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Brand Relevance: Making Competitors Irrelevant - always yours

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11<br />

THE INNOVATIVE ORGANIZATION<br />

In many companies the premium placed on being<br />

“ right ” is so high that there is virtually no room for<br />

speculation and imagination.<br />

—Gary Hamel, strategy guru<br />

We have met the enemy and he is us.<br />

—Pogo<br />

Creating substantial or transformational innovation that will<br />

drive a new category or subcategory is diffi cult in any case, but<br />

without a supportive organization, the odds against become<br />

huge. The right organization does not just happen. It often<br />

requires a change initiative, a cohesive set or programs, effective<br />

objectives and incentives, and the right people. Only a few<br />

have been successful at doing so. That is why the GE story is so<br />

instructive and inspirational. GE has taken its innovation heritage<br />

going back to Edison and the light bulb and given it a new<br />

direction and a new intensity.<br />

GE Story<br />

On September 10, 2001, one day before the infamous 9/11<br />

event, Jeff Immelt took over as CEO of GE from the fabled Jack<br />

Welch, who had run GE for two decades. 1 Welch implemented<br />

a strategy that involved aggressive cost reduction, systematic<br />

efforts to create exceptional managers, forceful performance<br />

evaluation of executives, and developing a portfolio of businesses<br />

327

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