Suzy Welch (born 1959) is an American author, television commentator, business advisor, and public speaker. She is also the co-author (with her late husband
Jack Welch
John Francis Welch Jr. (November 19, 1935 – March 1, 2020) was an American business executive, chemical engineer, and writer. He was Chairman and CEO of General Electric (GE) between 1981 and 2001.
His long career at General Electric ( ...
) of the business books ''Winning'',
published in 2005, and ''The Real Life MBA'', published in 2015.
Early life and education
In 1959, Welch was born as Suzanne Spring in
Portland, Oregon
Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...
. Welch's parents are Phyllis and Bernard Spring.
She was primarily raised in New York and New England. Her father is an architect and architectural school administrator. Starting in tenth grade Welch attended
Phillips Exeter Academy
Phillips Exeter Academy (often called Exeter or PEA) is an Independent school, independent, co-educational, college-preparatory school in Exeter, New Hampshire. Established in 1781, it is America's sixth-oldest boarding school and educates an es ...
, and
Radcliffe College
Radcliffe College was a Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that was founded in 1879. In 1999, it was fully incorporated into Harvard Colle ...
(
Harvard
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...
, 1984), and
Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate school, graduate business school of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university. Located in Allston, Massachusetts, HBS owns Harvard Business Publishing, which p ...
, from which she graduated as a
Baker Scholar in 1988, in the top five percent of her class.
Career
Welch started her career as a reporter with the ''
Miami Herald
The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by McClatchy, The McClatchy Company and headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Founded in 1903, it is the fifth-largest newspaper in Florida, serving Miami-Dade, Broward County, Fl ...
'' and then with the
Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City.
Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...
. After business school, she worked for several years at
Bain & Company, a
management consulting
Management consulting is the practice of providing consulting services to organizations to improve their performance or in any way to assist in achieving organizational objectives. Organizations may draw upon the services of management consultant ...
firm based in
Boston
Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
. She was later named editor-in-chief of the ''
Harvard Business Review
''Harvard Business Review'' (''HBR'') is a general management magazine published by Harvard Business Publishing, a not-for-profit, independent corporation that is an affiliate of Harvard Business School. ''HBR'' is published six times a year ...
''. She has written a novel, and authored and edited numerous books and articles dealing with leadership, organizational change, and human resource management.
In early 2002, Welch was forced to resign from the ''Harvard Business Review'' after admitting to an affair with the then-married
Jack Welch
John Francis Welch Jr. (November 19, 1935 – March 1, 2020) was an American business executive, chemical engineer, and writer. He was Chairman and CEO of General Electric (GE) between 1981 and 2001.
His long career at General Electric ( ...
, the former chief executive officer of
General Electric
General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston.
Over the year ...
, while preparing an interview with him for the magazine. The affair was brought to the attention of the ''Review'' by Jane Welch, Welch's wife at the time. Jack Welch and Jane Welch divorced and he then married Suzy. Suzy had the interview pulled before it appeared in the ''Business Review''.
Together with her husband, Jack Welch, Suzy has co-authored several books including, ''Winning'', its companion volume, ''Winning: The Answers'', and ''The Real Life MBA: Your No-BS Guide to Winning the Game, Building a Team and Growing Your Career.'' Jack and Suzy also wrote "''The Welch Way''", a weekly column on business and career challenges that appeared in ''
BusinessWeek
''Bloomberg Businessweek'', previously known as ''BusinessWeek'' (and before that ''Business Week'' and ''The Business Week''), is an American monthly business magazine published 12 times a year. The magazine debuted in New York City in Septembe ...
'' magazine from 2005 to 2009 and was published in 45 newspapers across the world by ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' Syndicate. Together, they also founded
Jack Welch Management Institute, an online MBA program. Suzy Welch sold her interest in the school after her husband passed away, and while she often praises the highly-ranked school, she is no longer formally associated with it.
She has written about
work–life balance
In the intersection of Employment, work and personal life, the work–life balance is the equilibrium between the two. There are many aspects of one's personal life that can intersect with work, including family, leisure, and health. A work–lif ...
and other cultural issues for publications including ''
O, The Oprah Magazine
''O, The Oprah Magazine'', also known simply as ''O'', is an American monthly magazine founded by talk show host Oprah Winfrey and Hearst Communications. In 2021, Winfrey and Hearst rebranded it as ''Oprah Daily''.
Overview
It was first pu ...
'' and ''
The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
''. In addition, she has been a commentator on television programs including ''
Good Morning America
''Good Morning America'', often abbreviated as ''GMA'', is an American breakfast television, morning television program that is broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends wit ...
'', ''
The View'', ''
Morning Joe
''Morning Joe'' is an American morning news talk show, which airs weekdays from 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time Zone, Eastern Time on the cable news channel MSNBC. It features former United States House of Representatives, US Repr ...
'', ''
Your World With Neil Cavuto'', and ''
Power Lunch''. Her career expertise and perceptive commentary have made her a regular contributor on The TODAY Show
and Bulls & Bears.
In 2023, Suzy was appointed to the faculty of the
NYU Stern School of Business, where she teaches “Becoming You: How to Craft the Authentic Life You Want and Need.”
Personal life
Welch is formerly known as Suzy Wetlaufer.
Welch is the mother of four adult children (from her previous marriage). She married
Jack Welch
John Francis Welch Jr. (November 19, 1935 – March 1, 2020) was an American business executive, chemical engineer, and writer. He was Chairman and CEO of General Electric (GE) between 1981 and 2001.
His long career at General Electric ( ...
, former CEO of
General Electric
General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston.
Over the year ...
, in 2004, after meeting him in October 2000.
They remained married until his death
in 2020.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Welch, Suzy
1959 births
Living people
Phillips Exeter Academy alumni
Harvard Business School alumni
Writers from Lexington, Massachusetts
Journalists from Massachusetts
American business and financial journalists
20th-century American women journalists
20th-century American journalists
20th-century American women writers
21st-century American journalists
21st-century American women journalists
21st-century American women writers
Miami Herald people
Associated Press reporters
People from North Palm Beach, Florida
Women business and financial journalists
Radcliffe College alumni