SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. Dennis D. Dammerman, a dynamic, pioneering and thoughtful financial executive who worked side-by-side with Jack Welch to transform General Electric Co. into the world's most valuable corporation, died Tuesday, July 23, at Saratoga Hospital after a long illness. He was 67. Mr. Dammerman was 38 when Mr. Welch named him GE's chief financial officer in 1984, the youngest CFO in company history. He held the position until 1998, when he became a Vice Chairman and Executive Officer of GE and Chairman of GE Capital Services, Inc. The same year, CFO Magazine honored Mr. Dammerman with its first Life Achievement Award for CFO Excellence. Mr. Dammerman was renowned for spotting talent and mentoring GE's promising young executives. In 1982, as he was looking for the next generation of GE talent, he met a newly minted Harvard MBA. At the time, Mr. Dammerman was vice president and general manager of GE Capital's real estate financial services division. The young job seeker "was the best guy I saw that day," Mr. Dammerman later recalled, and he was so impressed by the candidate's poise that he sent his job application straight to the hiring managers. The candidate was Jeffrey R. Immelt, who rose to become Chairman and CEO of GE in 2001. "I will always be grateful to Dennis for the time he took to help me when I became CEO," Mr. Immelt wrote in a note to GE employees after Mr. Dammerman's death was announced. "He was a great mentor, coach and partner. He had keen business acumen and sound judgment. He was tough-minded and direct but also incredibly generous with his time and advice. There were many times when I faced tough decisions that I knew Dennis would have the right answer." Mr. Dammerman joined GE in 1967, shortly after graduating from the University of Dubuque in his native Iowa. He joined GE's financial management program and held various financial assignments in several GE businesses. He was appointed to lead GE Capital's real estate financial services division in 1981, a job he held until Mr. Welch named him Senior Vice President-Finance and CFO. "Dennis was extremely smart, rigorous, courageous, and had unyielding integrity. His selfless commitment to his colleagues and his company were extraordinary," Mr. Welch said Wednesday. "I loved him and respected him and will miss him terribly." While serving as CFO, Mr. Dammerman in 1994 assumed additional responsibilities as Chairman and CEO of Kidder, Peabody Group Inc., GE's scandal-racked brokerage firm, which he cleaned up and prepared for its eventual sale to PaineWebber. Mr. Dammerman, who joined the GE Board of Directors in 1994, retired from the company in 2005 after 38 years of service. In reporting his retirement, CFO Magazine credited Mr. Dammerman for helping to develop a world-class finance program that had produced many top managers for GE and other companies. "Dennis has been a legend in the financial world," Gayle Mattson, then managing director at Korn/Ferry International and now an executive vice president and global leader with DHR International, told CFO Magazine at the time. "He is one of those people who understands how to get things done and create immense value in individuals. He helped change the face of finance in public companies, and is still way ahead of his time." "Dennis set the gold standard for financial leadership development," said Keith Sherin, a GE Vice Chairman and Chairman and CEO of GE Capital who succeeded Mr. Dammerman as CFO in 1998. "He trained an entire generation of GE financial leaders, and we all owe him a debt of gratitude." During Mr. Dammerman's years as CFO, GE's annual revenue increased from $27.9 billion to $90.8 billion, and net earnings jumped from $2.28 billion to $8.2 billion. The company consistently outperformed others on the New York Stock Exchange. He understood and respected the need for financial measures as "a way of communicating to ourselves and the rest of the world about how we're doing," he told Human Resource Management magazine in 1991, but in the same interview hinted at the drive for continuous improvement and growth that transformed GE under Mr. Welch. "No matter what you're doing, somebody's always doing at least a piece of it better. You have to find those companies or functions and share information. You have to say, I know you do this pretty well, but we do this other thing pretty well; let's compare notes.' " He remained active in business after retiring from GE, serving on the boards of directors of BlackRock, Inc., one of the largest publicly traded investment management firms in the U.S.; Swiss Reinsurance Company Ltd.; Capmark Financial Group Inc.; and Discover Financial Services. In 2008, Timothy Geithner, then president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and Henry Paulson, Treasury Secretary under President George W. Bush, recruited Mr. Dammerman to the Board of Directors of American International Group, Inc. Mr. Dammerman led the search for a new CEO at AIG that resulted in the hiring of Robert H. Benmosche in August 2009. Under Mr. Benmosche, AIG rebounded from the brink of collapse to regain profitability and return $205 billion to the U.S. taxpayers. "All of us at AIG are deeply saddened to learn of the death of Dennis Dammerman," Mr. Benmosche said. "It was Dennis' passionate belief in AIG that spurred an early commitment at a time when, truly, very, very few people thought it possible that AIG would repay America and endure. He had faith that, with the proper leadership, AIG's employees could transform and rebuild their company. We were guided by his wisdom, inspired by his strength, and grateful for his friendship. We will miss him." Mr. Dammerman also served on the boards of various entities associated with his summer hometown of Saratoga Springs, including the New York Racing Association, Skidmore College and Adirondack Trust Co., whose President, Chairman and CEO, Charles Wait, remembers being surprised that a man of Mr. Dammerman's international stature and reputation would serve on the board of a community bank. "At his first board meeting, he made a point of talking with our junior officers," Mr. Wait said. "He wanted to know who was working for the company. Human considerations were always foremost. He wanted to know how decisions would affect people." Mr. Dammerman was inducted into Financial Executives International Hall of Fame in 2009. In addition to his service on numerous boards, Mr. Dammerman spent his retirement years indulging his passion for horses and automobiles, both classic and contemporary. Following his retirement, he and his wife, Marsha Finn Dammerman, made their primary home in Wellington, Fla., where Mr. Dammerman was a founding partner of Wellington Equestrian Partners, which developed the Winter Equestrian Festival into the largest and longest-running event in the sport. He enjoyed watching his wife compete in the Winter Equestrian Festival and throughout the Northeast. In 2009, Saratoga Automobile Museum displayed 16 of his vintage cars in an exhibit called "Mid-Century Marvels." Mr. Dammerman told the Saratogian newspaper at the time, "Driving these cars is such fun. On a summer Saturday night, driving my '58 Impala up Broadway, people smile and wave. I never had a convertible when I was a kid, I couldn't afford one, but I always thought they were great." Mr. Dammerman also was a supporter of Second Chance Boxer Rescue of Woolwich, Maine, from which he rescued his latest companion, Lady Byrd, among others. Dennis D. Dammerman was born November 4, 1945, in Grand Mound, IA, to Louise Lichtenstein and the late Morris Dammerman. He graduated from Central Community High School in DeWitt, IA, and earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Dubuque. Survivors, in addition to his wife and mother, include his stepmother, Viola Dammerman of DeWitt, Iowa; his mother in-law, Phyllis A. Finn of Frankfort, New York; his son, David Dammerman and wife Judith Dore of Saratoga Springs, New York; his daughter, Heather Dammerman Wesoloski and husband David of Fairfield, Connecticut; his sister, Carol Galloway of Grand Mound, Iowa; his brother, Randy Burmester and wife Joanne of Saratoga Springs, New York; his brother, Russ Fey and wife Leona of Phoenix, Arizona; his brother, Douglas Burmester and wife Sandra of Stanwood, Washington; his three grandchildren, Eric Dammerman of Saratoga Springs, New York, and Craig and Emma Wesoloski of Fairfield, Connecticut; mother of David and Heather, Patricia Dammerman of Southport, Connecticut; and many loving nieces and nephews. Dennis was preceded in death by his father, his brother, Larry Dammerman; his stepfather, Donald Fey; his stepfather, Glenn Lichtenstein; his father in-law, Thomas J. Finn, and his brother in-law, Dwain Galloway. The family will always appreciate the care provided by his doctors and the professionals of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Saratoga Hospital, Community Hospice of Saratoga, and the Multiple Sclerosis Institute at the Center for Neurological Disorders. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the following: Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, P.O. Box 27106, New York, NY 10087-7106 mskcc.convio.net/goto/dennisdammerman Saratoga Hospital Foundation, 211 Church Street, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866, www.saratogahospital.org/about-us/foundation The Community Hospice of Saratoga, 179 Lawrence St., Saratoga Springs, NY 12866 donations.communityhospice.org/donate-memorialdonation The National MS Society, PO Box 4527, New York, NY 10163 main.nationalmssociety.org/goto/dennisdammerman Online remembrances may be made at www.burkefuneralhome.com