Feldman's Faves: July 19, 2021

Good morning BL5 - It’s very exciting to be in STAGE 3 here in Ontario. I look forward to the day when we can all see each other in person at a bar (although I appreciate that some of you may have a different view).

No theme this week – just some stuff that is interesting to me. Unrelated, I just watched the movie version of In the Heights, which is great family fun – I highly recommend it for those of you who (like me) have basically finished Netflix, Prime, HBO and Apple TV, etc.…..

Lights Out: Pride, Delusion, and the Fall of General Electric – By: Thomas Gryta and Ted Mann – When I was a kid my dad always talked about Jack Welch AKK, Neutron Jack, and what a genius he was and how he turned GE into the ultimate corporate empire. I read everything I could find on Welch and also believed he was the “Michael Jordan” of business (yes I have always been a dork). GE was THE conglomerate of all conglomerates that manufactured jet engines, microwaves and power turbines, that was one of the world’s largest finance companies and that owned NBC – to name just a few of its businesses. Not only were the holdings vast but each business unit was also dominant in its field – Welch insisted on it. The results were spectacular and shareholders LOVED him. There is no question that Welch was one of a kind and anyone that would replace him was in for a challenge. The fight to replace Welch – among three extremely impressive GE executives - was ultimately won by Jeffery Immelt, who realized that what he inherited was not as a great as he and the rest of the world actually believed. It wasn’t exactly the case of an “emperor with no clothes”, but Welch was extremely aggressive in making sure every business unit “hit its numbers” – the consequences of this culture were felt (or at least realized) only after he left. Immelt’s first day on the job as CEO was on September 11, 2001 – so that was not a great omen. His tenure at GE was quite a roller coaster as a result of some of his own moves and decisions – the failed Alstom deal and the drop in share price were just some examples. Lights Out is a very interesting study about the meteoric rise of GE and the many obstacles it faced following the Welch era and what happens when “you fly too close to the sun”. Here is a good summary from Gates Notes - https://www.gatesnotes.com/Books/Lights-Out

Solvable Reopening New York Safely and Securely is Solvable – New York is a few months ahead of Toronto in getting back to normal – they hit their version of “stage 3” quite a while ago. Watching the Knicks and the Nets play to full stadiums of fans was very exciting to see earlier this year. I think we will be there soon ourselves – the Jays are coming home at the end of the month – yay! One great innovation coming out of NYC on the path back to “normal” is the voluntary Excelsior Pass that Is being used as a means to give people comfort that we can once again congregate safely. This pass is one example of people thinking of innovative ways of getting us back to some version of our lives prior to Covid. Although this pass is just one idea, it is an example of my belief that there are enough smart, passionate (and greedy) people out in the world to ensure that any problem is solvable (hence the name of this PODCAST). More specifically this shows how innovation and political will can deliver optimal results. It will be interesting to see how we blend these elements here in Canada. Here is a summary from the PODCAST itself “Jason DiGianni is the project lead for the Excelsior Pass. He thinks the free digital tool (which confirms negative COVID-19 tests and positive vaccine statuses) can help New York reopen safely and swiftly.”: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/solvable/id1463448386#episodeGuid=8d8ec0e0-9182-11eb-b68a-eb61a1ba4498

Thank you for your ongoing engagement and participation.

And remember to stay safe, stay healthy and to docket daily.

Jon