Metaphor for G.E.’s Ills: A Corporate Jet With No Passengers
- 7 years ago
Metaphor for G.E.’s Ills: A Corporate Jet With No Passengers
Start with the ostensible reason for the second plane: to provide additional security and to have a spare in case of a breakdown, according to G. E.
No one I spoke to in the field of corporate security said
that made any sense, especially in the instance when the second plane stayed in Anchorage while Mr. Immelt traveled to Asia.
(In his letter, Mr. Immelt said he “worked 100-hour weeks with more than 60 percent of my time on the road.”)
Mr. Davis of Melius Research sharply disagreed, saying Mr. Immelt “was the imperial C. E.O.’’
“Not even heads of state get that kind of treatment,’’ Mr. Davis said.
“I immediately called the company and asked if this could possibly be true.”
had told him that the issue had been “blown all out of proportion.” Publicly, the company said
that the two-plane arrangement was used only on “limited occasions” and had been halted by Mr. Immelt in 2014.
Mr. Strang said that dispatching a second plane in case of mechanical breakdown would seem excessive, given
that airplanes in other places could be used in case of emergency.
The bizarre case of General Electric’s use of a second corporate jet to follow its former chief executive, Jeff Immelt, as he hopscotched around the globe seems such an outlandish waste of money
that many reacted with disbelief after The Wall Street Journal reported it on Oct. 18.
Start with the ostensible reason for the second plane: to provide additional security and to have a spare in case of a breakdown, according to G. E.
No one I spoke to in the field of corporate security said
that made any sense, especially in the instance when the second plane stayed in Anchorage while Mr. Immelt traveled to Asia.
(In his letter, Mr. Immelt said he “worked 100-hour weeks with more than 60 percent of my time on the road.”)
Mr. Davis of Melius Research sharply disagreed, saying Mr. Immelt “was the imperial C. E.O.’’
“Not even heads of state get that kind of treatment,’’ Mr. Davis said.
“I immediately called the company and asked if this could possibly be true.”
had told him that the issue had been “blown all out of proportion.” Publicly, the company said
that the two-plane arrangement was used only on “limited occasions” and had been halted by Mr. Immelt in 2014.
Mr. Strang said that dispatching a second plane in case of mechanical breakdown would seem excessive, given
that airplanes in other places could be used in case of emergency.
The bizarre case of General Electric’s use of a second corporate jet to follow its former chief executive, Jeff Immelt, as he hopscotched around the globe seems such an outlandish waste of money
that many reacted with disbelief after The Wall Street Journal reported it on Oct. 18.