Get Better or Get Beaten (Hardcover)

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Key Phrases: boundaryless company, boundaryless organization, leadership secret, Jack Welch, Six Sigma, General Electric (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Slater's second book on General Electric's chief executive officer Jack Welch in a little over a year appears to be based on his reseach for the previous work, The New GE: How Jack Welch Revived an American Institution ( LJ 10/1/92). Slater's intent is to create a "manager's little instruction book" from 31 of Welch's "secrets." These "secrets," e.g., aphorisms such as "managing less is managing better" and "go for the quantum leap," are marginally interesting insights into Welch. Often, direct quotes from Welch are used to explain what he means, but the "secrets" are not fully developed. If one wants to understand Welch better, Noel Tichy's Control Your Destiny or Someone Else Will ( LJ 1/93) is probably a better book. Recommended only for comprehensive collections.
- Michael D. Kathman, St. John's Univ. Lib., Collegeville, Minn.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description

Do business like Jack Welch

When Jack Welch took the reins of General Electric in 1981, he reformulated GE in his own image -- tough, smart, competitive, and relentless. First published in 1994, Get Better or Get Beaten became a bestseller as managers sought to understand and mimic the success ;of the man lauded by Fortune as "...perhaps the most admired CEO of his generation." Now, on the eve of his planned April retirement, the new Get Better or Get Beaten, Second Edition shows you how to compete "Welch style" in today's techologically advanced business arena. Look to this fast-paced book for:

*Jack Welch's latest views on management and leadership
*Examples of how Welch transformed GE into an e-business
*Insights into Six Sigma and other s;uccessfulk GE quality initiatives
*More

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 194 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 2 edition (February 26, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071373462
• ISBN-13: 978-0071373463
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #282,400 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Fine Book. But others exist., July 31, 2000

By	Seano "seanob" (Quincy, Massachusetts USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Get Better or Get Beaten!: 31 Leadership Secrets from GE's Jack Welch (Paperback)

There are a series of great books available on Amazon.com that much better explore the world of Jack Welch and GE. After attending a workshop I picked up three from Amazon and two at the library. This was the weakest of the three. First, this is a poorly constructed paperback version. It is just plain cheap. Feels cheap and looks cheap. Thats it for the layout and format.

Second, many of the paragraphs seem to be cut and pasted from one chapter to another. I felt that I was re-reading essentially the same ten paragraphs scattered throughout the book. Very frustrating because it indicates either laziness by the author or redundancy to be pedantic.

Next, many books claim to have a special insight since the author was given rare access to the GE training center known as the "pit." This book claims that as well and quotes Welch at a number of public meetings...in an attempt to reinforce the concepts.

As Welch soon retires, I wonder if these same books will hold the interest they now capture. You are better served by more narrative, substantial texts on Welch and his management style. As always, Amazon readers can rate reviews and many loyalists vote against critics. I have a great admiration for Welch, and what he managed to accomplish. This book does neither him, nor his accomplishments real justice.

Reading this "guide for leaders" I wondered if Welch would look at it and laugh at its simplicity.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Your Choice and Welch Can Help You Make It, April 11, 2001

By	Robert Morris (Dallas, Texas) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Jack Welch would be the first to point out that none of the 29 Leadership Secrets to which the subtitle refers is really a secret. In fact, most of the material in this book has been recycled or updated from previous publications, notably from Slater's excellent Jack Welch and the GE Way and The GE Way Fieldbook, both of which I also highly recommend. Slater is an excellent judge of material and writes very well. After more than 25 years as a successful journalist, he has developed a keen sense of what key business issues are, and, how Welch's comments on those issues can be most effectively shared with the reader. Two factors set this book apart from most other business books which also share "secrets." First and obviously, Welch's well-deserved reputation as a great leader. Also, the business context in which Slater anchors each of the 29 key points. With brevity and precision, Slater addresses questions such as these:

* How to "harness the power of change"?

* What does "Face Reality!" mean? Also, what does it require?

* What is the best process for evaluating your organization with a "fresh eye"?

* What are the major perils as well as benefits of Six Sigma initiatives?

* What are some of the most effective e-business strategies?

* How can e-business "put the final nail in bureaucracy"?

Thanks to Slater, as I read the book I felt as if Welch himself were making a series of assertions directly to me. In response to each I am inclined to ask, "Exactly what does he mean by that?" An explanation then follows, based on the wealth of information about Welch which Slater and others have accumulated over the years. Slater also includes a series of lists of "Welch Rules" and then, in an Appendix, a list of "GE Values"...the same list which (reproduced on a laminated card) is carried by each GE employee.

Welch himself has been and continues to be an avid student of business. Time and again, he has gratefully acknowledged what he has learned, not only from other great business leaders but also from his associates at GE...especially from younger GE executives who share his contempt for what Jim O'Toole has characterized (in Leading Change) as "the ideology of comfort and the tyranny of custom."

If you share my great admiration of Jack Welch and also wish you could spend some time with him one-on-one, here's probably your best opportunity to do so. For me, the experience was as much a pleasure as it was a privilege.

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must read!, November 24, 1998

By	[e-mail] (Mauritius) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Get Better or Get Beaten!: 31 Leadership Secrets from GE's Jack Welch (Paperback)

When I first got this book and started reading it in the late evening, I found it so interesting and insightful that I read it completely until the early hours of morning the next day.

Jack Welch is no ordinary leader and GE is no ordinary company. To find out how and why they are so successful and far ahead of their competitors, you should read this book.

While Jack Welch is not perfect (he is human after all), this book is great, in the sense that it explains the basic principles behind GE's extraordinary success.