In 1981, Jack Welch took over General Electric and quickly rose to fame as the first celebrity CEO. He golfed with presidents, mingled with movie stars, and was idolized for growing GE into the most valuable company in the world. But Welch’s achievements didn’t stem from some greater intelligence or business prowess. Rather, they were the result of a sustained effort to push GE’s stock price ever higher, often at the expense of workers, consumers, and innovation. In his latest book, The Man Who Broke Capitalism, David Gelles argues that Welch single-handedly ushered in a new, cutthroat era of American capitalism that continues to this day.
David Gelles is a reporter for the New York Times. Since joining the Times in 2013, he has written about CEOs, finance, technology, media, and more. He is the author of the 2015 book, Mindful Work: How Meditation is Changing Business from the Inside Out.
