The GE Work-Out

This book is aimed at managers and employees who want to break down bureaucracy and hierarchy. People who have followed GE's tremendous success with it's WorkOut program, and are interested in applying GE techniques to their organizations will use this book to conduct their own Work-Out process. It will also be useful to consultants who want to introduce the Work-Out approach to their clients. The book uses case examples from GE and other companies where Work-Out has been employed. It also presents effective assessment and decision making tools. The book will provide concrete and realistic guidance for conducting Work-Out activities, and it will emphasize the importance of imbedding Work-Out in a larger scheme of leadership development, employee empowerment and productivity improvements. The book will help readers develop a realistic understanding of what Work-Out can do for their organization, and what it takes for the organization to do Work-Out. This book is unique because its authors represent both the client and consultant perspective on Work-Out. The co-authors all developed Work-Out at GE. Consultants Kerr, Ulrich and Ashkenas created the initial conceptual approach to Work-Out and implemented it various GE businesses. Burke managed the first Work-Out Town Meeting held in GE, and then created Work-Out in the Industrial and Power Systems business. Kerr is now GE's Chief Learning Office. The other co-authors have all done extensive work at GE and with other companies. That work has been at all levels - working directly with Jack Welch, with business presidents, with operating managers, with working teams. They have also all applied the GE Work-Out approach to other organizations, making necessary adaptations as the organizations require, while protecting the integrity of the process. "WorkOut" will explain how readers can implement this powerful GE-proven program in their own organizations.