While in the chairman role, Eisner always promoted his own decisions and actions. Also, the rest of the directors had sizable conflicts of interests, which may have stopped board members from asserting themselves against Eisner, despite their duty to act in the foremost interest of all shareholders. Quite a few of the directors had their children employed by the company. They may have feared for their jobs, back pay, severance, or any other compensation due to them in ending employment at Disney. Other board members relied on Eisner because Eisner’s sons went to their schools and could have feared retribution regarding the circumstances regarding Eisner donations to their schools or damage to the school’s reputation, if the board members were
However, in September of 2004, Eisner submitted a letter to the board indicating his intention to retire when his contract was up on September 30, 2006. Along with his retirement intentions, he included a succession plan that named Bob Iger, Disney 's President and Chief Operating Officer since 2000, as the new CEO. Eisner offered that he was proud of the accomplishments of his 20-year tenure and offered that Disney was “now poised for its brightest days in the years ahead under the able and insightful leadership of Bob, who has not only the qualities to succeed, but also has a keen sense of the Disney brand and how to maintain its leadership position and grow it on a worldwide scale” (Downes, Russ, & Ryan, 2014). In the end, it seems Eisner felt it was best to bow out of his role as CEO, perhaps realizing that the task of leading the company through a transformation would be best left to someone
481.) He had been characterized as a hard-working, traditional sort of businessman. Even though an extroverted personality has been attributed as a consistent marker for leadership emergence and effectiveness (Kreitner, 2013, p. 467), one can see several of Iger’s strengths when referencing the key positive leadership traits (Kreitner, 2013, p. 469). He was known for his even-keeled demeanor and nose-to-the-grindstone work ethic. He rose daily at 4:30 A.M. and was at the office within two hours, showing he had the traits of character and also the biophysical traits of physical fitness, hardiness, and energy level to take on the role of CEO. Iger clearly showed task competence during his long career at ABC, which then transitioned to the Walt Disney Company. Further, Iger seems to have stellar traits of character. Nell Minow, the editor of the Corporate Library, told Frank Ahrens of the Washington Post, "He 's not as glitzy and showbizzy. He projects a lot of sincerity and has that rare CEO quality—humility (Notable Biographies, Sidelight
Granted that Disney is a highly-publicized company, trade secrets, intellectual property, and sensitive information needs to be safeguarded; confidential agreements should be incorporated in succession planning to secure the business. The items to include in the confidential/noncompete agreement are an extensive screening of high-level employees, and they participate in a trade secret program. High-level employees must complete a thorough background clearance before beginning the new hire onboarding process (Swartz, 2006). Throughout the duration and the end of employment, high-level subordinates must sign a confidential agreement about his or her conduct in handling sensitive data, have an escort while visiting other locations, and remind ex-employees during exit interviews of confidential policies and agreements (Teska,
problems. In a study done on the role of the Walt Disney Company, Vincent Faherty explains
...mation business right, particularly the new CG technology that was rapidly supplanting hand drawn animation. Acquisition of Pixar was the fastest way of doing this. Through this acquisition Disney would get access to key Pixar technologies which would enable it to produce movies at a lower cost and faster than its rivals. This technology transfer would also help revive Disney’s own animation unit. Apart from technology, Disney would also get access to all the Pixar characters, which it could use at its theme parks, merchandise stores and its other related businesses. Pixar’s journey to the top is inspiring. The leap from a dwindling financial future to billions of dollars in profit is a true testament to what can come from perseverance and hard work. This world renowned company has become a house hold name and a major player in the entertainment and business world.
The Walt Disney Company is a highly diversified media and entertainment company that has been growing by leaps and bounds since its inception in the late 1920’s. In the past few decades, The Walt Disney Company has expanded into numerous markets and diversified its business greatly. The company states that their corporate strategy is targeted at creating high-quality family content, exploiting technological innovations to make entertainment experiences more memorable, and expanding internationally. Upon studying the happenings of the company throughout the years, it is easy to see that the company is executing this strategy well through numerous strategic moves in the industry.
WebProNews. 2005. Disney Chairman And CEO Roles Do The Splits. Published January 6, 2005 at http://www.webpronews.com/business/topbusiness/wpn-54-20050106DisneyChairmanandCEORolesDotheSplits.html
Disney’s long-run success is mainly due to creating value through diversification. Their corporate strategies (primarily under CEO Eisner) include three dimensions: horizontal and geographic expansion as well as vertical integration. Disney is a prime example of how to achieve long-run success through the choices of business, the choice of how many activities to undertake, the choice of how many businesses to be in, the choice of how to manage a portfolio of businesses and the choice of how to create synergies between those businesses (3, p.191-221). All these choices and decisions are made through Disney’s corporate strategies and enabled them to reach long-term success. One will discuss Disney’s long-run success through a general approach. Eisner’s turnaround of the company and his specific implications/strategies will be examined in detail in part II. Disney could reach long-run success mainly through the creation of value due to diversification and the management and fostering of creativity, brand image and synergies between businesses (1, p.11-14).
This paper will assess the corporate culture of Walt Disney, addressing the background of the organization, training and teaching, stories, legends and myths associated with the company, philosophy, values, mission statement and the organizational goals of the company.
During his 22-year tenure at Walt Disney, ex-CEO Eisner fought with the Miramax founders Harvey and Bob Weinstein over financial details relating to the purchase of Miramax. Eisner bumped heads several times with Steve Jobs who was then CEO of both Pixar and Apple Computer. The negative remarks Eisner made in front of Congress about Jobs Apple Computer was taken so personally that Jobs threatened to not renew the Disney-Pixar partnership if Eisner was still CEO of Disney. As well Eisner’s continuing disputes with Board of Director members Disney and Gold was that of disruptive behavior. For several years the long-standing board members repeatedly called for Eisner’s
One of the key factors of the successful diversification is the very strong branding of the name Disney. That the name was famous after the success in the early years made it among other things possible to go into the theme park industry. Evaluated isolated, the theme parks was a success. But when also accounting for the synergies created, the decision to go into this industry was a huge success. It has created a spiral of synergies, where the characters in the movies get more popular due to the parks, as well as the fact that when people are visiting the parks they get stimulated to buy the merchandise. This is just one example of the synergies that exist in Disney. When Michael Eisner took over control in Disney, he kept focusing on same corporate values as earlier, which are quality, creativity, entrepreneurialism and teamwork. These values have been preserved despite of the size of Disney, and are an important factor in sustaining and building the Disney brand.
In a professional career, that has spanned more than 40 years. Many different people have described Alan Mullaly many different times, but always in the same manner. In the article, Three Outsiders, Three Styles (2013) featured in The Economist (2013) Mr. Mulally is described as a man who “gives hugs, and means it, he is a sort of “demanding cheerleader”, a boss you want to do your best to please, no blame-thrower but no soft touch either”. Jim Jamieson, executive vice president of airplane programs at Boing and a onetime top lieutenant of Mulally stated, “He is extraordinarily charismatic. He really believes in working together, and has a way of making people feel good about themselves” (qtd. in Song, 2010). An exploration of Alan Mulally reveals that his rise as a leader in the business world is credited to his personal development, his attributes as a leader, and his behavior.
The entertainment industry holds the immense potential for growth and development. The industry is constantly evolving and Walt Disney emerge as a global leader and recognized as the world’s second largest media conglomerate in the terms of revenue after Comcast. The Walt Disney Company is a multinational entertainment conglomerate headquartered at California, United States. The company integrated its products into five target segments are as follows: (1) Media Networks (2) Parks and Resorts (3) Walt Disney Studios (4) Disney Consumer Products (5) Disney Interactive. The company has strong diversified product portfolios and generate high returns and revenues from all the target segments but the media networks contributes
Through the ratio analysis, we can conclude that Disney is a stable company, keeping up with industry trends and up to par with industry averages. Although at times it can seem that Disney is a risky and unstable company, those conclusions are false since the unstableness has come through decisions which will better establish Disney’s position on the market. Although Disney’s competition, namely CBS, is on a similar standing as Disney when comparing ratios, Disney will manage to remain the largest media conglomerate in the USA and one of the best corporations in the world.
The company that I choose to explore is The Walt Disney Company. Walt Disney started the Disney Brothers studio in 1926, after years of working as a cartoonist. I selected this company due to the fact I am a fan of their products and services. Disney produced some of my favorite films like Aladdin, Hook and The Lion King. After I visited their website, I discovered that Disney owns multiple media outlets, in such areas as film, Internet, music, broadcasting, publishing and recreation. According to Disney’s “The mission of The Walt Disney Company is to be the one of the world’s leading producers and providers of entertainment and information. Using our portfolio of brands to differentiate our content, service and consumer products, we seek to develop the most creative, innovative and profitable entertainment experiences and related products in the world”. The Disney brand is doing exactly what their mission states.
They include: excellence in leadership, excellence in casting, guest satisfaction, financial results, and repeat business (Coverly, 2013). As it pertains to leadership excellence, Walt Disney is cognizant of the fact that communication is indeed the key driver and foundation for a collaborative culture within the company. Therefore, in this regard, the company encourages the cultivation of collaboration by essentially creating an enabling environment where ideas are spoken without fear of favoritism. Hence, Walt Disney promotes the use of positive language as part of its strategy of fostering leadership and collaboration. The use of positive language lays a basis for the realization of excellence in casting as one of the company’s policies. It is necessary to note that according to Coverly (2013), Walt Disney does not refer to its staff as employees; rather, the company classifies them as casts within the whole business arena. This concept, as Coverly (2013) continues to elaborate, emanates from the cognizance by the company that each employee has an intrinsic and unique role to pay within the company. As such, it is more natural to refer to them as casts, rather than the traditional “employee” notation. This strategy is very influential in generating and sustaining employee motivation which stems
From humble beginnings as a cartoon studio in the 1920s to today 's global corporation, The Walt Disney Company continues to proudly provide quality entertainment for every member of the family, across America and around the world. One of the key statements in the text states, “Disney’s greatest challenge today is to keep a 90- year- old brand relevant and current to its core audience while staying true to its heritage and core brand values.” (Kotler, Keller, 2012, p. 179) Diversification has been one of Disney’s smartest business decisions. Today Disney has ventured into various industries such as studio entertainment,