managerial skills: Judicious usage of resources: The manager facilitates optimum utilisation of resources
with an aim to minimise the waste and it also saves time and money. Motivation: The manager of a firm encourage their subordinates by potential rewards so
that it help in improving their performance and systematically working in an
organisation.
 Coordination: The manager has to be impartial as it has to assign the role and task
among the subordinates in according to their specialised skills. This facilitate proper
coordination and develop confidence among the employees.
Leadership Qualities: Vision: The leader of respective firm has a long term vision and mission to ensure
success and develop proper planning to bring positivity in a workforce. Interpersonal skills: The leader must be a good listener and have technical skills so that
it could provide effective training to their subordinates to boost their knowledge base. Positive attitude: The leader should have positive attitude and should be courageous to
accept the changes and provide training to their employees to help them in handling
sophisticated machines.
 Problem solving: The leader should have the ability to solve the problems by providing
the effective solution to a problem. The leader should be calm and have patience to
handle the complex issues and also to solve day to day problems.
4

Situation 2
Conflict resolution: There are various reason of conflicts that takes place such as
changes in culture, clashes, changes in company policies and so on(Nouhi Bezanjani and et. al.,
2019). There are various conflict handling strategies which is discussed below:
Avoiding: This situation arises when people used to ignore each other and also
discomfort of confrontation arises within an organisation. This is one of the effective strategy
used by the manager of General Electric to handle conflict in a best manner as the leader become
integrity and problem solver to facilitate the proper delegation to produce desired results.
Competing: This strategy is characterised by assertive and non cooperative behaviour of
people working in a workforce(Espín, Costa, and Jiménez, 2019). The manager of General
Electric through problem solving skills facilitate cooperation and coordination in their company
and also develop competitive skills to perform better beyond their potential.
Compromising: This is one of the appropriate strategy that focuses on rendering a
comfort environment by working on fair bases. The higher authority of General Electric provide
a good and comfort environment to their workers so that they could work with great zeal and
confidence.
Managerial skills: Ask the right questions: This is the most important managerial skill in which the
manager avoids to blame or fault on anyone directly but rather share their opinions and
concerns to resolve the conflict. There should be the basis of open discussion that help
employees to see their conflicts and identify the best solution.
 Take hard decisions: The leader has to take hard decisions so as to come up with best
and efficient solution. Also, by showing concern toward the employees help to build
confidence and develop a sense of team spirit among them that bring positive
environment ans provide comfortable to their workers.
Leadership Qualities: Communication skills: The leader of a concerned firm through proper communication
strategy define the roles and responsibilities among the subordinates as it help in avoiding
confusion and misunderstanding (Henshaw, 2019). There is proper clarity of goals and
objectives among the employees so that they could achieve the task in a limited time.
5

 Be accountable: The leader of General Electric make sure that their follow through on
their own actions to facilitate the smooth operation and promote cooperation. Good Listener: The leader has to listen the grievances of both the parties by handling the
situation very calmly and patiently ad thus bring positivity within the organisation.
 Be clear: This quality helps to avoid confusion and provide proper coordination and
cooperation in a workplace.
2) Different theories of leadership with their strength and weaknesses
Leadership is the ability to influence other and also to lead the whole team in order to
achieve the organisational goal(Ishaque and Fatima, 2019). A leader promotes team spirit and
unity of command so as to develop positive attitude among the subordinates. There are different
theories of leadership such as situational, system and contingency that play a different role in
according to the situation as these theories are important for conducting the day to day operations
of a business. The manager divides the work among the subordinates so that they could work
with greater zeal and efficiency. With reference to General Electric, various theories of
leadership are presented below:
Situational leadership: In this theory of leadership, the leader behaves differently
according to a prevailing situation within the market (Samartinho and São João, 2019). The
leader of General Electric should choose an appropriate style depending upon the circumstances
as this approach is used by the senior authority of a company. In this, the style of leadership
changes continuously in other to fulfil the requirements of others based on a situation. The Jeff
Immelt facilitates the changes in a flexible environment to bring success and proper cooperation
within the company. Also, Jeff Immelt through proper and strategic planning help in controlling
the situation so as to facilitate proper coordination in a workplace and determine the effective
solution of a problem being an CEO of a company. He would deal in an effective manner to a
particular depending upon the prevailing situation in a firm.
Advantages: One of the advantages of situational leadership is that the leader assign the
task among the subordinates that matches their skills and job duties as it increases the morale and
motivation of employees. This approach also helps the team members to find common ground
towards each other and also reduces the risk of internal conflicts.
6

Disadvantages: Jeff Immelt focuses on immediate actions rather than long term goals in
a changing era as it does not consider the long-term vision and mission of company. It leads to
shift in direction which create difficult for the workers to maintain the continuation in their work.
System leadership: This system leadership theory is characterised by the set of skills
where employees work with greater zeal and confidence in order to increase the productivity of
an organisation (Dramićanin, 2019). This approach combines the various elements like
collaborative leadership and coalition to mobilize the innovation across the globe. It provides an
effective tool that help in predicting the human behaviour in order to increase the productivity
and efficiency of an organisation. Jack Welch who would handle the internal conflicts by
ensuring proper balance in an organisation and also, he have good experience of making the
business successful and ensure success and productivity in an organisation. He divides the work
among co workers that matches their talent so as to ensure proper systematic of work in an
efficient manner.
Advantages: The CEO of General Electronic that is Jack Welch adapt the changes itself
in an organisation and gain competitive position by bringing uniformity in decision making. In
this approach, the manager is considered as multi-dimensional and focus on accomplishing the
individual and organisational goal in order to improve the efficiency. This approach is commonly
used to get a holistic view while dealing with complex and business issues.
Disadvantages: One of the disadvantages of system leadership is that this theory does not
applicable in case of practical problems as it led to delay in decision making as the Jack Welch
does not think of practical cases. This theory is not applicable to the small organisation which
possessthe major threat for a company. Also, the nature of inter dependence is not well defined
in case of system leadership.
Contingency leadership: This theory of leadership states that the effectiveness of
leadership is matching the employee’s talent in according to the prevailing situation within the
market(Musai, 2019). There are various elements that should be taken into consideration such as
company culture, change in attitude and behaviour that have a direct impact on the success in the
process of leadership. In the context of General Electric, the manager assigns the work among
the subordinates that matches their talent and skills in order to inculcate confidence and develop
positive attitude among them that aids in increasing the productivity and efficiency within the
respective firm. Henry Lawrence Culp Jr could develop a new idea so as to ensure proper
7

systematic of work and provides effective training to their subordinates so as to make them
capable of handling sophisticated machines and ensure them to work with greater potential. But
due to lack of skills, he is not able to handle complicated problems which lead to inefficiency of
a firm.
Advantages: The Henry Lawrence Culp Jr of General Electric adopt the changes in
policies and procedures in according to a situation and facilitate coordination that provide vast
growth opportunities and contribute towards the success within the workplace. It also helps the
company to design an appropriate organisation structure and plan the information design system
appropriately.
Disadvantages: One of the disadvantages of contingency approach of leadership is that
this theory becomes complex during the practical approach. Also, sometimes it become difficult
for the Henry Lawrence Culp Jr to handle the situation as it is complex in nature. In the context
of General Electric, the major drawback is that a leader is not consistent towards their
subordinates due to frequent changes takes place in an entity. This provide a sense of discomfort
and develop a negative situation among them.
CONCLUSION
From the above furnished information, it can be summarised that management and leader
plays a different role but everyone works together for the accomplishment of a common goal.
The leader has followers who provide proper guidance and they have a long-term vision while
the manager performs various functions such as planning, organising, directing and monitoring
the activities in order to facilitate cooperation and coordination within a workplace. The firm
should also focus on optimum utilisation of resources so as to minimise the waste and also bring
coordination and cooperation in an organisation. It has been analysed that leader and
management perform different functions and behave differently in according to the prevailing
situation in a workplace.
8

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Girma, M., 2019. Leadership Effectiveness of School Leaders in Implementing School
Improvement Program in Government Secondary Schools in East Wollega Zone of
Oromia Regional State (Doctoral dissertation, Addis Ababa University).
Leaders, C. and et. al., 2019. Leadership and OD.
Rastegar, A. and et. al., 2019. The Relationship of Transformational Leadership Style with
Bullying at Work with Regard to the Mediating Role of Organizational Health among
Employees of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences. Journal of Payavard
Salamat, 13(4), pp.0-0.
Nouhi Bezanjani and et. al., 2019. Authentic Leadership and Moral Intelligence of Nurses in
Kerman University of Medical Sciences Hospitals. Journal of Payavard Salamat, 13(1),
pp.13-23.
Ishaque, W. and Fatima, N., 2019. Impact of Globalization on National Security. Global Social
Sciences Review, 4(1), pp.23-33.
Samartinho, J. and São João, R., 2019. Virtual leadership in intercontinental projects: a case
study of the University of Santiago lms platform as an educational strategy. Taikomieji
tyrimai studijose ir praktikoje-Applied research in studies and practice, 15(1), pp.55-
60.
Musai, M., 2019. Relation between job involvement, attitude towards contemporary
management and leadership styles in manufacturing and service companies’
managers. ECONOMIC VISION International Scientific Journal in Economics,
Finance, Business, Marketing, Management and Tourism, 6(11-12), pp.129-139.
Henshaw, R., 2019. A Qualitative Case Study of the Underrepresentation of Women in
Leadership Positions in High School Athletic Departments in Texas (Doctoral
dissertation, Northcentral University).
Espín, J. A. G., Costa, M. M. and Jiménez, D. J., 2019. Proposal of an empirical model that
integrates relationships between organizational culture, learning and quality
management. In Jornadas doctorales de la Universidad de Murcia (pp. 243-249).
Servicio de Publicaciones.
Dramićanin, S., 2019. The impact of authentic leadership on the commitment of employees in
travel agencies in the Republic of Serbia. BizInfo (Blace) Journal of Economics,
Management and Informatics, 10(1), pp.29-41.
9