Book Review: The Man Who Broke Capitalism by David Gelles (2022)
Synopsis: This non-fiction book talks about Jack Welch, who took over as CEO of General Electric in 1981 and fundamentally changed the company by creating a policy that maximized investor profits at the expense of the employees, a model the author argues destroyed capitalism when other companies followed suit. Review: I came across this book at my local library a few days ago and, while it isn't something I probably wouldn't normally read, decided to give it a try. Overall, I have to say it was an interesting book. I always read books like this with a bit of a grain of salt because you don't always know the author's motivations. However, in this case, I do think Gelles made some fundamentally sound arguments regarding General Electric's policies in the 1980s, effectively changing both that company and similar companies by getting away from being a place where people could expect life-long employment and top-level compensation and benefits to being at risk of a lay...