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image Percy Barnevik of ABB

In 1987, few would have predicted the remarkable success that followed the merger of two sleepy European engineering firms.1 Percy Barnevik, until recently CEO of ABB (Asea Brown Boveri, originally of Sweden), was the architect of the merger that formed the giant worldwide engineering and power organization.

Barnevik’s leadership has been widely recognized as something special. From our viewpoint, we see him as a combination of Visionary Hero and SuperLeader—Visionary Hero because of the astonishing growth that has resulted in more than 100 acquisitions and the addition of 100,000 employees to the payroll, and SuperLeader ...

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