New York (CNN Business) Jack Welch, who led General Electric through 20 years of its greatest financial success, has died. He was 84.

Welch became CEO of GE in 1981 and led it until his retirement in 2001.

"Today is a sad day for the entire GE family," GE CEO Larry Culp said in a statement. "Jack was larger than life and the heart of GE for half a century. He reshaped the face of our company and the business world. Jack was a strong and constant influence throughout my career despite never having worked directly for him."

GE GE Welch, who was named " Manager of the Century " by Fortune magazine in 1999, massively increased the scope and financial might ofduring his time at the top of the company. The market value of the stock rose from $14 billion to more than $400 billion, an increase of more than 2,700%, during those 20 years.

"He had a tremendous focus on shareholder value," said Jeff Sonnenfeld, a Yale business professor and founder and president of the Chief Executive Leadership Institute, who taught Welch in the early 1980s.