Most Respected Companies

Look at the recent "Most Respected Companies" survey by the Financial Times. Who are the most respected companies and business leaders at the current time? Rather predictably, they are Jack Welch and General Electric, and Bill Gates and Microsoft. Neither has achieved its world-class status by playing nice. Welch is still remembered for the brutal downsizing he led his business through, and for the environmental pollution incidents and prosecutions. Microsoft has had one of the highest-profile cases of bullying market dominance in recent times, and Gates has been able to achieve the financial status where he can choose to give away lots of money by being ruthless in business.