Subject: A message from John Rice
From: [email-masked]
To: [email-masked]
Cc: [email-masked], [email-masked]
Date: Mon, 8 Jul 2002 01:41:00 -0700 (PDT)

Good news!  Please find a message from Power Systems CEO John Rice:

 Last week, I spent several days with people in Washington, D.C. and at our
Global Research Center (GRC) in Niskayuna, NY, who play large roles in
support of our growth plans.

In Washington, I visited with a number of Senators and Representatives who
are shaping energy legislation. The purpose for these meetings was to
introduce our business and to find out where we could be helpful in
providing information to support their work. I also met with Bob Card, Under
Secretary at the Department of Energy, whose office manages most of the
government funding effort in support of new energy technologies. Bob had
recently visited the GRC and commented on the outstanding work being done
there and the close collaboration that existed with GEPS.

While I was in Washington, there was yet more "swirl" coming now from
WorldCom and (even) Martha Stewart! The people I met with were very
concerned about all the recent examples of poor corporate leadership. But it
was gratifying to me to see the respect they have for GE and the reputation
for integrity that goes with our name.

I also spent a day with Jon Ebacher, Vic Abate, Scott Donnelly (leader of
the GRC), and their teams, discussing some of the great new technologies
that are making a difference for our customers today, and creating the
foundation for our future. I agree with Bob Card's assessment, and really
think that the collaboration between GEPS and the GRC is outstanding and
exemplifies the best of what we mean by "boundaryless behavior." I love the
enthusiasm that was evident in every discussion, and am particularly pleased
with the work being done to integrate our newest acquisitions - Bently
Nevada, GE Wind and PII. This is the kind of work that will separate us from
all the other companies out there that are just buying businesses to get
bigger.

Great technology and great people continue to be our most important assets.
When we get it right, we can't be beat. When we get it wrong, our customers
wonder why they cannot do business with the "six sigma" GE they read about.

Little things can go a long way toward making the large, complicated global
business that we are simpler and more "user friendly" for our customers to
work with. Customers sometimes ask us to help with problems that belong to
someone else - another person, function, or even business. In these
situations our response MUST be to make sure the problem gets quickly
communicated to the teams that can resolve it.

Believe it or not, we have had several recent examples where GE people have
responded with "it is not my department" or "try calling Jim" rather than
take the initiative themselves to help. To put it mildly, this is
unacceptable. To put it bluntly, people in customer facing positions who
respond like this will not be left in their jobs. When it comes to customer
centric behavior, everyone has to be in the game and we cannot let
"functions," "departments," or "P&L's" become barriers!

In these uncertain times, you and I should be certain of one thing, and
that's the importance of integrity. With everything going on in today's
business world, integrity must be absolute. It has to guide our
decision-making process - and ultimately defines who we are. This deeply
held value has been, and will continue to be, a cornerstone of our
competitive advantage, and every single GEPS employee in every corner of the
world has a role to play.

Finally, in a few days we will be reporting on yet another "best quarter" in
the long history of our business. Thanks to all of you for these results and
for all you are doing to help us get ready for change - and success - in the
future.

John