Reginald H. Jones

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (August 2011)

Reginald H. Jones (11 July 1917 - 30 December 2003(2003-12-30) (aged 86)) was the chairman and CEO of General Electric from 1972 to 1981.

Biography

Jones was born in Stoke-on-Trent, England, United Kingdom.^{[citation needed]}

After graduating from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, where he was a brother of Phi Sigma Kappa, Jones joined the GE's Business Training Course in 1939. He spent his entire career with GE. In 1968, Jones became the company's chief financial officer, and was elected senior vice-president two years later, in 1970. He attained the top spot in 1972, serving as CEO until 1981.^[1] He was awarded the Vermilye Medal in 1978.

Jones selected his successor, Jack Welch, based on the outcome of a succession contest. Jones' own account of that contest can be heard in an interview conducted with him by Prof. Gerald Zahavi (U-Albany, SUNY).^{[citation needed]} See links below to access a portion of that interview.

Jones is best known to the public for his role in changing the relationship between business and government. As Chairman of the Business Council and co-chairman of the Business Roundtable, he was a leader in the movement to develop a constructive business-government dialogue.^[2]

On 30 December 2003, Jones died in Greenwich, Connecticut, United States. During his tenure as CEO of GE he implementing various innovative strategic planning initiatives, driving the corporation further into a global marketplace. Under his watch, the company's sales more than doubled; its profits did even better. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, several business publications^[which?] acknowledged him to have been one of the most influential business leaders in America. In fact, in 1981, the year of his retirement, U.S. News & World Report ranked him as the most influential man in business.^{[citation needed]}

References

External links

• Appliance Magazine.com: Reginald H Jones.
• Reginald Jones interview by Gerald Zahavi (selection). Go to "Sept. 15, 2005 entry.
• Official GE biography of Reginald Jones.

This business-related biographical article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · d · e