News Bob Iger is back! Chapek is out!!

[TP2000]

Rebecca Campbell out -

Wasn't she the blonde one who was Disneyland President for about 60 or 90 days in 2019? And her main task while in Anaheim was posting inane and painfully staged Instagram photos of herself?

How am I not surprised ?

 

[TP2000]

Dear Fellow Employees memo from Alan Bergman, Dana Walden and Jimmy Pitar -

Dear Fellow Employees,

On our Q1 Earnings call yesterday, Bob announced an exciting strategic reorganization that refocuses the company on creativity, empowers our creative leaders and ensures we have accountability for our businesses globally. At this moment of great change and opportunity, we are inspired by the vision Bob has set for the company, and we are honored to be leading our respective business groups around the world at this important time in Disney’s history. Disney’s legacy of creating and delivering world-class entertainment through our unmatched brands and franchises remains central to who we are. And it is with that spirit of creativity and innovation that we proudly embark on a new era of exceptional storytelling.

As you heard, effective immediately, the company will be reorganized into three core business segments: Disney Entertainment, ESPN, and Disney Parks, Experiences and Products. Today, we are writing to provide you with details about the newly formed Disney Entertainment and ESPN business segments and information about how this reorganization will impact the segments for which you’ve all been working. While we continue finalizing our operations and structures over the coming weeks, we want to provide answers to many of the initial questions you may have about the future in store for our businesses.

Today our colleagues from both Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution (DMED) and International Content and Operations (IC&O) will be joining Disney Entertainment and ESPN, with some becoming a part of one of the new shared functions that support both of our businesses. We are looking forward to more fully integrating our new team members as we seek a greater level of collaboration and an even more meaningful connection between our series, films and sports content, and our audiences.

Below are details about our new structure which have been lifted from the attached release, as well as some additional information.

Firstly, Disney Entertainment: this new segment will be co-chaired by Alan and Dana who will be responsible for the company’s full portfolio of entertainment media and content businesses globally, including streaming.

ESPN will include ESPN networks and ESPN+, and will be led by Jimmy. He will also be responsible for the management and supervision of the company’s full portfolio of sports content, products and experiences across all of Disney’s platforms worldwide, including its international sports channels.

The leaders of each content group will have full operational control and financial responsibility for creative development, marketing, sales, and distribution, and will be accountable for driving business efficiencies.

DISNEY ENTERTAINMENT

Disney Entertainment Co-Chairmen Alan Bergman and Dana Walden will oversee the company’s global streaming business and manage all content decisions for Disney+ and Hulu.

Alan will also have primary oversight of the following businesses and content brands: Disney Live Action, Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, 20th Century Studios, and Searchlight Pictures as well as Disney Music Group and Disney Theatrical Group. Asad Ayaz will continue to oversee marketing for Alan’s creative groups in addition to Disney+, working closely with the Hulu marketing team.

Dana will also have primary oversight of the following businesses and content brands: ABC Entertainment, ABC News, ABC Owned Television Stations, Disney Branded Television, Disney Television Studios, Freeform, FX, Hulu Originals, National Geographic Content and Onyx Collective. As part of this reorganization, Debra OConnell will report to Walden as President, Networks (excluding ESPN). Shannon Ryan will continue to oversee marketing for Dana’s creative groups in addition to Hulu, working closely with the Disney+ marketing team.

ESPN

Jimmy will continue to oversee eight linear networks, including ESPN and ESPN2; sports content across all Disney domestic and, going forward, international platforms; ESPN+; ESPN Audio; ESPN Digital; ESPN Social; ESPN Fantasy and a variety of owned sports events. The ESPN team will be responsible for the company’s full portfolio of sports content, products and experiences on Disney platforms worldwide. Laura Gentile, who previously had marketing responsibilities across Disney Networks and ESPN, will now focus solely on leading all aspects of ESPN marketing across all platforms.

Several shared-service organizations across the company will support both Disney Entertainment and ESPN, facilitating company-wide efficiencies and creating a more cost-effective, coordinated, and streamlined approach to operations. These include Product and Technology, led by Aaron LaBerge; Advertising Sales, led by Rita Ferro; and Platform Distribution led by Justin Connolly excluding Theatrical Distribution and Music, which will be overseen by Alan Bergman.

Outside of North America, the company’s media, entertainment, and sports content and operations will continue to be managed regionally by Luke Kang, President Asia Pacific; Jan Koeppen, President EMEA; Diego Lerner, President LATAM; and K Madhavan, President India. These leaders will report to each of us as part of their global responsibilities. As a result of the changes, Rebecca Campbell, Chairman, International Content and Operations, has decided to leave the company. An esteemed leader and longtime industry veteran, Campbell will stay on through June to help with the transition.

In coming weeks, we will finalize operations and structures, including how our corporate functions will support our new company structure. During this transition, DMED and IC&O finance, communications, HR, and legal will report, respectively, to Christine McCarthy, Kristina Schake, Paul Richardson and Horacio Gutierrez.

As we heard yesterday, this reorganization of our company will result in reductions to our overall workforce, which will affect every segment and function across the company, and we are very mindful of the personal impact of these changes. More permanent decisions about individual positions and teams will be made in the coming weeks as we build out our operations in alignment with the company’s overall strategic priorities. Understandably, these changes will take a toll on colleagues who will be impacted, and we do not take that lightly. We will continue to be as transparent as possible throughout this process.

In the meantime, we encourage everyone to speak with your individual leaders, who will soon have additional information about assignments, reporting structures, and more.

The three of us share deep admiration and respect for one another, and it is a true privilege to lead such talented teams and individuals. We are excited to continue to foster a culture where we can do our very best work and look forward to building on your many incredible achievements as we embark on this new chapter.

Thank you for all that you do, and you will hear more from us soon.

With gratitude,

Alan, Dana and Jimmy

Disney’s Reorg Revealed: Dana Walden and Alan Bergman Divide Entertainment Assets, International Chief Rebecca Campbell to Exit

Disney leadership broke down the specifics of the company-wide restructuring Thursday, following CEO Bob Iger's initial earnings re-org announcement

variety.com

Thank you for posting this.

Has anyone been keeping track of how many corporate re-orgs and "new reporting structures" that Disney has gone through in the last five years? This feels like it's at least the third one, if not the fourth.

How does anyone maintain project continuity and long-range planning in an environment like that? It seems like Disney is caught in a cycle where every fiscal year or two there's a new batch of bosses and new structures and new names for everything.

There's certainly a benefit to shaking off the cobwebs and evolving. But to do that every year or two seems counter-productive.

 

[BuzzedPotatoHead89]

Thank you for posting this.

Has anyone been keeping track of how many corporate re-orgs and "new reporting structures" that Disney has gone through in the last five years? This feels like it's at least the third one, if not the fourth.

How does anyone maintain project continuity and long-range planning in an environment like that? It seems like Disney is caught in a damaging cycle, where every fiscal year or two there's a new batch of bosses and new structures and new names for everything. Weird.

Unfortunately this is so par for the course in corporate America I’m not sure if this really rocks the confidence of investors, either. Blame the modern MBA programs that’s centered so much on short term quarter-to-quarter shareholder value, a deterioration in corporate governance and ethics, whatever. It’s a revolving door everywhere. The C-Suite is the “C”-U-Later suite.

Ironically up until Chapek Disney had been an outlier up until recently for having had limited CEO turnover for the last 30 years.

 

[Cliff]

I don’t know….but I’m guessing that Iger will not let go of his power for ANY reason on his own. The Board will eventually force him out.

Uggg…I think it’s time for new blood at the top. Disney is in desperate need of a massive refresh and sweep out. I feel like they have all become completely disconnected with their customers in almost every way you can look at it.

I’d say…..bring back Joe Rode and make him CEO. (It’s just a stupid dream of mine)

 

[RobWDW1971]

Wasn't she the blonde one who was Disneyland President for about 60 or 90 days in 2019? And her main task while in Anaheim was posting inane and painfully staged Instagram photos of herself?

How am I not surprised ?

I'm just hoping the poor woman can put on a pair of sweatpants and exhale for once.

 

[GimpYancIent]

I don’t know….but I’m guessing that Iger will not let go of his power for ANY reason on his own. The Board will eventually force him out.

Uggg…I think it’s time for new blood at the top. Disney is in desperate need of a massive refresh and sweep out. I feel like they have all become completely disconnected with their customers in almost every way you can look at it.

I’d say…..bring back Joe Rode and make him CEO. (It’s just a stupid dream of mine)

In the world of (If Only) a complete refresh of the management structure would be the way to go. The reality is the board has demonstrated itself to be more entrenched, rigid and inflexible to the point serious financial pain is the sole motivator.

 

[TP2000]

I'm just hoping the poor woman can put on a pair of sweatpants and exhale for once.

Oh, those slacks! The poor dear.

It's so funny how quickly styles can flip and change. Just 3 years ago the kids, and a Disneyland President, were all in skintight skinny jeans they couldn't fit their ankle through.

Now (at least here out West) all the teenage and college girls are suddenly wearing high waisted swinging bell bottoms like it's 1973.

 

[VJ]

Chapek was bad, but also hand picked by Iger. Iger set him up, left when he knew it was going to get bad, came back after chapek is sent packing, some pixie dusters and cast members go nuts and cry happy tears thinking Disney is saved, and now iger can throw Chapek under the bus for all the stupid things Iger setup and/or had in the works before he left. Brilliant…until it catches back up to him.

have you seen the latest episode of the bad batch? no spoilers, but... similarities

 

[MisterPenguin]

I, for one, support our Undead Lich Lord and CEO, Bob Iger, for ages unending!!

 

[pdude81]

One of the proxy’s desires was to see / hear a clear succession plan. Other than “I don’t think I’ll be here in two years,” and details on that? No shortage of successors have been mentioned but we haven’t seen/heard anything about concrete plans. Is history repeating itself?

Well the board chair was changed effective yesterday, and that "committee" just started. I hope this time they put more effort into it than when Bob I. hid under the couch and the first person that answered his call got to be CEO.

 

[SpectreJordan]

I don’t know….but I’m guessing that Iger will not let go of his power for ANY reason on his own. The Board will eventually force him out.

Uggg…I think it’s time for new blood at the top. Disney is in desperate need of a massive refresh and sweep out. I feel like they have all become completely disconnected with their customers in almost every way you can look at it.

I’d say…..bring back Joe Rode and make him CEO. (It’s just a stupid dream of mine)

I love Rohde's park stuff but I don't think that would turn out well for the rest of the rest of the company. You need someone with Hollywood experience who also appreciates & is a fan of the parks.

Can we just blend Iger & Eisner together? Say what you want about either but Iger was able to turn Disney into the blockbuster powerhouse of the 2010s & Eisner greatly expanded the parks. Give me someone who can do both at once.

 

[Magenta Panther]

Uh huh.

Meanwhile, he's doing nothing about the PR disasters created by certain members of the company's entertainment division. Not that I expected he would. That's one Chapek mess he's going to pretend doesn't exist. Good luck with that, Bob.

 

[UNCgolf]

Can we just blend Iger & Eisner together? Say what you want about either but Iger was able to turn Disney into the blockbuster powerhouse of the 2010s & Eisner greatly expanded the parks. Give me someone who can do both at once.

It seems forgotten now, but Eisner basically already did both at once (although that was with a heavy helping of Frank Wells). He turned Disney into a massive media powerhouse too, both with the Disney Renaissance and purchases like ABC and ESPN -- Disney was barely more than a theme park company when he became CEO.

 

[SpectreJordan]

It seems forgotten now, but Eisner basically already did both at once (although that was with a heavy helping of Frank Wells). He turned Disney into a massive media powerhouse too, both with the Disney Renaissance and purchases like ABC and ESPN -- Disney was barely more than a theme park company when he became CEO.

Definitely true. I doubt the Marvel & Lucasfilm purchases could've been possible without those two as stepping stones. Marvel, Lucasfilm & Pixar were definitely more exciting additions to Disney though lol

 

[HauntedPirate]

It seems forgotten now, but Eisner basically already did both at once (although that was with a heavy helping of Frank Wells). He turned Disney into a massive media powerhouse too, both with the Disney Renaissance and purchases like ABC and ESPN -- Disney was barely more than a theme park company when he became CEO.

First decade Eisner was good.

 

[Disney Analyst]

 

[CaptainMickey]

A little more insight into the conservation between Chapek and Gov. DeSantis from his new book:

DeSantis recounts the conversation in a chapter of his new memoir, "The Courage to be Free: Florida's Blueprint for American Revival," which will be released Tuesday by publisher HarperCollins. The chapter reveals what Bob Chapek, who was Disney CEO at the time, told DeSantis as the fight over Florida's education law heated up in the spring of 2022.

"As the controversy over the Parental Rights in Education bill was coming to a head, Chapek called me. He did not want Disney to get involved, but he was getting a lot of pressure to weigh in against the bill," DeSantis writes.

"We get pressured all the time," Chapek told DeSantis, according to the governor's book. "But this time is different. I haven’t seen anything like this before."

Chapek told shareholders that he had called DeSantis on March 9 to urge him not to sign the bill, which restricts schools from teaching gender and sexuality to children in kindergarten through third grade. Activists nicknamed it the "Don't say gay bill" despite the legislation not using those terms.

"I called Gov. DeSantis this morning to express our disappointment and concern that if the legislation becomes law, it could be used to unfairly target gay, lesbian, non-binary and transgender kids and families," Chapek said, according to FOX 35 Orlando.

According to a report from the New York Post, Chapek had privately expressed his hesitancy to involve his company in the political issues in Florida, the home of Disney World, in the months prior. But the pressure campaign within Disney and from Democrats nationwide ultimately convinced him to take a stand.

DeSantis, however, issued a warning: If Disney got involved with the legislation, "People like me will say, ‘Gee, how come Disney has never said anything about China, where they make a fortune?’" DeSantis told Chapek.

The Florida governor said if Disney stayed out of the politics, Disney would face 48 hours of outrage when the bill passed. "[And] when I sign it, you will get another 48 hours of outrage, mostly online,'" DeSantis said, adding, "Then there will be some new outrage that the woke mob will focus on and people will forget about this issue, especially considering the outrage is directed at a political-media narrative, not the actual text of the legislation itself."

DeSantis wrote that Chapek and Disney "ultimately caved to leftist media and activist pressure and pressed the false narrative against the bill."

After the bill passed and DeSantis signed it into law, the governor was surprised that Disney chose to "escalate the battle" by vowing to fight the legislation in the courts. DeSantis signaled publicly that he would be willing to reevaluate Disney's special tax district and favorable corporate agreements due to their insistence on "woke" political activism.

Other reports showed that Disney had been pushing messages that conservatives blasted as "woke" — like enforcing gender and sexuality messages in movies and television shows. A show producer reportedly said on a leaked Disney staff call that she had a "not-at-all secret gay agenda" and had been "adding queerness" to kid's programming.

"Behind the scenes, I was not, as a father of children ages five, four, and two, comfortable with the continuation of Disney’s special arrangement," DeSantis wrote in his memoir. "While the Walt Disney Company and its executives had a right to indulge in woke activism, Florida did not have to place the company on a pedestal while they do so—especially when the company’s activism impacted the rights of parents and the well-being of children."

As Florida moved to strip Disney of its Reedy Creek district and revoke the company's self-governing status, DeSantis was surprised to see left-wing voices side with a large corporation.

"Even though Democrats often rail about the nefarious power exerted over politics by large corporations, and supposedly oppose special carveouts for big companies, they all dutifully lined up in support of keeping Disney’s special self-governing status," he wrote.

(Link)

 

[Slpy3270]

Little off-topic but it seems like ex-NBCUni CEO Jeff Shell was on his way to getting Chapek'd before the "inappropriate relationship" was disclosed.

In recent months, there have been signs that Shell was no longer in favor with Comcast leadership. After gaining oversight of the television division, Shell imposed an unpopular reorganization, and he has also been waging an uphill struggle to launch and grow the Peacock streaming service. He was perceived as “a loose cannon who had no filter,” says one longtime NBCU executive. (Shell had the nickname “shooter” earlier in his career because of a habit of shooting from the hip.) Volatile former MSNBC anchor Keith Olbermann has been repeatedly calling Shell a liar online in recent days.

An industry source says when Comcast’s Brian Roberts engaged in merger talks with Paramount Global chairwoman Shari Redstone in 2021, he offered to put Paramount president and CEO Bob Bakish in charge of the combined companies (though Roberts wanted ultimate control). In 2022, Roberts explored a merger of NBCU with the gaming company Electronic Arts that would have put EA CEO Andrew Wilson in charge.

Increasingly anxious, an industry source says, Shell started spending more time in New York in an attempt to shore up his relationship with Roberts.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Bob Iger rebuilt Disney. Fighting DeSantis could define his legacy.

 

[GimpYancIent]

Comrade B.I. is busy purging and restructuring TWDC, putting out propaganda and doing image development, he has lofty goals for himself and little time for mundane FL politics. He has attorneys for that.