GE 2013 Annual Report Download - page 13

earnings in line with industrial growth
thereafter. Our specialty fi nance
franchises have strong positions with
mid-market customers. We can origi-
nate new businesses at high margins.
We should have more than $90 bil-
lion of cash to allocate over the next
three years, based on CFOA growth,
balance-sheet effi ciency, GE Capital
dividends, and dispositions. We plan
to return the majority of this cash
to investors. Growing the GE divi-
dend remains most important to the
majority of investors. We will reduce
our share count, aiming for a 10%
reduction between 2012 and 2015.
We will accelerate growth through
“bolt-on” acquisitions. Early in the year,
we announced the purchase of Thermo
Fisher’s bioprocess manufacturing
business in Healthcare, and Cameron’s
reciprocating compressor business
in Oil & Gas. Both fi t our model of
opportunistic purchases where GE
adds value through technology, global
distribution and supply chain scale.
Importantly, they allow us to complete
market solutions for our customers.
Our plans for 2014 and beyond should
be attractive to investors. You will see
steady EPS growth, with a more valu-
able mix. We have substantial cash
available to create shareholder value.
I am investing right alongside of you.
I have invested my entire bonus in GE
stock and have purchased 145,000
shares so far this year. I now own 2
million shares outright, with another
2.8 million available if we perform. Like
the rest of our leaders, I believe in GE.
Our Team Is Making Progress
Jeff Bezos is an extraordinary leader
and entrepreneur who founded
Amazon.com. Recently, he made the
assertion that most businesses have
short life spans. He said: “Companies
come and go. And, the companies that
are the shiniest and most important
in any era, you wait a few decades and
they are gone.” But, GE has remained
competitive because we learn
and change. When we make prog-
ress, our investors are rewarded. The
foundation of the Company is deter-
mined people with a winning culture.
At our kickoff meeting this year, the
leader of our Ultrasound business —
Anders Wold — gave a presentation
about the power of ultrasound to solve
global and rural health issues. In the
1990s, we were #7 in ultrasound.
Today we are #1. In the past, we broke
even; today we grow profi ts 15%
annually at high margins. Ultrasound
is a fast-paced, global business;
and we are the best. If we trapped
ourselves in dogma and slogans —
don’t try new things; big companies
can’t be fast; stick to what you
know — we would have given up on
ultrasound long ago. Instead, we
are winning.
Kevin Nolan is a 24-year GE veteran
who is VP-Technology of our
Appliances business. He is a great
engineer, well versed in GE training
and process. We asked him to be
a leader of FastWorks. Kevin grew
up in the world of GE process and
structure. Today, we need Kevin to
move faster than our Korean competi-
tors. Kevin has reached outside
of GE for help. We set up a venture
with Quirky, a collaborative manufac-
turing startup. Working together,
we will make progress towards
a six-month cycle for new products
and rapid consumer feedback.
Jen VanBelle is a 15-year GE veteran.
She is leading our efforts to strengthen
GE Capital’s regulatory capability.
This is a job she couldn’t have imagined
or wanted fi ve years ago. But Jen
is a great, adaptable leader; and
because of her, we can make progress
toward becoming a model fi nancial
services company.
Heiner Markhoff is a 20-year GE
veteran who leads our Water business.
Through his resilience and focused
execution, we are turning this business
into a successful GE franchise. More
importantly, we are making progress in
key infrastructure markets like indus-
trial water reuse and unconventional
fuels. This could be our “Ultrasound”
for the future.
These are just a few examples of
great leaders at GE. People love our
Company because they are commit-
ted to the interesting and impactful
work they do. They stay because they
work with other great people. And
this team is committed to solving the
challenges of today’s complex global
business environment.
Our team is excited and united. We will
execute the strategy: driving infra-
structure leadership; investing in the
innovation of effi ciency; building com-
petitive advantage; achieving a culture
of simplifi cation; and investing your
cash wisely. We will deliver a fi nancial
performance that creates shareholder
value. We will focus on what is import-
ant and move faster.
In December, I sat with four of the
most pre-eminent brain scientists in
the U.S. We discussed the advanced
technology around treating diseases
of the brain, from Alzheimer’s to
traumatic brain injury. They feel that
GE can have a big role in treating
brain disease through our leadership
in diagnostics. This is one of the most
interesting, promising and challenging
horizons in healthcare.
I sat back and daydreamed about the
Dubai Air Show. If we were able to
make such strong progress in aviation
innovation in fi ve years — 20%
improvement in fuel effi ciency —
just think what we can do in the next
fi ve years to treat brain diseases.
We are just the company to advance
brain science.
That is because we believe in progress
… because we are willing to take risks
… because we are GE.
Jeffrey R. Immelt
Chairman of the Board
and Chief Executive Offi cer
February 27, 2014
GE 2013 ANNUAL REPORT 11