Removing the company from bureaucratic shackles, he decided that every division must strive to be the top in their respective markets or shut down. In a move that was criticised by many, he introduced a strict performance evaluation system.

He asked 4,000 managers in the company to review their staff annually. They were asked to identify the top 20 percent of staff who should be encouraged and rewarded. They were also asked to mark the 70 percent who were strong workers and lastly they were asked to list out those people whose performance needed to be improved or laid off.

'The 'vitality curve' became a model for building a 'people factory' with the greatest talent in any corporation,' says Welch in his autobiography.

Within five years, thousands of people lost their jobs and several units were shut down. While many detested his ruthless style of functioning, GE's success story was a subject of discussion among the business circles. He was acclaimed for a great management style that ensured the rise and growth of an ailing company.

Image: Jack Welch (L) and Jeffrey Immelt (R) at a press conference in New York. | Photograph: Doug Kanter/AFP/Getty Images