The Art of Managing:
Welch says that “the art of managing” comes down to doing one essential but sometimes difficult task: “facing reality.”Over the years,Welch described business as simple, urging managers to see things as they are, and not how they wish them to be. That was one of the fundamental tenets of his leadership philosophy. He also urged managers to speak candidly and leverage the power of change (view it as an opportunity, not a threat).
THE ORIGINS OF WELCH’S REALITY
Welch says he learned to see things as they are, and not as he wishes them to be, from his mother. She taught him “not to kid himself,” a lesson that stayed with the GE chairman for all of his years.While it sounds so simple, the vast majority of managers did not face reality in the early 1980s. Despite the harsh conditions, many business leaders saw no need for a new organizing form or model of management. It was Welch who recognized the dire need for new ways and models, helping to earn him the title of “Manager of the Century” (from Fortune magazine) in November 1999.
Lessons in the art of managing
1. Never back down from reality:
One of Welch’s strengths was his ability to face reality and then take the appropriate course of action. There is no place for denial in business.
2. Tell employees that change is “never over”:
While Welch did his most serious cost cutting and restructuring in the early 1980s, he never stopped reinventing the organization. Let employees know that change is a constant, so they learn to live with it and use change to improve the organization.
3. Hold regularly scheduled meetings and encourage your managers to do the same:
Welch made quarterly meetings with his senior managers a part of the culture, and encouraged learning and training throughout the world of GE. By making informal and frequent communication a key part of the culture, he established a forum that would help GE deal with the many realities that confronted the company.
原件下载： 
| 
