Economic
Times
6 April 2008
Continued
from page 2
KMB:
Do investors really understand the need for
investing in a business that has returns over
10 to 15 years, although it’s strategically
very important, how do you actually handle
that?
JI: Some do and some don’t. I
try to go and explain to them. Look when we
do a new commercial that’s going to have
a 50-year life, if we do it well over those
50 years, it’s going to make $25 or $30
billion of earnings, but you gotta invest
a billion and a half dollars. I think if you
are really transparent, really transpire with
your investors, tell them your philosophy
and how your business works. At the end of
the day I don’t want anybody invested
in GE who really doesn’t understand what
we have to do to be successful. Then I better
have them invested in another company. So
what I want to do is to attract all the investors
who can understand our business model and
what we do.
KMB: So you’re saying that transparency
is the key to communication with any investor?
JI: Totally, totally. I want them to
understand our cycles, our technical strategies,
how we make money, what investments are long
term, what investments are short term, I think
if they totally understand the company then
they are going to be happy to know that we
gotta do some of the things for long term,
they are going to embrace that and they are
going to like that. And so for long-term,
you gotta be very transparent.
KMB: Tell me, what happens if a business
misses its targets three years in a row, how
do you view that?
JI: I would say that if a business
missed its targets and it was not related
to the industry, you would always have a new
management team. I understand business cycles,
sometimes business go into tough cycles for
several years. There’ll be businesses
and businesses. If we have a management team
that cannot execute on its commitments they
get one second chance but they don’t
get two second chances. I think it is too
important to our company, to our people, to
our investors that management delivers result.
KMB: So, then the management is transferred
to other businesses or they are shown the
door?
JI: Probably shown the door, I would
say. In the end the performance counts. But
we know that there are times, there are industrial
cycles which our managers have no control
over. Sometimes great managers doing great
jobs have disappointing financial results
because the industry is so tough and we reward
those people versus managers that missed because
they didn’t execute well and those people
have to be shown the door.
KMB: I am sure that is clearly understood
across the company.
JI: It has to be.
KMB: So what are the kind of people,
what are the qualities you are looking for
in a manager who you think will succeed. Who
would you fast track? What is it other than
performance that you’re looking for in
someone who you would like to fast track in
the GE system?
JI: If I would pick just one trait,
it would be the ability to learn, I think
people that have hunger for improving themselves,
curiosity, and knowledge gathering. That is
an absolute critical aspect for what makes
people successful in GE. So, that’s a
common attribute and then after that its decisiveness,
its external focus and, working with others.
I mean there is a whole series of things to
go after that, but one common trait of all
the successful people in the company is that
they are good learners and they have real
dedication to self improvement.
KMB: You have a lot of Indians in GE.
I know it’s very difficult to generalise,
but anything you observe that sets them apart,
in terms of their strengths.
JI: I think what I just said, when
I went to a tech centre in Bangalore, you
see thousands of people that have thirst for
knowledge, for change, for improvement, for
success and I think the attributes that I
just mentioned exist in abundance in all of
our Indian employees. It’s one of the
things that’s made India so successful
and so appealing over time.
KMB: And you see India as a continuing
talent sourcing pool for GE?
JI: No doubt, we’ve got more competition
than we used to but I am just a huge believer
in the country and the power of the people
of India. It’s just fantastic. I am most
impressed.
KMB: Going back to the people’s
questions Jeff, what happens to the manager
who is relatively not so high on performance
but has huge potential, is that something
you think would help him to survive in the
system, the fact that he has huge potential?
JI: I think if he has huge potential,
we will be more tolerant and more patient.
But in the end they gotta somehow learn to
perform. We want to see the best in people,
we want people to succeed, we don’t want
people to fail, so we try to be fair and we
try to be open with everybody. A lot of people
get a second chance, I’d say almost everybody
gets a second chance to do well and to perform.
And we cheer those people, we want them to
succeed in GE.
KMB: That’s a great attitude,
so you’re saying that you’re actually
a cheerleader for people and you want them
to succeed.
JI: We want them to succeed and we
really want the best in everybody. You know
while we are tough minded about performance,
we don’t do it from the sense of cruelty,
we do it from the sense of just understanding
how important performance really is.
KMB: Right! You said that people have
to learn to succeed and a very substantive
part of time is spent on coaching. Who are
these people you choose to coach and what
is this coaching?
JI: Everybody who works directly with
me, I spend a lot of time with them, but then
I try to reach down into the organisation,
to people that I think have particular promise.
Typically, what I can do at my level is give
them a kind of new answer of leadership, how
to make good strategic decisions, how to get
the best out of their people. I think when
you’re the CEO of the company you’ve
still gotta roll up your shirt sleeves and
go individually towards people, try to may
be give them, your unique perspectives that
can help them. I think that you gotta keep
your hand in coaching no matter how high you
get in an organisation because it makes you
better at how to manage, in terms of totality
of the company.
KMB: Despite the fact, that GE is such
a large organisation, such a huge company
and growing so fast, do you still find it
difficult to manage people’s aspirations?
JI: You know what I find is...we’ve
got enough growth and we’ve got great
jobs. So typically, we can meet people’s
goals if they give us a little bit of patience.
But this is a place where more transparency
the better. You know what I try to encourage
is complete honesty with people, sometimes
we just can’t meet their aspirations
as fast as they want, we are much better off
in letting them know that upfront.
KMB: Something about the world of business
at large, any discontinuity you see in the
world of business in the next couple of years
— five or 10 years — that will actually
change the way people work? In terms of technology,
in terms of legislation or any other such
changes?
JI: The two biggest themes in the world.
I think one is — what’s the next
evolution of globalisation? It’s particularly
going to be fascinating. My view is that one
of the most interesting trends is going to
be business models that get developed or kind
of get created in the merging markets in places
like India or China or Russia. I think that’s
going to be an interesting theme. And then
there is always the technology. It depends
what industry you’re in ... but I think
the pace of technology will continue to change
and create discontinuities as time goes on
and I think that’s something every company
and industry will have to stay on top of.
KMB: What on technology?
JI: You might find in the area of,
lets say, a water desalination or something
like that. Or even let’s take the Tata’s
$2,500 car. It’s developed for the emerging
world but may be some of those technologies
end up in the US or Europe. So those emerging
market business, or what I call business models,
I think will end up driving huge efficiency
and may be change technologies...you know,
vis-a-vis, what happens in the developed world.
KMB:
That’s very fascinating to hear and
the role of India as part of GE’s plan
going forward, Jeff, in terms of recruitment,
in terms of market, in terms of being here,
do you see India being a larger and larger
part of the plan, in your scheme of things?
JI: Well, there is no doubt about
that, I think both in terms of the fact
that we are a big infrastructure company.
So till India continues to invest in infrastructure,
that would be a very big deal. I also think,
just technically, I think, whether it is
you, or whether it is Reliance or Wipro,
the business models that you are working
on, I think it is going to have a great
applicability. In terms of not just how
we win in India but also how we win in rest
of the world. So India is definitely going
to be a core location as we go forward.
KMB:
Well, that’s very reassuring for us.
JI: I think it’s really a great
time for India, I really do believe that.
KMB: And finally, you are one of the
most admired icons in the corporate world,
globally. You also head one of the most respected
and admired company in the world. What is
it that keeps you going, what is that drives
you?
JI: You know I would say Kumar, it’s
probably like you, I love business, I love
people, I love learning. If you love learning,
if you are curious about business, you love
people. You know I got the best job in the
world, it’s like when you run GE, you
have the chance to see so many different things
happen and I just feel very fortunate to have
that opportunity.
KMB: Well, the passion is palpable,
so many thousands of miles away. Jeff, it’s
been a real pleasure to talk with you.
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