Forbes.com readers and editors rank Gerard Swope as the 20th most influential businessman of all time. As president of General Electric, Gerard Swope expanded GE's consumer product offerings: The company sold its first electric clothes washer and refrigerator under his leadership. GE's foray into home appliances paid dividends for generations. He also oversaw the creation of the GE Credit Corp. to help finance the sale of appliances. GE Credit paved the way for consumer lending in the U.S., growing into GE Capital, now a $64 billion financial services giant. But his major legacy was in labor relations: Swope instituted "corporate welfare," a widely replicated program in which workers were offered benefits such as profit sharing. [/align]　　 　　
　　
　　福布斯网站（Forbes.com）的读者和编辑将杰拉尔德•斯沃普列为第20位有史以来最有影响力的商人。 　　　
　　作为通用电器的总裁，杰拉尔德•斯沃普扩大了通用电器公司的产品供应：在他的领导下，通用电器卖出了它第一台洗衣机和电冰箱。GE突袭进入家电行业让几代人受益。他还监管了GE信用公司的创立，以便给家电的销售提供资金帮助。GE信用公司为美国的消费信贷铺平了道路，现在发展成为GE投资，是一个640亿美元的金融服务巨人。
　　但是，杰拉尔德•斯沃普的主要贡献在于劳工关系：他建立了公司福利制度，在这个被广泛复制的项目中工人可以享受诸如利润分享这样的福利。