Michael Goes to Disneyland
When most people in the free world think of the Walt Disney Company, images of Disneyland or Walt Disney World pop instantly to mind. Certainly the Disney theme parks are the living, breathing representatives of the Disney company where the icons and characters created for the company's movies and entertainment almost literally "live." And even the most casual of Disney fans have seen the countless images of Walt Disney spending time in Disneyland as both the owner of the place making one of his famous inspection walks, or as a goodwill ambassador for America as he entertained and hosted prominent world leaders and dignitaries, as well as countless A-list celebrities. And since the current head of the Disney Company, Michael Eisner, lives and works just up the freeway, you would assume that he would also take an active role in the very theme parks that are his company's most prominent icons, short of Mickey Mouse.
But the truth of the matter is that Eisner has little interest in the theme park division of his company, a division that tirelessly chugs along year-after-year making steady profits that average in the hundreds of millions. And even though Disneyland is right in his backyard, and just a 45-minute chauffer driven and armor-plated Escalade ride away, Eisner (especially before Roy Disney started to speak up) has often let more than a year pass in between visits to Disneyland.
Last week however, Eisner not only made a visit to Anaheim, but he actually spent several hours in the two parks on a bizarre and unprecedented goodwill tour that had everyone shocked and didn't have anything to do with a press op. It had been many years since an Eisner visit was scheduled to last this long, and include so many different stops around the Resort.
Eisner wasn't the only Burbank executive spending last Wednesday afternoon at Disneyland, CFO Bob Iger and Resorts chief Jay Rasulo were also tagging along at a respectful half-step behind the big boss. Disneyland President Matt Ouimet and his Senior Vice President Greg Emmer were also pressed into service as tour guides and hosts for the visit, and both of the Team Disney Anaheim (TDA) executives had a well rehearsed soft sell ready for Eisner and Iger in their ongoing and tireless effort to get Burbank to pour more capital investment into the Anaheim property.
The tour had three main objectives, and one of the primary goals was to show Eisner the changes this new executive team has made after almost nine years of management by Paul Pressler and his Disney Store followers. The second purpose for the tour was to show Eisner where Disneyland needs the most help and where investment is the most desperately needed. And lastly, Eisner and his handlers thought it would be a good idea to get out and meet the low level Park workers who not only make Disneyland tick, but who also voted overwhelmingly via their proxy statements four months ago to kick Eisner out.
The tour of the property began just after lunch and lasted through the afternoon. Hourly Cast Members, and even some salaried managers, could only laugh at the frenzy that preceded the tour as the itinerary was released to management in the morning. The locations that were to be included in the tour were immediately descended upon by middle managers who nervously swept up the tiniest bits of trash, and implored the Cast Members at those locations to be on their best behavior. As the Eisner tour began and headed into Disneyland, there were even two TDA suits, (literally in suits and ties), armed with pans and brooms hurriedly sweeping up popcorn and churro wrappers around the Hub as many Outdoor Vending (ODV) and Custodial Cast Members (CM's) bemusedly watched.
When word came out that a visit to the backstage employee cafeteria was on the Eisner itinerary, managers from the Park's Foods department immediately began a frantic spit and polish of the worn out looking cafeteria that sees heavy use every day. Cast Member observers in the cafeteria that day marveled at how the salad bar was meticulously prepped, and the usually wilted and tired iceberg lettuce was replaced with the freshest and snappiest lettuce on property. The entrees above the steam tables were smartly displayed, and the cold cases were all perfectly arranged. Some cruel Cast Members even began trying to sabotage the location by purposely dropping food or napkins on the floor, and then timing the managers who were scanning the door for Eisner's imminent arrival to see how long it took them to swoop in and clean up the wayward trash.
When Eisner did show up at that particular cafeteria in a pitiful attempt to rub elbows with the masses, he only really succeeded in proving how out-of-touch he is and how little about the Parks he actually knows. As the cafeteria took notice of Eisner's arrival, which was hard to miss due to the big entourage accompanying him, Eisner put forth his best political skills and tried to make friends. He marched right up to two college aged guys wearing Adventureland costumes waiting for their cheeseburgers and said "Hi fellas, where do you guys work?" The two Cast Members dutifully replied "We work at the Jungle Cruise, sir." Eisner broke into a broad and forced smile and said "Hey, that must be a lot of fun! I'd love to be able to drive that boat around all day, making those jokes and shooting at the hippo's like you do!" And without missing a beat, one of the Jungle Cruise Skippers said "We don't get to shoot at the hippo's anymore sir. They took the guns away three years ago." Eisner could only stammer, "Oh, they did? I didn't know that..." before he moved on down the line for the next forced smile and handshake. (By the way, the plan is still on to reverse Paul Pressler's silly and overly PC decision and bring back the guns to Jungle Cruise that we'd told you about in a previous update.)
While the tour stops designed to spruce up Eisner's image amongst his lower level employees pretty much failed, with several CM's refusing to even get near him out of sheer resentment, the business goals of the tour seemed to go rather well. The tour inspected the two construction sites in Tomorrowland; Buzz Lightyear and Space Mountain. The tour also spent an extended period of time looking at the Submarine Lagoon and the surrounding area, and we'll get to that bit of news later. But overall, the tour took in all of Ouimet's top priorities that he would like to address in the years to come.
Unlike Cynthia "sofa painting" Harriss who before him had happily towed the party line, Ouimet continues to impress people with his willingness to take on the top executives and attempt to educate them as to why Disneyland needs a noticeable infusion of capital in order to regain its luster.
Ouimet's tenaciousness looks like it's literally paying off as they begin planning for a post-50th Disneyland.
When most people in the free world think of the Walt Disney Company, images of Disneyland or Walt Disney World pop instantly to mind. Certainly the Disney theme parks are the living, breathing representatives of the Disney company where the icons and characters created for the company's movies and entertainment almost literally "live." And even the most casual of Disney fans have seen the countless images of Walt Disney spending time in Disneyland as both the owner of the place making one of his famous inspection walks, or as a goodwill ambassador for America as he entertained and hosted prominent world leaders and dignitaries, as well as countless A-list celebrities. And since the current head of the Disney Company, Michael Eisner, lives and works just up the freeway, you would assume that he would also take an active role in the very theme parks that are his company's most prominent icons, short of Mickey Mouse.
But the truth of the matter is that Eisner has little interest in the theme park division of his company, a division that tirelessly chugs along year-after-year making steady profits that average in the hundreds of millions. And even though Disneyland is right in his backyard, and just a 45-minute chauffer driven and armor-plated Escalade ride away, Eisner (especially before Roy Disney started to speak up) has often let more than a year pass in between visits to Disneyland.
Last week however, Eisner not only made a visit to Anaheim, but he actually spent several hours in the two parks on a bizarre and unprecedented goodwill tour that had everyone shocked and didn't have anything to do with a press op. It had been many years since an Eisner visit was scheduled to last this long, and include so many different stops around the Resort.
Eisner wasn't the only Burbank executive spending last Wednesday afternoon at Disneyland, CFO Bob Iger and Resorts chief Jay Rasulo were also tagging along at a respectful half-step behind the big boss. Disneyland President Matt Ouimet and his Senior Vice President Greg Emmer were also pressed into service as tour guides and hosts for the visit, and both of the Team Disney Anaheim (TDA) executives had a well rehearsed soft sell ready for Eisner and Iger in their ongoing and tireless effort to get Burbank to pour more capital investment into the Anaheim property.
The tour had three main objectives, and one of the primary goals was to show Eisner the changes this new executive team has made after almost nine years of management by Paul Pressler and his Disney Store followers. The second purpose for the tour was to show Eisner where Disneyland needs the most help and where investment is the most desperately needed. And lastly, Eisner and his handlers thought it would be a good idea to get out and meet the low level Park workers who not only make Disneyland tick, but who also voted overwhelmingly via their proxy statements four months ago to kick Eisner out.
The tour of the property began just after lunch and lasted through the afternoon. Hourly Cast Members, and even some salaried managers, could only laugh at the frenzy that preceded the tour as the itinerary was released to management in the morning. The locations that were to be included in the tour were immediately descended upon by middle managers who nervously swept up the tiniest bits of trash, and implored the Cast Members at those locations to be on their best behavior. As the Eisner tour began and headed into Disneyland, there were even two TDA suits, (literally in suits and ties), armed with pans and brooms hurriedly sweeping up popcorn and churro wrappers around the Hub as many Outdoor Vending (ODV) and Custodial Cast Members (CM's) bemusedly watched.
When word came out that a visit to the backstage employee cafeteria was on the Eisner itinerary, managers from the Park's Foods department immediately began a frantic spit and polish of the worn out looking cafeteria that sees heavy use every day. Cast Member observers in the cafeteria that day marveled at how the salad bar was meticulously prepped, and the usually wilted and tired iceberg lettuce was replaced with the freshest and snappiest lettuce on property. The entrees above the steam tables were smartly displayed, and the cold cases were all perfectly arranged. Some cruel Cast Members even began trying to sabotage the location by purposely dropping food or napkins on the floor, and then timing the managers who were scanning the door for Eisner's imminent arrival to see how long it took them to swoop in and clean up the wayward trash.
When Eisner did show up at that particular cafeteria in a pitiful attempt to rub elbows with the masses, he only really succeeded in proving how out-of-touch he is and how little about the Parks he actually knows. As the cafeteria took notice of Eisner's arrival, which was hard to miss due to the big entourage accompanying him, Eisner put forth his best political skills and tried to make friends. He marched right up to two college aged guys wearing Adventureland costumes waiting for their cheeseburgers and said "Hi fellas, where do you guys work?" The two Cast Members dutifully replied "We work at the Jungle Cruise, sir." Eisner broke into a broad and forced smile and said "Hey, that must be a lot of fun! I'd love to be able to drive that boat around all day, making those jokes and shooting at the hippo's like you do!" And without missing a beat, one of the Jungle Cruise Skippers said "We don't get to shoot at the hippo's anymore sir. They took the guns away three years ago." Eisner could only stammer, "Oh, they did? I didn't know that..." before he moved on down the line for the next forced smile and handshake. (By the way, the plan is still on to reverse Paul Pressler's silly and overly PC decision and bring back the guns to Jungle Cruise that we'd told you about in a previous update.)
While the tour stops designed to spruce up Eisner's image amongst his lower level employees pretty much failed, with several CM's refusing to even get near him out of sheer resentment, the business goals of the tour seemed to go rather well. The tour inspected the two construction sites in Tomorrowland; Buzz Lightyear and Space Mountain. The tour also spent an extended period of time looking at the Submarine Lagoon and the surrounding area, and we'll get to that bit of news later. But overall, the tour took in all of Ouimet's top priorities that he would like to address in the years to come.
Unlike Cynthia "sofa painting" Harriss who before him had happily towed the party line, Ouimet continues to impress people with his willingness to take on the top executives and attempt to educate them as to why Disneyland needs a noticeable infusion of capital in order to regain its luster.
Ouimet's tenaciousness looks like it's literally paying off as they begin planning for a post-50th Disneyland.
