Jack Welch fired him from GE. He became a Fortune 500 CEO 3 years later

David Cote has already had a career most executives would envy, starting at Honeywell as CEO and delivering impressive returns. However, his path to the top wasn't without challenges. After retiring from Honeywell in 2018, Cote became executive chairman of Vertiv, an 80-year-old cooling company. Vertiv's market value surged from under $11 billion to $109 billion since going public.

But Cote's journey was marked by setbacks - his termination from GE in 1999 and Vertiv's initial struggles post-rejoining. Despite these hurdles, Cote's resilience shone through. He identified an opportunity in Vertiv's cooling business, positioning the company in the middle of a growing expansion. However, COVID hit Vertiv hard, causing a 55% drop in its stock price in 2023.

Despite these challenges, Cote continued to invest in direct-to-chip liquid cooling and acquired a cooling startup. Today, Vertiv is thriving, demonstrating the importance of resilience in the face of adversity.