Change: What companies must embrace to move ahead. By harnessing the power of change (rather than fighting or fearing it), companies can achieve a competitive advantage. Welch has said that people will always want to know when the change is over, when they can “stop changing” and just get on with things.Welch’s response was unequivocal: “No, it’s just begun.” That Welch response is an apt summary of the Welch years, in which change was a constant. One of the keys to GE’s values is that it includes a statement on change. At GE, employees are urged to think of change as an opportunity and not a threat. In his last year at the helm, Welch explained that “predicting is not what it’s all about. It’s about responding to change, it’s moving with change. It’s being adaptive. It’s not about the precision.”Welch also said that change is in the genes of every GE employee: “We breathe in our blood every day, now is the time to change the game.”

變革: 公司必須歡迎變革、才能繼續(xù)向前發(fā)展。通過運用變革的力量（而不是與它對抗或畏懼它），公司就能獲得競爭優(yōu)勢。韋爾奇曾經(jīng)說過，人們總是想知道變革什么時候結束，什么時候他們能“停止改變”、然后才開始辦事。韋爾奇的回答斬釘截鐵：“不行，變革才開始。”這種韋爾奇式的答復是對韋爾奇時代的一種貼切的總結，在那些年代里，變革才是恒常。通用電氣公司價值觀中關鍵的一點是它包含了對變革的規(guī)定。通用電氣公司敦促員工將變革看作是一種機遇、而不是威脅。在執(zhí)掌公司的最后一年中，韋爾奇解釋說 “這里所需要的并非完全是預見，而是響應變革、與變革同步。關鍵是要靈活變通，而不是精確性。”韋爾奇還說，變革存在于通用電氣公司每一位員工的基因中：“我們每天都將變革吸入血脈之中，現(xiàn)在該是改變局面的時候了。”

 

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF WELCH AND CHANGE

韋爾奇變革的重大意義

 

One of Welch’s great contributions is the way he approached the topic of change. From his first days in the CEO’s office, he recognized that change was not only inevitable, but also sorely needed. Once again, we see how Welch was the right leader at the right time. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, most business leaders had little appetite for change. Even a weak economy and the threat of new global competitors were not enough to shake up most CEOs.Welch not only recognized the need for change, he saw the need for radical change, and then set out to turn the company and its century-old traditions upside down.

韋爾奇的偉大貢獻之一，是他處理變革這個主題時采用的方法。從他擔任首席執(zhí)行官的第一天起，他便認識到，變革不僅是免不了的，而且還是迫切需要的。從這點上我們再一次看出，韋爾奇是合適時間出現(xiàn)的合適領導人。20世紀70年代到80年代初，大多數(shù)企業(yè)領導人對變革殊少興趣。即便衰頹的經(jīng)濟以及新的全球競爭對手的威脅，也不足以讓大多數(shù)的首席執(zhí)行官們清醒過來。韋爾奇不僅認識到變革的需求，而且他還看到突破式變革的必要性，然后便著手讓通用電氣公司和它百年之久的傳統(tǒng)天翻地覆。

 

 

Change lessons

關于變革的經(jīng)驗教訓

 

1. Change is a constant, and people in the organization must face it: Legendary coach Vince Lombardi said that “winning is not a sometime thing.”Welch felt the same way about change. He urged his managers not only to live with change, but also to exploit the opportunities that come with change. For example, Welch knew that manufacturing alone would not deliver the growth he sought. As a result, he embarked on an ambitious plan to make service the centerpiece of GE’s growth engine. In 2000, service accounted for more than 70 percent of GE’s revenues.

1. 變革是一種恒常，組織中的人們必須正視變革：傳奇教練文森特·隆巴迪（Vince Lombardi）說：“獲勝并非一時間的事。”韋爾奇對變革也有同樣的看法。他敦促管理人員不僅要習慣變革，而且還要挖掘隨同變革而來的機遇。例如，韋爾奇知道單是依靠制造無法帶來他所想要的增長。于是他便著手推行一項雄心勃勃的計劃，使服務成為通用電氣公司增長引擎的核心部分。到2000年，服務在通用電氣公司的收益中占了70%以上。

 

2. Never stop communicating on the topic of change: Since change is a constant, managers and employees must learn not only to live with it, but also to embrace it. Change can help organizations, but only if people are prepared. In the 1980s, Welch preached on change at Crotonville and used other parts of the operating system to drive change throughout the company. In his final year as chairman, Welch said that change is “in the company’s blood.”

2. 永不停止對變革這一話題的溝通交流：既然變革是一種恒常，管理人員和員工們就必須學會習慣它，而且也要學會歡迎它。只有在人們做好變革準備的情況下，變革才能對組織起到幫助作用。20世紀80年代，韋爾奇在克羅頓維爾宣講變革，并利用運作系統(tǒng)中的其它部分在全公司推動變革。在他擔任董事會主席的最后一年中，韋爾奇說，變革“存在于公司的血脈之中”。

 

 

3. Stay one step ahead of change: One of the factors that fueled Welch’s success was his prescience. Welch not only faced reality, he saw it coming long before his competitors. Stay one step ahead of change by monitoring the competitive environment (e.g., competitors’ websites, global economic conditions), staying in touch with people from all corners of the organization, and encouraging communication up and down the hierarchy.

3、提前做好變革的準備：韋爾奇的預見能力是助他成功的一項要素。韋爾奇不僅直面現(xiàn)實，而且還遠比他的競爭對手更早預見到現(xiàn)實的來臨。要監(jiān)控競爭環(huán)境（例如競爭對手的網(wǎng)站、全球經(jīng)濟狀況），與組織中各個部門的人員保持聯(lián)系，并鼓勵上下級之間的雙向溝通，從而提前做好變革的準備。