Lawrence Bossidy
Encyclopedia
Lawrence A. Bossidy (born March 5, 1935) is a businessman and author
. He is a retired CEO of AlliedSignal
(later Honeywell
), and has also spent more than 30 years rising into executive power at General Electric
.
on March 5, 1935 and has a twin brother, Tom Bossidy. Bossidy worked at the family shoe store growing up, had dreams of being a big league baseball pitcher. and once had a summer job of pitching baseball for a college league team in Quebec, Canada. When Bossidy was a senior in high school, a scout offered Bossidy a $40,000 contract to pitch for the Detroit Tigers. However, when the scout came to Bossidy's house with a check, Bossidy's mother wouldn't let him in the house insisting that Bossidy finish his studies at Colgate.
Bossidy graduated from Colgate University
in 1957 with a BA in economics. He was a member of the Mu Chapter of Delta Kappa Epsilon
fraternity at Colgate. Bossidy was later conferred a doctorate of Humane Letters from Colgate.
Bossidy stayed with General Electric for the next 34 years rising in the company through a number of executive positions including Chief Operating Officer of General Electric Credit Corporation from 1979 to 1981, Executive Vice President and President of GE’s Services and Materials Sector from 1981 to 1984, and Vice Chairman and Executive Officer of the General Electric Company from 1984 to 1991.
that began in the late 1960s when Bossidy came to audit GE's plastics division where Welch worked at the time. Bossidy later worked for Welch when Welch became CEO at General Electric. "Larry is a quick thinker, who energizes others around him. When he gets behind an idea, he lights up a room," says Welch. "He has both the mental toughness as well as the broad perspective that is necessary to lead and deliver results."
Before joining AlliedSignal, Bossidy was a high level executive at GE. He was very close to GE CEO Jack Welch
but left for Allied Signal because he was too close in age to Welch to be considered as his successor (GE has a mandatory 65 year old retirement age for its CEOs so somebody who is not a good ten years younger at the time of a CEO change would not be considered for the job).
. He became Chairman of Honeywell Corporation
when Honeywell was acquired by AlliedSignal in 1999. (Allied Signal, well known in the Aerospace, Aviation, and Military industries adopted the Honeywell name, as Honeywell's product diversity provided greater notoriety in the consumer market). In 2002, he co-authored a book entitled Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done. (ISBN 0-609-61057-0)
He is currently a director of the pharmaceutical company Merck
.
and has a winter home in Palm Beach, Florida
.
Bossidy's favorite author is James Joyce
.
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
. He is a retired CEO of AlliedSignal
AlliedSignal
AlliedSignal was an aerospace, automotive and engineering company that acquired and merged with Honeywell for $15 billion in 1999, after which the new group adopted the Honeywell name.AlliedSignal was created through a 1985 merger of Allied Corp...
(later Honeywell
Honeywell
Honeywell International, Inc. is a major conglomerate company that produces a variety of consumer products, engineering services, and aerospace systems for a wide variety of customers, from private consumers to major corporations and governments....
), and has also spent more than 30 years rising into executive power at General Electric
General Electric
General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
.
Early life and education
Bossidy was born in Pittsfield, MassachusettsPittsfield, Massachusetts
Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Its area code is 413. Its ZIP code is 01201...
on March 5, 1935 and has a twin brother, Tom Bossidy. Bossidy worked at the family shoe store growing up, had dreams of being a big league baseball pitcher. and once had a summer job of pitching baseball for a college league team in Quebec, Canada. When Bossidy was a senior in high school, a scout offered Bossidy a $40,000 contract to pitch for the Detroit Tigers. However, when the scout came to Bossidy's house with a check, Bossidy's mother wouldn't let him in the house insisting that Bossidy finish his studies at Colgate.
Bossidy graduated from Colgate University
Colgate University
Colgate University is a private liberal arts college in Hamilton, New York, USA. The school was founded in 1819 as a Baptist seminary and later became non-denominational. It is named for the Colgate family who greatly contributed to the university's endowment in the 19th century.Colgate has 52...
in 1957 with a BA in economics. He was a member of the Mu Chapter of Delta Kappa Epsilon
Delta Kappa Epsilon
Delta Kappa Epsilon is a fraternity founded at Yale College in 1844 by 15 men of the sophomore class who had not been invited to join the two existing societies...
fraternity at Colgate. Bossidy was later conferred a doctorate of Humane Letters from Colgate.
Career with General Electric
Bossidy joined General Electric in 1957. Bossidy started out in General Electric's financial training program.Bossidy stayed with General Electric for the next 34 years rising in the company through a number of executive positions including Chief Operating Officer of General Electric Credit Corporation from 1979 to 1981, Executive Vice President and President of GE’s Services and Materials Sector from 1981 to 1984, and Vice Chairman and Executive Officer of the General Electric Company from 1984 to 1991.
CEO of General Electric Credit Corporation
One of Bossidy's most important jobs at General Electric was as Chief Operating Officer of General Electric Credit Corporation from 1979 to 1981. During Bossidy's tenure as head of General Electric Credit Corporation, the subsidiary, founded in 1943, came into its own. Between 1979 and 1984, its assets doubled, to $16 billion, due to expansion into leasing and selling of heavy industrial goods, inventories, real estate, and insurance. The leasing operations also provided General Electric with tax shelters from accelerated depreciation on equipment that GE developed that were then leased by the credit corporation. Dennis Dammerman worked for Bossidy at GE Credit and remembered that Bossidy "could be boisterous and a little unsettling to the insecure. He challenged everything, If you couldn't back up what you said, look out. But he also challenges himself."Relationship with GE CEO Jack Welch
Bossidy had a long term business relationship with General Electric CEO Jack WelchJack Welch
John Francis "Jack" Welch, Jr. is an American chemical engineer, business executive, and author. He was Chairman and CEO of General Electric between 1981 and 2001...
that began in the late 1960s when Bossidy came to audit GE's plastics division where Welch worked at the time. Bossidy later worked for Welch when Welch became CEO at General Electric. "Larry is a quick thinker, who energizes others around him. When he gets behind an idea, he lights up a room," says Welch. "He has both the mental toughness as well as the broad perspective that is necessary to lead and deliver results."
Before joining AlliedSignal, Bossidy was a high level executive at GE. He was very close to GE CEO Jack Welch
Jack Welch
John Francis "Jack" Welch, Jr. is an American chemical engineer, business executive, and author. He was Chairman and CEO of General Electric between 1981 and 2001...
but left for Allied Signal because he was too close in age to Welch to be considered as his successor (GE has a mandatory 65 year old retirement age for its CEOs so somebody who is not a good ten years younger at the time of a CEO change would not be considered for the job).
Career at AlliedSignal
From 1991-1999 Bossidy served as Chairman and CEO of AlliedSignal CorporationAlliedSignal
AlliedSignal was an aerospace, automotive and engineering company that acquired and merged with Honeywell for $15 billion in 1999, after which the new group adopted the Honeywell name.AlliedSignal was created through a 1985 merger of Allied Corp...
. He became Chairman of Honeywell Corporation
Honeywell
Honeywell International, Inc. is a major conglomerate company that produces a variety of consumer products, engineering services, and aerospace systems for a wide variety of customers, from private consumers to major corporations and governments....
when Honeywell was acquired by AlliedSignal in 1999. (Allied Signal, well known in the Aerospace, Aviation, and Military industries adopted the Honeywell name, as Honeywell's product diversity provided greater notoriety in the consumer market). In 2002, he co-authored a book entitled Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done. (ISBN 0-609-61057-0)
He is currently a director of the pharmaceutical company Merck
Merck & Co.
Merck & Co., Inc. , also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme or MSD outside the United States and Canada, is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. The Merck headquarters is located in Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, an unincorporated area in Readington Township...
.
Personal background
Bossidy married Nancy Bossidy in 1956. The Bossidys have six daughters and three sons and thirty grandchildren. Bossidy lives in Ridgefield, ConnecticutRidgefield, Connecticut
Ridgefield is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. Situated in the foothills of the Berkshire Mountains, the 300-year-old community had a population of 24,638 at the 2010 census. The town center, which was formerly a borough, is defined by the U.S...
and has a winter home in Palm Beach, Florida
Palm Beach, Florida
The Town of Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The Intracoastal Waterway separates it from the neighboring cities of West Palm Beach and Lake Worth...
.
Bossidy's favorite author is James Joyce
James Joyce
James Augustine Aloysius Joyce was an Irish novelist and poet, considered to be one of the most influential writers in the modernist avant-garde of the early 20th century...
.