"Companies like Disney...

[MickeyPeace]

are always founded by creative entrepreneurs but eventually the founder dies or gets pushed out, or moves on to something else. Inevitably the businesspeople take over-the managers- and they focus on preserving the vision that made the company great in the first place. They don't have any creative ideas themselves and they end up surrounding themselves instead with analysts and accountants to try to control the creative people and cut costs. In the process, they discourage change and new initiatives and reinvention. In time, the company begins to ossify and atrophy and die. It's important to have financial parameters and never to bet the house. But in a creative business you also have to be willing to take chances and even to fail sometimes, because otherwise nothing innovative is ever going to happen. If your'e only comfortable running a business by the numbers, I can understand that. But then you shouldn't get involved with a creatively driven company like Disney".
Work In Progress, Michael Eisner.

These were Michael Eisner's words to the Disney Board of Directors as he was trying to convince, or sell himself, to be Chairman and CEO of the Walt Disney Company in 1984.

Don't you think that these words hold great truth?

Who do you think would be the best creative person to take the helm after Bob Iger's departure? Who is the best executive out there who could infuse some creativity into the Disney company?

Let's not get into personal opinions about Eisner but concentrate on the quote and the question of who would be a worthy creative successor to Iger.

 

[bethymouse]

Good question. I can't wait to see responses!

 

[Jedeye80]

Would John lasseter want it? Think he would be most people's favourite.

 

[Florida_is_hot]

instead with analysts and accountants to try to control the creative people and cut costs.

Sorry that is business.

Read the news today many people are starting to believe we are sliding into a Global Recession, no jobs no $5 to $10 thousand dollar trip to Disney World.

No millions or billions to invest.



Every Disney fan says how the Carsland saved California Adventure, accountants need to see the original investment recovered ..... long term attendance figures.

This is business




Read more than once how bad WDW is doing, yet I read about record crowds. Do they want to expand when they are at capacity?


Analysts and accountants rule and I would refuse to invest in Disney if they did not.

 

[flynnibus]

Disney today is a conglomerate of many different divisions and fields. The notion of the type of person that is needed as a creative of a studio is vastly different from what is needed to run the Disney of today.

 

[disneyrcks]

are always founded by creative entrepreneurs but eventually the founder dies or gets pushed out, or moves on to something else. Inevitably the businesspeople take over-the managers- and they focus on preserving the vision that made the company great in the first place. They don't have any creative ideas themselves and they end up surrounding themselves instead with analysts and accountants to try to control the creative people and cut costs. In the process, they discourage change and new initiatives and reinvention. In time, the company begins to ossify and atrophy and die. It's important to have financial parameters and never to bet the house. But in a creative business you also have to be willing to take chances and even to fail sometimes, because otherwise nothing innovative is ever going to happen. If your'e only comfortable running a business by the numbers, I can understand that. But then you shouldn't get involved with a creatively driven company like Disney".
Work In Progress, Michael Eisner.

These were Michael Eisner's words to the Disney Board of Directors as he was trying to convince, or sell himself, to be Chairman and CEO of the Walt Disney Company in 1984.

Don't you think that these words hold great truth?

Who do you think would be the best creative person to take the helm after Bob Iger's departure? Who is the best executive out there who could infuse some creativity into the Disney company?

Let's not get into personal opinions about Eisner but concentrate on the quote and the question of who would be a worthy creative successor to Iger.

Wdwprince,
This is an amazing post and discussion point. We haven't had something like this in awhile. Thank you for bringing it up. I have to admit I agree with Eisner's words. It is important for a business to consider finances but not to the point where creativity and growth suffers. I feel like this sums up our Disney of today. All financial thought, but lack of creativity. As I am sure many here know, I love Disney, I think the FLE is great. But, I think Disney is due for something innovative and amazing. It is an exciting time for Universal and I cannot wait for our first stay there (we have been many times but never overnight at their hotels). I wish Disney could drum up some of that excitement, where we are hearing of and seeing new developments. I know, I know the FLE is new but as an adult couple without children, there is only so much excitement we have about the FLE expansion. I am NOT a doom and gloomer but, even as a DVC member, I can say that I want to see some new, innovative, creative things at WDW. I want a new DTD with some nightlife. I want creation at DHS. I am remain positive in hoping that they are creating great things. And even though I was strongly disappointed when I watched Avatar, I can still see it being an amazing land developed by talented Imagineers. I am looking forward to the Disney of the future but I do not know who could bring that post-Iger.

What are your thoughts?

 

[bubbles1812]

instead with analysts and accountants to try to control the creative people and cut costs.

Sorry that is business.

Read the news today many people are starting to believe we are sliding into a Global Recession, no jobs no $5 to $10 thousand dollar trip to Disney World.

No millions or billions to invest.



Every Disney fan says how the Carsland saved California Adventure, accountants need to see the original investment recovered ..... long term attendance figures.

This is business




Read more than once how bad WDW is doing, yet I read about record crowds. Do they want to expand when they are at capacity?


Analysts and accountants rule and I would refuse to invest in Disney if they did not.

I think some of your points are good, but Disney's attendance has not really grown in the last four years. Just sayin'...I do not count 0.1% growth as anything but negligible. They aren't at capacity. And Tirian had a good post in the another thread regarding those attendance numbers...American attendance has flatlined but foreign visitor numbers have increased. That's basically why Disney has been able to maintain. That could definitely change in the coming years with the increasingly scary price hikes and I'm also guessing Disney does away with at least some of the discounts they give (pure speculation on my part but I think it's fairly reasonable to think there is a high probability of that happening. They want to milk their customers for all their worth and giving them discounts isn't exactly the way to go). That said, there obviously needs to be some form of money control...though if it's to the point where creativity is stiffled/stopped (Not saying this is Disney all the time but definitely sometimes. They've certainly squelched a lot of projects/ideas)...count me out of investing because I see very possibility for long term growth there as well.

 

[Clever Name]

William S. Simon is the next logical choice for the new Disney CEO. Bill is only 52 years old and has the creative experience to make Disneyland a place worth visiting again.

 

[GoofGoof]

Tom Staggs is probably the front runner. CFO for 10+ years during the ABC, Pixar and Marvel acquisitions. He was moved to The Chairman of the Parks and resorts division a few years ago to get some operations experience. His background is in finance (came from Morgan Stanley). Current CFO Jay Rasulo is probably 2nd in line. He swapped jobs with Staggs a few years ago. Probably not the answer you were looking for since Staggs was in investment banking and is a finance guy, but the board knows both theses guys and so do major shareholders and it will be a safe and stable move to go to one of them.

 

[MickeyPeace]

Wdwprince,
This is an amazing post and discussion point. We haven't had something like this in awhile. Thank you for bringing it up. I have to admit I agree with Eisner's words. It is important for a business to consider finances but not to the point where creativity and growth suffers. I feel like this sums up our Disney of today. All financial thought, but lack of creativity. As I am sure many here know, I love Disney, I think the FLE is great. But, I think Disney is due for something innovative and amazing. It is an exciting time for Universal and I cannot wait for our first stay there (we have been many times but never overnight at their hotels). I wish Disney could drum up some of that excitement, where we are hearing of and seeing new developments. I know, I know the FLE is new but as an adult couple without children, there is only so much excitement we have about the FLE expansion. I am NOT a doom and gloomer but, even as a DVC member, I can say that I want to see some new, innovative, creative things at WDW. I want a new DTD with some nightlife. I want creation at DHS. I am remain positive in hoping that they are creating great things. And even though I was strongly disappointed when I watched Avatar, I can still see it being an amazing land developed by talented Imagineers. I am looking forward to the Disney of the future but I do not know who could bring that post-Iger.

What are your thoughts?

Thanks for your response. You understood that my question focused on creativity as a predominant quality in a leader (and it's lack thereof) and how it affects the parks. I also agree with everything else in your statement. As an adult without children who frequents the parks myself, I appreciate the new FLE also but overall I'm not seeing or hearing about new developments that get me excited. I'm looking forward to Avatarland (or whatever) too as one of the only developments down the line that isn't targeted specifically to young children.

I'm not a doom and gloomer either and I would love to see some excitement generated by a creative leader. Who would that be? I don't know. Maybe I'll do some research. John Lasseter comes to mind but Lee already said he has no interest. If I could put the creativity of Lasseter or Rohde in the brain of an executive with a top notch business resume then would be ideal.

Maybe Lee or another insider could make a suggestion?

 

[n2hifi]

This is probably the most thought provoking thread I have read here (Granted I am a newbee). I see this happen all of the time as companies grow. It reminds me of an interview with Steve Jobs where he mentioned that his inspiration was Sony and how inventive and creative they were. But, over time they lost that spirit and are now struggling in the market. I am not an Apple fanboy but I respect the man and can see how he and Lasseter got along. I think there are many companies struggling with these problems. Once you get big enough there is a necessity for structure and money management. An example of what can happen when you 'bet the house' is what happened to Carolco pictures. When you go public it's a whole different issue. I personally don't think Lasseter would want the job. I think a CEO with 'vision' is more important than one with creativity. Most creative people I know can't manage themselves much less a company (I not knocking creative people, I consider myself in that category). In the Architecture firm I was at previously I called it 'promotion to incompetence'. We all went to school to be designers not managers. If someone with vision can surround himself with creative people he has full confidence in, he can sell their ideas to the world (or board of directors). So that begs the question: Should a CEO be a salesman, a visioneer or a creative person? Companies everywhere want to know! Even people like Carol Bartz who built a creative powerhouse in Autodesk, moved on to Yahoo! and got fired. Sorry for the non-answer answer.

 

[MickeyPeace]

This is probably the most thought provoking thread I have read here (Granted I am a newbee). I see this happen all of the time as companies grow. It reminds me of an irview with Steve Jobs where he mentioned that his inspiration was Sony and how inventive and creative they were. But, over time they lost that spirit and are now struggling in the market. I am not an Apple fanboy but I respect the man and can see how he and Lasseter got along. I think there are many companies struggling with these problems. Once you get big enough there is a necessity for structure and money management. An example of what can happen when you 'bet the house' is what happened to Carolco pictures. When you go public it's a whole different issue. I personally don't think Lasseter would want the job. I think a CEO with 'vision' is more important than one with creativity. Most creative people I know can't manage themselves much less a company (I not knocking creative people, I consider myself in that category). In the Architecture firm I was at previously I called it 'promotion to incompetence'. We all went to school to be designers not managers. If someone with vision can surround himself with creative people he has full confidence in, he can sell their ideas to the world (or board of directors). So that begs the question: Should a CEO be a salesman, a visioneer or a creative person? Companies everywhere want to know! Even people like Carol Bartz who built a creative powerhouse in Autodesk, moved on to Yahoo! and got fired. Sorry for the non-answer answer.

The most obvious choice for me for the ideal candidate to replace Iger is Steve Jobs. Imagine the possibilities! I heard that he is cryogenically frozen with Walt and that they are going to be thawed a day before the Mayan calendar runs out. A new era will begin as these men rule the planet.

Seriously, Jobs was the most "creative" "visionary" executive that we had. He also had close ties to Disney, being the largest shareholder and good friend to Bob Iger. I wonder how much of Iger's decision to retire in the next couple of years was based on the loss of his good friend and advisor Steve Jobs. It seems like leaders, such as Eisner and Iger, rely heavily on partnerships with others who counterbalance what their strong points are. I can't help but wonder how much of the NextGen initiative was inspired by or advised by Steve Jobs. Jobs is gone and NextGen is Iger's "Disney legacy". Maybe Iger has nothing else up his sleeve after this project.

n2hifi I think that you are using the word vision synonymously with creative, they can not be independent of each other. An executive that is strongly creative also has to have the business acumen and skill set to be CEO of a company such as Disney. One is not independent of the other, as may be the case in a small firm. That is why I asked the question, who could fill this position of CEO of Disney that is a "creative" executive (and as a result also become a visionary?).

Eisner was strong on creativity as well as money management, but what he lacked money management, he could rely on Frank Wells for.

I'd really like to see the next CEO of Disney to be someone with enough creativity, passion, respect and admiration for Walt's legacy, to take the helm and become a visionary. Visionaries don't start the job with that title. They earn it. Thus the difference between creative executive and visionary.

Can that be someone internally such as Tom Staggs or Jay Rasulo? Maybe. They are both being groomed on both sides of the fence. Trading places in both Parks and Resorts and CFO.
Does either have enough creativity to be visionary? I would go with Staggs over Rasulo. Still neither really excites me at this point.

Still waiting...

 

[SleepingMonk]

 

[Clever Name]

Jeff Bezos would be great as the next Disney CEO. He's young (48), creative and knows how change things. He could get rid of a lot of the dead wood at Disney (Lasseter, Rohde, etc.) and bring in fresh faces to put Disney back in the top tier of the entertainment world. He enjoys hip-hop. Another thing I like about Jeff is that he wears an atomic watch that checks multiple atomic clock frequencies.

 

[Timekeeper]

...But in a creative business you also have to be willing to take chances and even to fail sometimes...

Quite an eerie foreshadowing of the Journey Into Imagination reburb, eh?

Wizarding World is proof positive that it is possible for a theme park to add quality, innovation, and huge financial rewards.

 

[vinnya1726]

Wow...this is a great thread. So many great responses. I think part of our problem as a country is that we are all going down the business path with everything. Schools are now being run like businesses, where our children are commodities not children and teachers are being judged based on how well the children do on a test. Like it or not, children are not and should not be considered the latest store item that either sells or fails. We continue to put these type of leaders in charge of schools, our country, and companies like Disney and that is where our innovation has stopped. We need to stop and realize that creativity, innovation, determination, and team work helped create our great nation, and places like WDW. While it is important to have people who are watching the figures, you also need to have people who have a vision to make the most of those resources without squandering them. Walt and Roy did it that way...that is really what we need at Disney a creative leader who is not afraid to take chances with an experienced business partner, who shares that vision and can make the resources work for the vision. Today we take the resources and create the vision, that is not the way Disney did it and it is not the way we should do it now.

 

[MickeyPeace]

I have thought about it and have my answer.

I nominate Steve Wynn.

 

[Clever Name]

I have thought about it and have my answer.

I nominate Steve Wynn.

I agree that Steve Wynn would be great, but he's too old IMO. I'd like to see Disney bring in a young CEO who has the time to guide the company back to the top of the heap.