The Walt Disney Company: The Entertainment King
Starting as a young boy from Missouri, farmer Walter Elias Disney set out to make a mark on society. After first joining the Red Cross in World War I, he came back determined to be an artist. After moving to Hollywood in 1923 with his older brother Roy, they founded Disney Brothers Studio. After diversifying as much as possible, Disney had a firm grasp on the global market share until the 1980’s where the company’s revenues began to slump in the film industry. Luckily Sid Bass invested $365 million in order to rescue the company and bring an end to all hostile takeover attempts. Disney’s billion dollar powerhouse status in the entertainment industry can be broken down and analyzed using the McKinsey’s 7S model. This model can be applied to Disney to analyze the company’s management and strategic policies. The McKinsey 7S model covers important strategic areas of operation including, strategy, structure, systems, style, skills, staff, and shared values. These seven elements need to be aligned and mutually reinforcing so that the model can be used to help identify what needs to be realigned in order to improve performance or to maintain alignment and performance.
Disney Corporation has a hugely diversified strategy, that is to say, the plan devised to maintain and build competitive advantage over the competition. In 1928, after creating and losing the Oswald franchise to his distributor, Walt used a technique new to the animated television industry, synchronized sound with a cartoon. With his new character modeled after Oswald, Mickey Mouse was the star in Steamboat Willie which brought a wave of success both nationally and internationally. Disney even engaged in licensing agreements to have Mickey Mouse on the cover of pencil tablets. This was just the beginning for Walt, after a worldwide recognition and six academy