General Electric: What's an industrial conglomerate to do?

Oct 1, 2018
General Electric told investors Monday it has ousted CEO John Flannery after only about a year in the job. The company said it’s also going to miss profit forecasts this year. These are tough times at one of America’s most iconic businesses, which raises the question: What is the role of an industrial conglomerate like […]
SEBASTIEN BOZON/AFP/Getty Images

What it takes to thrive in a constantly changing workplace

Sep 17, 2018
Beth Comstock writes about guiding General Electric through breakthroughs and challenges in her new book.
Beth Comstock, then vice chair of business innovations at General Electric, speaks during the Fast Company Innovation Festival in 2015 in New York City.
Photo by Brad Barket/Getty Images for Fast Company

Who's better off in Erie's changing economy?

Feb 21, 2018
Local residents discuss the national — and their personal — economies.
Over drinks at the Polish Falcon, Erie residents discussed their personal economies.
Daisy Palacios/Marketplace

GE reckons with a large debt from an old business

Jan 16, 2018
General Electric CEO John Flannery said in an earnings call today that he was “deeply disappointed” in big liabilities found over on the company’s insurance side. GE actually sold off this business – insurance for long-term care – years ago. But turns out it’s still liable for billions of dollars’ worth of policies. Click the […]

GE to cut 12,000 jobs as demand for fossil fuel power stations falls

Dec 7, 2017
General Electric Co. announced today it’s cutting 12,000 jobs in its core power business worldwide, as demand for coal and other fossil fuels softens. It’s the latest move by new CEO John Flannery to cut costs and turn things around at the struggling conglomerate, whose stock plunged 44 percent this year. GE Power is the company’s […]

GE cuts dividend but shareholders may ultimately benefit

Nov 13, 2017
General Electric announced today that all is maybe not well inside the multinational conglomerate empire. CEO John Flannery said the next couple years will be less profitable than previously thought and that, among other changes, he company will cut its annual dividend in half. That may sound scary if you’re holding some GE stock, or […]

GE focuses on the networked industrial frontier

Jan 20, 2017
As GE reports fourth-quarter earnings, we’ll look at the company’s focus on manufacturing with a digital emphasis. GE’s been investing in cloud-based industrial management tools and the “internet of things.”  Does that put the company in a good position to capitalize on the Trump administration’s interest in spurring domestic manufacturing? Click the above audio player […]

For public good, not for profit.

What does GE's deal with Baker Hughes mean for the oil industry?

Oct 31, 2016
General Electric wants to combine its oilfield services with a bigger competitor.
Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP/Getty Images

General Electric to spend $1.4 billion on 3-D printing

Sep 6, 2016
As GE focuses on high-tech industry, it's making a bid for two European printing outfits.
GE has been researching high-tech manufacturing for years.
YASUYOSHI CHIBA/AFP/Getty Images

More companies trade in suburbia for the city

Aug 3, 2016
GE and McDonald's are among those heading downtown in search of younger workers.
A rendering of General Electric's new global headquarters in Boston. 
General Electric, © Gensler