GE - Imagination at Work

In 1891, inventor Thomas Edison founded the Edison General Electric Company. Two years later, the company’s merger with the Thomson-Huston Company resulted in the creation of a corporation that would become an icon in the business world - General Electric. Even today, many of the business areas that Edison himself worked on remain key sectors for the company: lighting, transportation, industrial products, power transmission, and medical equipment. However, there has also been much diversification over the years. Both BusinessWeek and Fast Company have placed GE fourth in their lists of the world’s most innovative companies this year. With more than 300,000 employees in more thant 100 countries, the company that was led by Jack Welch for more than 20 years has become an agile, creative and innovative giant - a rare combination that is one of the keys to its success.

GE’s slogan, “Imagination at Work”, demonstrates an unfailing commitment to innovation and the entire company works around the formula “innovation=imagination”. With an emphasis on respect, ethics, leadership, and constant learning, GE achieves a corporate culture that must be unique for a company of its size and which is another important factor in its success. The company is capable of adapting quickly to any new market it enters, with a response capacity worthy of admiration in a global company. These new business areas include nanotechnology, cleaner power generation and water purifications systems, among others.

While maintaining the principles of its founders GE continues to look to the future, constantly aiming to stay ahead of the competition, and signaling the path ahead for the rest of the corporate world.