...he 1964 world première of “Mary Poppins” was held at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, and it was the kind of spectacle for which the Disney organization had become famous. Throngs of screaming fans were greeted by Mickey Mouse, Goofy, Snow White and the dwarfs, as well as by entertainers who gestured toward the movie’s Edwardian setting: a twelve-piece pearly band, chimney-sweep dancers, valets dressed as bobbies, and a bevy of pretty Disneyland hostesses, whose traditional uniforms (kilts and black velvet riding helmets) suggested a general Englishness. Hollywood luminaries arrived in chauffeured automobiles, the women in ball gowns and mink stoles (Angie Dickinson, Maureen O’Hara, Suzanne Pleshette), the men wearing dinner jackets (Edward G. Robinson, Cesar Romero, Buddy Ebsen). The arrival of the movie’s principals aroused muted excitement: Julie Andrews, who played Mary Poppins, had never appeared in a movie before, and Dick Van Dyke—the chimney sweep Bert—became much better known after the film’s release. Then Walt Disney himself arrived, stepping out of a stretch limousine and gallantly reaching a hand into the car to help his wife, Lillian, onto the pavement. Disney was by then immensely famous, appearing on his own television show every Sunday night. He had carefully engineered his entrance: when his car pulled up, the Disney characters mobbed it, and soon afterward clouds of balloons were released into the air. Inside the packed twelve-hundred-seat theatre,...
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...Theme Park Development Costs: Initial Investment Cost Per First Year Attendee – A Historic Benchmarking Study Kelly T. Kaak Rosen College of Hospitality Management University of Central Florida ABSTRACT There is an industry “rule of thumb” that when planning for the construction of a theme park, developers should anticipate investing $100 per expected first-year guest. In other words, if the goal is to attract a million paying guests per year, the total investment needs to equal $100,000,000. This ratio is quite common in the literature, but it has never been investigated formally. This study collected the initial investment costs of 52 parks built in the United States, converted that investment into modern dollars, and then divided that dollar cost by the first-year attendance figures. The overall mean or average among the subject parks was $109.61 invested per first-year guest. This figure is very close to the industry “rule of thumb” of investing $100 in construction costs for every desired first-year guest Keywords: theme park, development costs, attendance INTRODUCTION There is an industry “rule of thumb” that when planning for the construction of a theme park, developers should anticipate investing $100 per expected first-year guest. In other words, if the goal is to attract a million paying guests per year, the total investment needs to equal $100 million. This ratio is quite common in the literature, but it has never been investigated formally. This information...
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...Key Resources and Capabilities Tangible Resources Disney has strong financial assets, with over $25 billion in revenue, over $45 billion in assets, and exponentially increasing stock performance. Disney has facilities internationally, including theme parks, movie studios, and retail locations. Intangible Resources The Walt Disney Company has strong brand image. It has a reputation with customers for family-friendly, high quality entertainment. The company also has extensive human resources. By 2000, Disney had 110,000 employees throughout its divisions. Organizational Capabilities Disney is famous for the “Disney Difference,” its high quality customer service and attention to detail (Smith, 2011). Disney’s organization is based on the traditions of Walt Disney himself and are taught to every new employee (Disney, n.d.). Disney also has a huge and diverse organization, with departments ranging a variety of industries. VRIO Analysis Value The Walt Disney Company has valuable tangible resources. The financial resources allow the company to invest in new ideas and innovations. Its international facilities give Disney access to many markets. Disney’s intangible resources and organization capabilities’ value depends on how they are harnessed. Brand awareness and a large organization do not have inherent value; they must be used effectively by the company. Rareness The Walt Disney Company’s tangible assets are not rare; many other companies have money and international facilities...
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...sources when necessary. 1. Fortune 500 Company name The Walt Disney Company | 2. The company’s internal and external stakeholders Internal stakeholder’s | External stakeholder’s | | According to "External Stakeholder Engagement" (n.d), stakeholders include non-governmental organizations (NGOs), multi-stakeholder initiatives (MSIs), labor unions, peer companies, multi-lateral institutions, government agencies, socially responsible investors, industry associations and others. | 3. Company’s mission and vision Company’s mission According to "Walt Disney Company's Mission Statement And Vision: Formula For Success" (2013), "The mission of The Walt Disney Company is to be one of the world's leading producers and providers of entertainment and information”(Walt Disney Company Mission Statement). | Company’s vision According to "Walt Disney Company’s Mission Statement And Vision: Formula For Success" (2013), “Keep their customer’s happy” (The Walt Disney Vision). | 4. Company goals At least one company goal that can be accomplished through a strategic plan According to "2012 Disney CitizenshipPerformance Summary " (2012), “Recognize kids who make positive contributions to their environment or communities” (Performance Detail ). | At least one company goal that can be accomplished through an operational plan According to "2012 Disney Citizenship Performance Summary " (2012), “Reflect a diversity of cultures...
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...Red Feather Journal 73 “Be Sure You're Right, Then Go Ahead”: The Davy Crockett Gun Craze by Sarah Nilsen In April 2005, sixty thousand members of the National Rifle Association gathered in Houston, Texas for their 134th Annual Meeting. The keynote speaker for the event was embattled U.S. House Majority Leader, Representative Tom De Lay. After his speech, De Lay was joined on stage by Lee Hamel dressed as Davy Crockett in full buckskin attire and a coonskin hat. Hamel presented De Lay with a handcrafted flintlock rifle that he had made for the event with his mentor, Cecil Brooks. The presentation of the reproduction rifle to De Lay is part of a long NRA tradition that began in 1955 when Walt Disney‟s Davy Crockett series first appeared on television. When Charlton Heston received his handcrafted flintlock rifle in 1989, he uttered his famous words, “From my cold dead hands.” President Ronald Reagan and Vice President Dick Cheney also joined the list of those who received facsimile Davy Crockett flintlock rifles from a man dressed in Crockett buckskin attire. This tradition is part of the NRA‟s efforts to represent the gun as a key instrument in the founding of the United States. It secured this ideological representation in part by appropriating the mythology of early American heroes like Davy Crockett. Davy Crockett became emblematic of the gun mythology of early American life. This mythology was synergized by the NRA and popularized through children‟s television...
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...Building a Visionary Company James C. Collins Jerry I. Porras Above all, there was the ability to build and build and build—never stopping, never looking back, never finishing—the institution.... In the last analysis, Walt Disney's greatest aeation was Walt Disney [the company]. —Richard Schickel, The Disney Version' I have concentrated all along on building the finest retailing company that we possibly could. Period. Creating a huge personal fortune was never particularly a goal of mine. —Sam Walton, Founder, Wal-Mart^ magine you met a remarkable person who could look at the sun or stars at any time of day or night and state the exact time and date: "It's April 23, 1401, 2:36 A.M., and 12 seconds." This person would be an amazing time teller, and we'd probably revere that person for the ability to tell time. But wouldn't that person be even more amazing if, instead of telling the time, he or she built a clock that could tell the time forever, even after he or she was dead and gone?' Having a great idea or being a charismatic visionary leader is "time telling"; building a company that can prosper far beyond the presence of any single leader and through multiple product life cycles is "clock building." The builders of visionary companies tend to be clock builders, not time tellers. They concentrate primarily on building an organization—building a ticking clock— From 6u/;t to Last by James C. Collins and Jerry I. Porras. Copyright © 1994 by James C. Collins and Jerry...
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...Walt Disney Co.: The Entertainment King (Harvard Business School Case No. 701035-PDF-ENG) Team F: Erin Webster, Garvey Young and Jennifer Zammataro 1. Disney’s long-term success can be linked to their well-instilled corporate values and their commitment to maximizing synergy throughout the corporation. Page four of the case lists their corporate values as “quality, creativity, entrepreneurship, and teamwork.” Throughout Disney’s history, these four values have propelled the company forward to the leader it is today. In order to maintain the level of quality associated with the Disney brand, Eisner believed that a high level of toughness was needed. The first page of the case has a quotation from Michael Eisner stating, “If you aren’t tough, you just don’t get quality.” This quote exemplifies Eisner’s management style and the value he placed on strong decision-making throughout the firm. Even before Eisner’s time, however, Disney had built a corporation around tough decisions and detail oriented management in order to maintain quality. Throughout each expansion of the Disney brand, Walt maintained control of the “complete entertainment experience.” One example of this strict quality management can be seen in how Disney opened their first theme park, Disneyland. In order to cut back on the investment capital in the beginning stages of the park’s opening, they licensed the food and merchandising operations. As soon as the park had generated enough...
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...Walt Disney was an innovator and a visionary. But he was also one of the most successful business leaders of his time. Here are eight principles that made Walt Disney one of the greatest icons of the 20th century: 1. Make people happy: Walt was always striving to make people happy. During the fall of 1918, Disney attempted to enlist for military service. Rejected because he was only 16 years of age, Walt joined the Red Cross and was sent overseas, where he spent a year driving an ambulance and chauffeuring Red Cross officials. His ambulance was covered from stem to stern -- not with stock camouflage, but with drawings and cartoons. He keeps that morale with his whole life. 2. Provide a promise, not a product: The legend goes that Walt Disney was sitting on a bench watching his daughters ride a carousel when he came up with the concept for Disney World. He noticed amusement parks and state fairs were always littered and poorly organized, and the employees were generally rude and resentful. His wife once asked, “Why do you want to build an amusement park? They’re so dirty.” To which Walt replied, “That’s the point. Mine won’t be.” From day one, Disney has focused on “the experience” as a key component to increasing the value of its parks. 3. Always exceed customers’ expectations: One of the reasons the Disney tradition stands the test of time is that Walt Disney was more critical of his creations than anyone else could ever possibly be. He was a relentless perfectionist...
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...Walt Disney Case In 1984, Disney was faced with an attempt of a takeover by Saul Steinberg. Ron Miller, the current CEO and president of the company, sought to halt this action and came up with a decision. Miller wanted to decide whether or not to let the takeover happen or to repurchase Steinberg’s stock. If the repurchase was to occur, Miller had to present to the shareholders at what price to make the repurchase. Miller should repurchase Steinberg’s shares to prevent the takeover and continue the legacy of Walt Disney. In the details provided below, we will further discuss the details as to why Miller should repurchase the stock and at what price. Starting as just an in-home studio film business by Walt Disney himself, along with his brother Roy; Walt Disney has become known as one of the most prominent Entertainment corporations in the world. Like any other company that has dominated its industry, Disney has been challenged with some issues of their own that has been a major concern for the future of the company. Disney has four different components of their company which consisted of real estate development, consumer products, theme parks, and film. Steinberg saw a decrease in the film segment of the company, which decreased total revenues and weakened the stock price. There were also a considerable amount of decreases in the theme park attendance, domestic and foreign theatrical features, and the publications and educational media consumer products. These...
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...Disney’s Dilemma Disney Consumer Products Europe and Middle East (DCPEME), a business unit of The Walt Disney Company, is hoping to maintain their position as the fastest growing division within the company by expanding into the Middle East. This region represents huge growth potential for Disney due to its favorable demographics and consumer spending patterns. These lucrative business opportunities in the Middle East resulted in DCPEME signing a 50/50 joint venture with a Saudi Arabian regional partner in 1993. The joint venture would begin their operations in Saudi Arabia, but was interested in expanding into neighboring countries, specifically Lebanon. DCPEME now faces the decision of determining whether entering Lebanon is the correct next step in their Middle Eastern expansion strategy. Additionally, if the company decides to enter Lebanon then they must evaluate the best product categories to launch as well as identify which distribution options will position the country for success. Should Lebanon be Next? Lebanon is considered a small and prosperous Middle Eastern nation. A devastating civil war in the 1970s and 1980s wreaked havoc on the country’s infrastructure, but their economy has since recovered and is now characterized by free market pricing and an unrestricted exchange and trade system. Currently, Disney products are already distributed in Lebanon via three channels: worldwide licensees (ex. Mattel), non-worldwide licensees that distribute in Lebanon...
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...exemplifies the glamour that many seek, and it displays the laid back life style that people only dreamed of. Although many may not think of it as a land filled with opportunity, some pursue the “California Dream” within Disneyland. One man believed that there was the land of opportunity in California. That talented man was Walt Disney, his “California Dream” was to create a place where families could come and have fun together. He once said, “All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them” (brainyquote.com). His idea of Disneyland has proven to be one of the greatest opportunities that anyone has ever taken in California. Walt Disney is one the role models of the “California Dream” as he has expressed his own idea of what the “California Dream” is, by taking the opportunity to create Disneyland. He has spread the “California Dream” throughout the world from his Disney creation. Many opportunities within Disneyland aren’t just the land itself but what’s inside. Dawn McKay is a blogger and she writes about every experience she has going somewhere and she so happened to go to Disneyland and writes about her opinion of the place, for example, “Disney Cast Members exhibit a level of professionalism that is, unfortunately, not exhibited by employees of many other companies” (careerplanning.about.com). She thinks that the place has a very great opportunity with jobs there and how it can take you to the next...
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...Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is often defined as a process company self-regulating themselves from doing activities that against the law and the ethical standard (Lange and Washburn 2012). CSR encourage the company that all the company’s activities provide positive impact to their customer, environment, communities, and also shareholders (Fassin 2012). The CSR process is important to Multinational Corporation (MNC). MNC is a corporation that they registered their company in more than one country and has been operate in more than one country. It can be also called as International Corporation (Bucheli and Kim 2012). The established of MNC helps both the host country and home country. For the host country, due to the operation of MNC, the investment level, employment level and income level increase. Other than that, the latest technology will be introduced in the host country by the MNC(Girma and Gorg 2007).. There are also chances to increase the business of those domestic trader and market intermediaries (Daniel, Sorinel and Sorin 2010). While for the home country, the country will get the chance to marketing their products throughout the world. Other than that, MNC also create employment opportunities to the people of home country (Brikinshaw, Hood and Johnson 1998). In the other hand, MNC also brings disadvantages to both host country and home country. Instead of introducing the latest technology in the host country, MNC may use the technology that has been outdated...
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...INTRODUCTION Over the course of eight years, while working at The Walt Disney Company, I have had the opportunity to work with people that loved their jobs and were good at them and people who hated their jobs, and thus did everything they could to just “get by” each day. Today, I am going to be discussing the jobs and personalities of two very different people that I have worked with, and had close relationships with, during my time at Disney. To keep their anonymity, for this discussion, we will call these people, Person Happy and Person Sad, or Happy and Sad for short. EFFECTIVE INTRODUCTION During my time at Disney, there was one person that stands out above all others as my “Star” player, Person Happy. Happy’s role was Photo Quality Specialist for Disney’s PhotoPass Service. In this role, he was tasked with improving the overall quality of the photographs being taken by providing reviews and developing photographers through mentoring and training. While in this role, he was both highly committed, and also provided a high performance and measurable positive results. This was not always an easy role for Happy to be in because there would be times when he would have to provide feedback to a photographer that they might not agree with, but it was through this feedback, and voice, that he was able to build the overall quality of the product that we were providing though the PhotoPass service. EFFECTIVE EXPLANATION So the next logical question I am sure you are asking...
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...The Walt Disney Case GM591 Team 2 THE HISTORY OF OUR CHILDHOOD ENTERTAINMENT Walter Elias Disney was born on December 5, 1901, to Elias Disney, of Irish-Canadian descent, and Flora Call Disney, of German-American descent, in Chicago. His developed a love for drawing and trains while living on a farm in Marceline, Missouri. One of his elderly neighbors would pay him to draw pictures. While attending Benton Grammar School he met Walter Pfeiffer. Pfeiffer was a theatre aficionado. He introduced Walt to the world of vaudeville and motion pictures. Even thought Walt knew that you could make money from drawing pictures. Pfeiffer open his eyes to possibility of movies. Disney created ads for newspapers, magazines, and movie theaters. He and a friend started a commercial company but it was short lived. However while working in Kansas City for a Film Ad Company, he made commercials based on cutout animation, Disney took up an interest in the field of animation, and decided to become an animator. This is where his vision started to take shape (waltdisney.freeservers.com). Innovation is important to every company’s survival. Without it almost ever company will surely fail or be left behind. Disney is a company that has endured the ever changing market. Creating new ideas and putting them into place is something that Disney has mastered. Disney has found a way to intrigue the young and even the young at heart. With their theme parks all over the world, news...
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...Two brothers founded The Walt Disney brand in 1923. The names of these two brothers are Walter Elias Disney, and Roy Disney. Walter was the younger of the two and by the time he was sixteen years old he had a passport with the wrong birth date on it, making him older than he actually was. He used this passport to serve in the Red Cross during World War I. Walter and Roy had their parts to starting Disney. While Walter was known as the “creative force” in the business, Roy was more the financial man. He provided funding for his brother Walter in order to get Walt Disney started. The first project that saw some success was “Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.” Oswald debuted in 1927, but roughly a year after the distributors of Walt Disney underhanded Walter and took the Oswald franchise away from Walter by hiring away most of Disney’s animators. Once Walter found out about what had happened and realized he could not do anything to get Oswald back, he tried to alter the Oswald image a little bit. Once he changed some of the details to the original Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, he ended up having what we now know as Mickey Mouse. The next big hurdle for Walt Disney took place during the time of World War II. During this period of time, Disney got through the financial struggle that the war had placed on the country by making cartoons for the...
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