President's Speeches: From 36 Top CEOs Around the World

Author: Jack Welch (USA)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-10-01
Features: Driven by a strong entrepreneurial spirit, commerce has gradually evolved into a revolution. The solitary camel caravans on the Silk Road have transformed into competition in every corner of the world. Globalization has made unique contributions to the development and progress of civilization, creating unlimited business opportunities and immense wealth for those who understand how to participate. Li Ka-shing, Chairman of() (CK Hutchison Holdings Limited)
We ask ourselves, how do we cultivate great leaders? How do we encourage employees to expand their capabilities? How do we make the desire for lifelong learning a necessity? Our conclusion is: provide opportunities for change and improvement, try new methods to attract them, and make them realize that this is a rapidly changing world, and you must learn to adapt to it. Philip Condit, Chairman and CEO of Boeing
Stagnation will face huge risks because our customers and the technology market we operate in will not stop developing because of our lack of progress. Stagnation means ceding the market. Stagnation means choosing the path of retreat instead of leadership. Carly Fiorina, Chairman, President, and CEO of HP
Another philosophy of leadership is: don’t waste your time on small, incremental changes. If you don’t take bold action, change will not be effective. People can adapt to bold changes. They are not afraid of change; they are only afraid of uncertainty. They are afraid of a lack of clear communication at critical, unknown junctures. Therefore, timely, frequent, and unimpeded communication is essential. Richard Brown, Chairman and CEO of EDS
The financial crisis that began in Thailand in July 1997 severely impacted Southeast Asia and spread worldwide. China escaped this epidemic with almost no damage. Let’s be honest, China avoided it largely because its financial system is closed to the outside world. But this situation cannot last forever. George Soros, Chairman of Quantum Fund
Microsoft itself has been adopting new development methods to maintain its leading position. We are always willing to discard old ways and create new ones. Bill Gates, Chairman and CEO, and Chief Software Designer of Microsoft
Some people have admirable moral standards, while others are always greedy for small gains. Business management, however, can only have one set of rules, and it must apply to everyone. Establishing rules means appropriately blending regulation, market incentives, and punishment together, and this has never been easy. I can’t help but wonder that even after the Enron scandal, establishing and updating relevant rules remains a huge challenge. Alan Greenspan, Chairman of the Federal Reserve
Self-correction has begun. Despite the many difficulties we currently face, I believe the environment after the Enron scandal presents an opportunity—a chance for all stakeholders to reassess our current behavior and update our fundamental principles. Henry Paulson, Chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs
This book collects and supplements 42 excellent speeches from the "Leaders' Platform" column of the《21st Century Business Herald》. It includes the speakers’ biographies, their company profiles, and relevant background information. The book is divided into four parts: Philosophy, Strategy, Management, and the New Economy.
China is currently one of the world’s most dynamic and competitive economies. Business leaders face unprecedented opportunities and pressures brought by globalization. They feel more closely connected to the world’s development trends than ever before. The anxiety of being overwhelmed by rapid growth overshadows the excitement of it, and the feeling of walking on eggshells becomes a common experience for entrepreneurs.
We know that those who are narrow-minded and complacent cannot gain a global vision and thus cannot enter the global economy. How to respond to the ever-changing global economy, how to find one’s own life coordinates, and how to seek a reference in uncertainty—these are the questions they eagerly hope to answer.
"Where there is a will, there is a way." The majority of the speakers in this book are globally renowned business leaders, such as Jack Welch, Bill Gates, George Soros, Ray Croc, Li Ka-shing, and Jack Welch; the companies they lead are also globally recognized, many of which are among the Fortune 500, such as ExxonMobil, General Electric, General Motors, Shell, HP, Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola, IBM, and Boeing. Their mature business philosophies and management models hold immense value and reference significance for Chinese entrepreneurs.