Jack Welch and the 4 E's of Leadership: How to Put Ge's Leadership Formula to Work in Your Organizaion

I really enjoyed this book. It was clear and concise. I enjoyed the fact that it is put together in a manner that helps the reader to apply the principles that are explained in the book. If you want to know about Welch, his style, and his leadership principles, this is the book to explain it. Also, this book includes chapters on the leadership principles of four other Welch prodigies that moved on to work as CEOs at other companies. It is fascinating to see how they adapted Welch's principles to their companies and situations. This is of fundamental importance for those that are looking for reproducible principles. These things work.

This book expands on the 4E's of Jack's leadership. This is a good book if you are a follower of Jack. I have used this principles with some success in my own style and implementing for departments and whole organizations. I recommend it to new leaders or those aspiring to be leaders.

I have read just about every book either written by or about Jack Welch that has been published. This is the best book over-all. Most of what is written is just a rehash of what Welch wrote about himself or the Author keeps repeating the same information with new graphics and slightly different format with each new book he writes. If you want more detail about the history of GE and of Welch, try another book. However, if you want good information about how he implemented his ideas and how you can do the same, this is the book for you.

I greatly admire Krames's previous books, notably The Welch Way: 24 Lessons From The World's Greatest CEO and What the Best CEOs Know: 7 Exceptional Leaders and Their Lessons for Transforming Any Business. He is an exceptionally clear and insightful thinker. In this volume, Krames focuses on the "4E Leadership Model," an abbreviation of "The GE Authentic Leadership Model" which Welch introduced to GE almost ten years ago. Previously, Welch had stressed Head, Heart, and Guts. Eventually, he recognized the need for a more fully developed concept which could guide and inform the development of leaders within the GE organization. It should also be noted that he hired Noel Tichy to head up a management training center for GE to which Welch then committed about 20% of his time. Welch believed that there are essentially three different types of leaders: Type A's live the values and make the numbers, Type B's live the values but do not always make the numbers, and Type C's do not live the values but may make the numbers. To Welch, the A's were GE's "best and brightest," the B's were the ones who received the most intensive training, and (with very few exceptions) C's were strongly advised to seek new career opportunities elsewhere. Welch discusses all this in his own recently published book, Winning. Here are some brief excerpts: "The first E is positive energy. For example, they start the day with enthusiasm and usually end it that way too, rarely seeming to tire in the middle. They don't complain about working hard; they love to work. They love to play. People with positive energy just enjoy life. "The second E is the ability to energize others. Positive energy is the ability to get other people revved up. People who energize can inspire their team to take on the impossible -- and enjoy the hell out of doing it. In fact, people would arm wrestle for the chance to work with them. "The third E is edge, the courage to make tough yes-or-no decisions. [Those with edge] know when to stop assessing and make a tough call, even without total information. "The fourth E is execute -- the ability to get the job done.... It turns out you can have positive energy, energize everyone around you, make hard calls, and still not get over the finish line. Being able to execute is a special and distinct skill. It means a person knows how to put decisions into action and push them forward to completion, through resistance, chaos, or unexpected obstacles. People who can execute know that winning is about results. What else? "Passion! By that I mean a heartfelt, deep, and authentic excitement about work. People with passion care -- really care in their bones -- about colleagues, employees, and friends winning. They love to learn and grow, and they get a huge kick when people around them do the same. The funny thing about people with passion, though, is they usually aren't excited just about work. They tend to be passionate about everything!...they just have juice

The "4 E's" by Jeffrey Krames is among those few leadership books that you can put to immediate practical use for yourself and for others. Krames has a pleasant, to-the-point writing style and the book's clear organization and layout makes the "4E's" a compelling read. The first part of the "4E's"," a perspective on Welch's leadership model, offers practical "how to" exercises, including "to do" lists for 4E leaders and 4E leadership self-assessments. The exercises are incisive and easy to do. The second part demonstrates Welch's impact on others with chapters on Jeff Immelt (Chairman & CEO, GE), James McNerney (Chairman & CEO, 3M), Larry Bossidy (former Chairman & CEO, Honeywell), Robert Nardelli (CEO, Home Depot), and Vivek Paul (CEO, Wipro Technologies). The comments of those leaders about Welch's influence are fascinating. In "How to use this book in training, management workshops, and performance reviews" Krames offers valuable exercise-scenarios, complete with sample meeting agendas. The author makes an important point about books as learning tools in organization: they are easy-to-use, inexpensive, and easily distributed. Not surprisingly, "The 4E's," hardcover & bound, modestly sized (and priced), makes a very nice gift. This is a great book to share with others. The "softer" aspects of leadership and management are often hard to grasp, let alone discuss in group settings. The "4E's" is exceptionally clear about the essence of Welch's leadership model. I highly recommend the "4E's," especially to those who want to share their learning with others.