Reginald H Jones

Biography

Jones was born in Stoke-on-Trent, England, United Kingdom.

After graduating from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, where he was a brother of Phi Sigma Kappa, Jones joined the GE's Business Training Course in 1939. He spent his entire career with GE. In 1968, Jones became the company's chief financial officer, and was elected senior vice-president two years later, in 1970. He attained the top spot in 1972, serving as CEO until 1981. He was awarded the Vermilye Medal in 1978.

Jones selected his successor, Jack Welch, based on the outcome of a succession contest. Jones' own account of that contest can be heard in an interview conducted with him by Prof. Gerald Zahavi (U-Albany, SUNY).

Jones is best known to the public for his role in changing the relationship between business and government. He was co-Chairman of the Business Roundtable. He served as Chairman of The Business Council in 1979 and 1980.

On 30 December 2003, Jones died in Greenwich, Connecticut, United States. During his tenure as CEO of GE he implemented various innovative strategic planning initiatives, driving the corporation further into a global marketplace. Under his watch, the company's sales more than doubled; its profits did even better. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, several business publications acknowledged him to have been one of the most influential business leaders in America. In fact, in 1980, U.S. News & World Report ranked him as the most influential man in business.

Jones was a former chair of Wharton’s Overseers and a Trustee of the University of Pennsylvania. He was awarded an honorary doctorate from Penn in 1980. He continues to be recognized at Wharton through the Reginald H. Jones Professorship of Corporate Management and the Reginald H. Jones and Grace Cole Jones Decade Donors.