Jack Welch
This celebrity goo was created by Scott Hardie.
publication date: Saturday, March 14, 2026 (part of March 2026)
category: 
Business
clue: Gee, this electricity company leader is about as popular today as a neutron bomb: A CEO who spent two decades maximizing executive pay while forcing his employees into competition to avoid being cut in his yearly termination quota.
explanation: Welch ran GE from 1981 to 2001. He earned the nickname "Neutron Jack" for terminating large numbers of employees while leaving buildings intact, and his insistence on firing 10% of the workforce every year turned working at GE into a cutthroat competition in which employees frequently sabotaged one another. He was also a major driver of the explosive growth in executive pay during this era by tying bonuses to quarterly increases instead of long-term investment. Although very well-regarded during his tenure, he is seen today as having had a corrosive effect on the long-term health of American business. more…
intended difficulty: easy
solved by: Russ Wilhelm, Steve West, Samir Mehta, Richard Slominsky, Hugh Spaffman, and Wilbur Soot
player landmarks: This was the first goo solved by Wilbur Soot and Hugh Spaffman.
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