Steve Bolze: Winner of the 2016 Alumni Achievement Award

Steve Bolze is the president and CEO of GE Power, a $30B global business with 65,000 employees worldwide operating in over 150 countries. The business, the largest digital industrial segment in GE, is a world leader in power generation with deep domain expertise to help customers deliver electricity from a wide spectrum of fuel sources. Bolze’s GE career began in 1993 as the manager of mergers and acquisitions for GE Corporate Development.  In 1995, he joined GE Energy in Schenectady, NY, as manager of competitive strategies and later became the product manager for large steam turbines.  He subsequently held several leadership roles in energy services, including president & general manager of energy management services. 

In 2002, Bolze moved to GE Healthcare as the general manager of functional and molecular imaging in Milwaukee.  In 2003, he was appointed a company officer and became vice president, Amersham acquisition, based in London.  Bolze then moved to the role of president  & CEO of GE Healthcare International, based in Paris; afterward, he was named vice president, power generation, in November 2005. Bolze became a GE corporate senior vice president in September 2008. In 2014, Bolze served as one of the key leaders in introducing and executing the recently completed acquisition of Alstom’s power and grid businesses, the largest acquisition in GE’s history. Bolze is active in many energy-related organizations including the World Energy Council, the International Energy Agency, and the World Economic Forum.  In January 2014, he was appointed the chair of the World Economic Forum’s Electricity Technology Community and reappointed for 2015. 

Bolze holds a BS degree in electrical engineering from Duke University and earned an MBA from the University of Michigan in 1989. Prior to joining GE, Bolze served as a general management consultant for Corporate Decisions Inc. and project manager for Westinghouse and intern at NASA. Bolze is married and has three sons. After moving 10 times, he and his family currently live in Duxbury, Mass.  He was a member of the Theta Chi fraternity at Duke and a member of the Club Football team.  He serves on the Pratt Engineering School Board of Visitors.

About the Award

Established in 1989, this award recognizes an alumnus or alumna of the business school whose attainments in their professional field have brought distinction to themselves, credit to the school, and benefit to their fellow citizens.

The Alumni Achievement Award has been named in honor of David D. Alger, MBA 1968, and 2001 recipient of this award. David was a dynamic, involved, passionate member of the Michigan Business School community and a member of the School’s Visiting Committee. David perished in the events of Sept. 11, 2001.

Previous Recipients

2015 Jeff T. Blau BBA '90

2014 Harvey Spevak MAcc, BBA 1987

2013 Mary Kay Haben MBA 1979

2012 Michael Jandernoa BBA 1972

2011 Fred Erb BBA 1947

2010 J. Ira Harris BBA 1959

2009 Stephen M. Ross BBA 1962

2008 John M. Fahey, Jr. MBA 1975

2007 Stephen Sanger MBA 1970

2006 Robert Shaye BBA 1960

2005 Ronald N. Weiser BBA 1966

2004 John Madigan BBA 1958, MBA 1959

2003 Allan D. Gilmour MBA 1959

2002 Cleveland Christophe MBA 1967

2001 David D. Alger MBA 1968

2000 Stan Frankel AB 1963, MBA 1964

1999 Barnett Helzberg BBA 1956

1998 Joel Tauber BBA 1956, JD 1959, MBA 1963

1997 Sam Wyly MBA 1957

1996 Sandy Robertson BBA 1953, MBA 1954

1995 David B. Hermelin BBA 1958

1994 Martha Seger BBA 1954, MBA 1955, PhD 1971

1993 Everett E. Berg MBA 1948

1992 Robert Briggs AB 1925, MBA 1928, HON LLD 1969

1991 L. William Seidman MBA 1949

1990 Eugene B. Power BA 1927, MBA 1930