The Happiest Employees on Earth?

How Disney’s Culture is Comparable to Deal & Kennedy’s Standards for Strong Cultures

Pamela Mohar CTAC 354

image:www.pinterest.com, 2016

Former Executive Shares the Secrets to How Disney Runs its Empire

• Lee Cockerell – Executive VP for 16 years• Oversaw 20 resort hotels, 4 theme parks, 2 water

parks•Disney treats detail “like a religion” •Great leaders come first when building a great company• Set the best environment and culture to motivate

people to achieve more than they ever thought they could

image: www.statista.com, 2015

Creating the Happiest Place on Earth•Disney World alone sees 18.6 million visitors per year [Meek, 2015]• You don’t have to be happy to work at Disney, you just have to act happy for 8 hours each day [Cockerell, 2015]

image: www.momendeavors.com, 2016

The People are the Brand

Disney employees go through extensive training before being allowed in front of the customers. “They don’t practice on customers,” according to Cockerell, “because, in the end, the people are the brand.”

image: www.youtube.com, 2016

Deal & Kennedy’s standards for Strong Cultures

• Values – the beliefs and visions that members within an organization hold• Heroes – the people

that exemplify an organization’s values

• Rites & Rituals – ceremonies through which an organization celebrates its culture• Cultural Network –

communication system through which cultural values are instituted

and reinforced

image: www.dadsguidetowdw.com, 2016

Disney’s Culture - Values• Committed to a tradition of innovation and technology• Quality• Strive to set a high standard of excellence and maintain high-quality standards across all product categories

image: www.kennythepirate.com, 2016

Disney’s Culture - Values• Community• Create positive and

inclusive ideas about families and provide entertainment experiences for all generations to share

• Storytelling• Timeless and engaging

stories delight and inspire

image: www.themeparktourist.com, 2016

Disney’s Culture - Values• Optimism• Entertainment is about hope, aspiration, and positive outcomes

• Decency• Honor and respect the trust that people place with the organization• Fun is about laughing at our experiences and ourselves

image: www.babble.com, 2016

Disney’s Culture – Rites & Rituals

• Reward programs, including recognition for:• Quality of Work• Length of Service• Community Volunteerism• Employee of the Month

• The Disney Institute trainsall employees how to be“cast members”

Disney’s Culture – Communication Network

• Cockerell had a communication network in place where he personally received all anonymous phone calls and messages from employees • They were not rerouted through a third party

company• Cockerell was able to immediately follow up on

employee concerns• This behavior shows a company willing to accept fault

for its’ actions and a willingness to embrace feedback• Disney values transparency with employees

image: https://goo.gl/images/gfBFCS, 2016

Disney’s Culture - Heroes

Walt Disney (1901-1966) founded the animation company in 1923

Disney’s Culture - HeroesFrom the children’s perspective, the Disney characters that they love and behold are the real heroes, often displaying diversity, courage, love, empathy, and respect.

Image: www.etsy.com, 2016

image: www.thegatewaypundit.com, 2016

Character Magic

Catering to the children’s sense of wonder regarding their heroes is a key factor to performing at a Disney theme park.

image: www.disneyeveryday.com, 2016

The Real StoryCurrent and former Disney employees have taken to the Whisper app to reveal their experience with working at Disney theme parks around the world

image: www.fanpop.com, 2016

Employees Must Always Stay in CharacterOne employee, via the Whisper app, talks about how prevalent this is:She mistakenly walked in on “Belle” and “Gaston” en flagrante delecto. Their response? “Don’t tell the Beast.”

Disney Moves up 4 Spots on This Year’s Fortune 500 List

• Jumped from #57 in 2015 to #53 in 2016• Survived claims from former Presidential hopeful, Bernie Sanders, that the company does not treat their employees well [Zillman, 2016]• Paid low wages, many workers are forced to live in motels,

despite Disney’s $3 billion profit last quarter• Laid off 250 technology workers in 2015 – after training their

over-seas replacements• Called out CEO Bob Iger’s $46.5 million pay plan, touting

Disney as a perfect example of a “rigged economy” [Zillman, 2016]

Disney’s Response• Iger called out inaccuracies in Sanders’ claims, without

actually providing any contrary evidence or denying the charges• Claims Disneyland “generates more than $5.7 billion annually

for the local economy” [Iger, 2016]• Disneyland has created 11,000 new jobs in the past decade• Company wide, 18,000 new jobs have been created in the

past five years [Zillman, 2016]

Image: www.worldofwalt.com, 2016

image: www.minitime.com, 2016

Disney Claims Top Spot in Fortune’s “Most Coveted Employer” Survey

• Rated second place in the most trustworthy company out of Fortune 500’s top 100 companies• Fourth place in “companies that care the most about you”

image: www.youtube.com, 2016

Disney’s High Rankings Show How Public Opinion is Impacted by Culture• Third place for companies that have a positive global impact• First place for the company that respondents think will be around in 100 years

Creating Your Own Happiness• Starting hourly rates

are around $10 [Glassdoor, 2016]• Offer Employee

Assistance Program and 401k

• 20% merchandise discount

• Many Disney employees claim that they thrive on the happiness they bring to other people

• The employees at Disney work long hours in hot weather, wear heavy costumes, and act happy for eight hours a day…and have few complaints• Employees have

conformed to the Disney mentality through a strong use of company culture

image: www.gietoko.com, 2016

image: www.drinkingdisney.wordpress.com, 2016

Why We See Disney As the Most Coveted Company

• Disney has perfected the ability to manifest an illusion based on its’ belief and values

• The pay and benefits aren’t on par with Disney’s profits

• As long as employees are willing to conform, Disney will continue to underpay workers

• A significant change in employee rights would seriously impact Disney’s company culture

ReferencesCulture and Diversity. Disney Careers. www.disneycareers.com. Accessed 4 October 2016.McGuire, Caroline. Hitting the bottle to cope with the kids and how ‘have a magical day’ is code for ‘go f*** yourself’: Staff reveal what it’s REALLY like to work at Disney. Daily Mail, 19 May 2016. www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-3598522/hitting-bottle-cope-kids-magical-day-code-f-staff-reveal-s-REALLY-like-work-Disney.html. Accessed 5 October 2016.Meek, Andy. Former Executive Shares The Secrets To How Disney Runs Its Empire. Fast Company, 26 January 2015. www.fastcompany.com/3041284/hit-the-ground-running/former-executive-shares-the-secrets-to-how-Disney-runs-its-empire. Accessed 5 October 2016.Van Winkle, Dan. Disney CEO Bob Iger Responds to Bernie Sanders’ Criticism Like a Petulant Child. The Mary Sue, 26 May 2016. www.themarysue.com/bob-iger-Bernie-sanders/. Accessed 5 October 2016.Zillman, Claire. Disney is Named the Company Americans Want to Work For Most. Fortune, 6 June 2016. www.google.com/amp/amp.timeinc.net/fortune/2016/06/06/fortune-500-Disney-most-desired-employer/%3fsource=dam?client=safari. Accessed 5 October 2016.