Russell Stokes named President and CEO of GE Power

He succeeds Steve Bolze, the former president and CEO of GE Power, who has decided to retire, the company states in a press release. In his new role, Mr. Stokes will lead the integration of the legacy GE Power and Energy Connections businesses into one, power-focused unit called GE Power. “Russell brings a strong combination of operational, industrial and energy experience to this role, and can now scale his leadership skills with the combined GE Power and GE Energy Connections,” Jeff Immelt, chairman and CEO of GE, said. “Bringing these two businesses together, we saw an opportunity to align our global customer base, create a common strategy, and leverage synergies to simplify our structure. Since taking the role at Energy Connections, Russell has led the integration of Alstom Grid and planned disposition of Industrial Solutions. He has a keen sense of the market, and knows how to invest in technology ahead of the curve.” Russell Stokes is a GE veteran with 20 years in the company. For the past 18 months, he has led Energy Connections. Prior to this role he was president and CEO of GE Transportation. He has also held senior roles in GE Lighting and GE Aviation, and across a variety of functions, including finance, sourcing, services, and operations. In the press release the company states that the new, combined GE Power business, consisting of the legacy GE Power and Energy Connections businesses, will drive better customer focus, fewer redundancies and lower costs.