Layoffs underway at Walt Disney World

[King Capybara 77]

THROUGHPUT is the goal not customer service

And where sir is your proof ?

 

[jpeden]

Those are called coordinators. While not considered part of the leadership team, they basically are in charge of running the daily operations be it in merchandise, food/beverage, attractions, etc.

Thank you - always wondered. Figured they were in some sort of “in charge” role.

So the GEM’s are the people in Street clothes with the trash sticks? The one’s I’ve interacted with have always been extremely pleasant and nice.

 

[Disone]

Thanks. I hate how the managers aren’t visible at the WDW resorts. It sends a message they aren’t interested in customer service. I shouldnt have to demand to see a manager face to face. I have asked over the years and often the frontline CM goes to the back and “talks” to the manager and he/she never comes out unless you basically demand to see them face to face.

Both parks and resorts GEMs where renamed GEMs. Just like parks, the resorts no longer have GSMs.

 

[jpeden]

Yes, those are the leaders. And most of them are very wonderful people. There's just this silly assumption that every manager at Disney is a soul-less villain. Some, without a doubt, are unpleasant people but they are the minority. As I said earlier, they do everything in their power (with the resources they are given...which sometimes isn't a lot) to ensure the Guest experience is great. People around these parts just think they do not care because they have zero first hand knowledge of the hurdles GEMs go through.

In all seriousness, what is the pay scale on those jobs? I would imagine it's obiviously more than your hourly worker, but I can't imagine Disney paying them even low six figures. I would bet for the pay, that's a pretty hard job and you have to have some love for the company to do it.

 

[Disone]

In all seriousness, what is the pay scale on those jobs? I would imagine it's obiviously more than your hourly worker, but I can't imagine Disney paying them even low six figures. I would bet for the pay, that's a pretty hard job and you have to have some love for the company to do it.

Spot on sir. It is Love of Disney and not money that drives most of these GEMs that the VASt majority also use to be hourly. So the narrative of hourly good and manager bad is just so lame its almost comical. The majority are great but both do have bad seeds or seeds that have soured. Same for the levels above GEMs

 

[asianway]

In all seriousness, what is the pay scale on those jobs? I would imagine it's obiviously more than your hourly worker, but I can't imagine Disney paying them even low six figures. I would bet for the pay, that's a pretty hard job and you have to have some love for the company to do it.

I heard $40k once, and working well above 40 hours...

 

[jpeden]

I heard $40k once, and working well above 40 hours...

That is a labor of love no doubt then.

 

[Nubs70]

And where sir is your proof ?

Just look at the "improvements" put into place over the years. WDW has taken industrial optimization principles and applied them to theme patks.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Thanks. I hate how the managers aren’t visible at the WDW resorts. It sends a message they aren’t interested in customer service. I shouldnt have to demand to see a manager face to face. I have asked over the years and often the frontline CM goes to the back and “talks” to the manager and he/she never comes out unless you basically demand to see them face to face.

Those are the bad ones...
...the good ones jump right in and have "confrontational experience"

There's two thing a disney manager needs: 1. The ability to balance the needs/concerns of the staff
2. The ability to diffuse complaints...because the expectations are off the harts due to the label and the price.

They often do a terrible job hiring on these two traits...it's necessary and anything else is actually negotiable.

 

[ford91exploder]

Just look at the "improvements" put into place over the years. WDW has taken industrial optimization principles and applied them to theme patks.

Yes anyone with any experience in industrial engineering or ISO900x programs will recognize the changes and more importantly WHY they were implemented.

 

[ford91exploder]

Yes, those are the leaders. And most of them are very wonderful people. There's just this silly assumption that every manager at Disney is a soul-less villain. Some, without a doubt, are unpleasant people but they are the minority. As I said earlier, they do everything in their power (with the resources they are given...which sometimes isn't a lot) to ensure the Guest experience is great. People around these parts just think they do not care because they have zero first hand knowledge of the hurdles GEMs go through.

There is a big difference between line leadership and staff and senior leadership.

Line leadership who are directly responsible to both the guest/CM's and the staff leadership and in the current state of WDW they are in an impossible role which will burn them out sooner than later.

Then we have the Staff and Senior leadership of TWDC and that's the crew who sold their souls long ago and dont care about the people who's job it is to create the magic.

 

[jpeden]

Those are the bad ones...
...the good ones jump right in and have "confrontational experience"

There's two thing a disney manager needs: 1. The ability to balance the needs/concerns of the staff
2. The ability to diffuse complaints...because the expectations are off the harts due to the label and the price.

They often do a terrible job hiring on these two traits...it's necessary and anything else is actually negotiable.

They've clearly hired the bad ones at the Polynesian considering the issues we had there and the fact that I had to ask three different times for a manager and once was actually told I couldn't speak to the manager. I love that resort but that experience put me off from it.

 

[spacemtnfanatic]

When I was a GEM 3 and a half years ago, it was still called a GSM but the position was the same. I made about 35k and I had six years with the company in hourly positions. Disney's requirement for front line managers at the time was for us to work 9.5 hour days/47 hour weeks in exchange for a 40 hour a week base salary. In my area, I worked for a ruthless area leader who demanded us to stay far longer than the company mandated 9.5 hour days. If we didn't put in 11 hours in a day, the area leader wasn't pleased. If we were in the office too long, he wasn't pleased. Meanwhile, he would stroll in around 8:45 and was gone by 4 most days. He didn't provide us any support when it came to guest or cast situations, but would then berate and be super condescending toward us when we didn't meet his expectations. The atmosphere on my team was ruthless and cut throat, with other folks taking credit for others work if they thought they would get ahead. So many leaders were on temporary assignments, it was a fight for those few "statused" leadership roles while everyone else got send back to their hourly roles after so many months so a new crop of "emerging leaders" could have their turn at management without the company paying a set of folks a higher wage. While there are many areas and area leaders who were awesome - there are also plenty of cutthroat and awful leaders who are only out for themselves. All for pennies.

I turned in my ID almost three and a half years ago and it was without a doubt the best decision I ever made in my adult life. I still have nightmares at least once a week about having to back and work at WDW again.

 

[beachlover4444]

This isnt coming from Cali. This is internal to WDW upper management ( E Level as you said). One primary voice with clout and the support of a couple of the most important and influential people on the property in upper positions. This has been brewing for quite a while from what I can tell is now swinging into motion. The tone of the interactions I have had with various people who negotiate deals and sign agreements with vendors has changed drastically in the past 6 months. And in a good way. They all seem to have a bit of a spring in their step, which is far different from the tone the prior 2 years of working with them. The name I keep hearing I am hearing from different people, but, it is the same name. And the names of those in full support of the movement are not people the top level takes lightly. Sorry, thats as much as I can say. I feel very bad for people being laid off who are caught up in the sweeping change but whom do their jobs. It sucks for sure. But, I also understand that this has to be done to fix the inherent issues in management and the way things are set up from an organizational standpoint.

I had a friend who stopped herself from moving to high up with promotions because when heads got chopped during cuts, those were the jobs that went. Luckily she is still employed there after all these years. She has something to do with Epcot Event planning. At one time a job she turned down wound up eliminated. It's the same in the hotel industry I am in. When shake ups happen, it's usually someone higher up to cut the fat out in one big chop.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

They've clearly hired the bad ones at the Polynesian considering the issues we had there and the fact that I had to ask three different times for a manager and once was actually told I couldn't speak to the manager. I love that resort but that experience put me off from it.

I loathe those that won't cross the wall...
...that's their job and puts lesser skilled co-workers in a bad spot they usually can't handle.

...I've lived that life and wouldn't tolerate it.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I had a friend who stopped herself from moving to high up with promotions because when heads got chopped during cuts, those were the jobs that went. Luckily she is still employed there after all these years. She has something to do with Epcot Event planning. At one time a job she turned down wound up eliminated. It's the same in the hotel industry I am in. When shake ups happen, it's usually someone higher up to cut the fat out in one big chop.

That is often the most wise tact...go into a specialty slot/department that generates revenue but doesn't fall under a big operational umbrella...more of the office and technical side as opposed to straight general guest contact.

You're safer/better compensated there lb for lb

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

When I was a GEM 3 and a half years ago, it was still called a GSM but the position was the same. I made about 35k and I had six years with the company in hourly positions. Disney's requirement for front line managers at the time was for us to work 9.5 hour days/47 hour weeks in exchange for a 40 hour a week base salary. In my area, I worked for a ruthless area leader who demanded us to stay far longer than the company mandated 9.5 hour days. If we didn't put in 11 hours in a day, the area leader wasn't pleased. If we were in the office too long, he wasn't pleased. Meanwhile, he would stroll in around 8:45 and was gone by 4 most days. He didn't provide us any support when it came to guest or cast situations, but would then berate and be super condescending toward us when we didn't meet his expectations. The atmosphere on my team was ruthless and cut throat, with other folks taking credit for others work if they thought they would get ahead. So many leaders were on temporary assignments, it was a fight for those few "statused" leadership roles while everyone else got send back to their hourly roles after so many months so a new crop of "emerging leaders" could have their turn at management without the company paying a set of folks a higher wage. While there are many areas and area leaders who were awesome - there are also plenty of cutthroat and awful leaders who are only out for themselves. All for pennies.

I turned in my ID almost three and a half years ago and it was without a doubt the best decision I ever made in my adult life. I still have nightmares at least once a week about having to back and work at WDW again.

I had a better experience but agree totally with what you said...
...I honestly make 3x what I ever could hope to earn if I had ended up being the general manager of a hotel that generated $350 mil of annual revenue...
...the stockholders (or CEO...take your pick)...keeps everything.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

There is a big difference between line leadership and staff and senior leadership.

Line leadership who are directly responsible to both the guest/CM's and the staff leadership and in the current state of WDW they are in an impossible role which will burn them out sooner than later.

Then we have the Staff and Senior leadership of TWDC and that's the crew who sold their souls long ago and dont care about the people who's job it is to create the magic.

I agree with you...until you chased the "magic" carrot...

No one should have any allusions...it's the world's second largest entertainment company (may become the first if some rumors become true) who is using the parks to backstop its collapsing cable empire...
...follow the money and believe nothing else. It's a printing press...now more than ever.

Things were better under Eisner even when he started to lose his gourd...at least in Orlando.

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

That is a labor of love no doubt then.

In many ways...it's serfdom.

And it messes with the pay of the employee's...as well. There's been a war for 30 years to limit tips.

Why? How's morale when the manager at crystal palace makes $28,000 a year for 50 hours a week and the waiter that brings juice makes $85,000?

The nature of a beast that can bite you in so many ways.

 

[Brad Bishop]

Which is the "middle-management" way of thinking. In the long term, that decreases morale and costs the company far more than keeping employees happy does.

Unfortunately, today it gets them a bonus because they can show on paper how they cut costs.

I don't even know how you address this in a corporation because you want to keep costs in check and, yes, that means dumping people from time to time, but at the same time you don't want to encourage stupid dumps with bonuses.

If you're the one manager not playing along with the "look at my spreadsheet! I cut costs!"-game then you don't look good to the company so it becomes a: play along vs get terminated - deal.

I think a lot of it has to do with having good people from the top down who understand the business. Without that it's just this "academic management" deal and you get the spreadsheet-layoffs.

I've been in hopeless situations before where I simply didn't have the time or help I needed to get things done. To fix this, rather than get someone to help me, they put another level of management in (it just wasn't "managed" enough). That's your academic thinking right there.