The CM's at Disney versus those at Universal

[Chef Mickey]

Indeed. You'll note that many other businesses have taken Disney's terminology as far as customer service goes. I worked at Target briefly for the 2010 holiday season, and they refer to customers as "guests" and employees as "team members" (which is meant to be like cast members which doesn't make sense unless you're employed by Disney or some other entertainment business).

No question about it. Disney is a real company with serious attention to customer service. It's a huge reason they are number 1. To say the employees develop "bad habits" that don't translate to the "real world" is just insane.

With 24,000+ posts and 2,000 likes, I have to think this guy is just trolling.

 

[MarkTwain]

They're really about equal.

Talk to enough Cast Members about their personal lives and you'll learn just how many cast members work for both, or left one to work for the other. Many CMs see both companies as just two giants in the same industry.

I do know several (okay, two) great former Disney leaders who have made the jump to Universal, and talk about how much better they're treated there and that they won't be going back. I can't say I've dipped my toe in that pond, so I can't prove their claims, but I thought I'd throw that out there.

 

[mkt]

"As someone who hires?" What does that even mean? What is your position, company, and whom do you hire? Just because you view ex-Disney employees with crossed eyes doesn't mean you're right.

Sr. Art Director in the aerospace sector, with hiring decision (ie- I make the decision and my boss, the VP, signs off). No further details about my professional life. I've interviewed various people who were recent college grads, and their only experience in the workplace was Disney (either as current or former CM's), and maybe an internship.

They were polite, but not nice. Almost like a sense of superiority. None have been team players, and also, out of the ones we hired that were ex CM's, none made it through their probationary period.

Now, this is only the ones that were theme park CM's. We have one guy who's former WDI in our engineering team that's been here forever. This also doesn't apply to the few that have had OTHER non-theme park experience in the workplace.

 

[mkt]

With 24,000+ posts and 2,000 likes, I have to think this guy is just trolling.

I'm totally a troll. Yep. You got me.

 

[JIMINYCR]

They're really about equal.

Talk to enough Cast Members about their personal lives and you'll learn just how many cast members work for both, or left one to work for the other. Many CMs see both companies as just two giants in the same industry.

I do know several (okay, two) great former Disney leaders who have jumped the pond to Universal, and talk about how much better they're treated there and that they won't be going back. I can't say I've dipped my toe in that pond, so I can't prove their claims, but I thought I'd throw that out there.

I would expect there would be a difference in how employees are treated between the two companies. They may be in the same industry but their operational styles are different. I knew several CM's who did work for both. They both loved working for Disney but both jumped to Uni because of the poor treatment they got from their supervisors who they each said pushed the power trip and never should have been in positions of overseeing others. However that happens in many businesses.

 

[bhg469]

I'm gonna get flack for my vote, but I think Uni, on average, has a better CM experience IN PARK based on my cumulative and most recent experiences.

Now, if you include resort, restaurant, transport and hotel as a whole, Disney wins hands down.

Id say both parks are about equal in my experience until you consider Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade... Then there is no question. Those workers are passionate and as into it as any disney employee could ever be.

 

[mkt]

Id say both parks are about equal in my experience until you consider Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade... Then there is no question. Those workers are passionate and as into it as any disney employee could ever be.

Now that's an interesting perspective. I've found that the UO HP Team Members are the best at their jobs among all of the various theme park employees.

Except when they try English accents. I'd rather have my ears gouged.

 

[Master Yoda]

No question about it. Disney is a real company with serious attention to customer service. It's a huge reason they are number 1. To say the employees develop "bad habits" that don't translate to the "real world" is just insane.

With 24,000+ posts and 2,000 likes, I have to think this guy is just trolling.

Or maybe, just maybe...someone who has been here for 14 years and has not been all that active since likes were added just a year or two ago.

 

[bhg469]

Now that's an interesting perspective. I've found that the UO HP Team Members are the best at their jobs among all of the various theme park employees.

Except when they try English accents. I'd rather have my ears gouged.

Accent aside, they get into their "roles" very well. In some cases I'd rather listen to a fake english accent than an authentic Liverpool accent

 

[mkt]

Accent aside, they get into their "roles" very well.

Agreed. I wish they'd send them off to London. Once they realize there's like only 15 actual brits in the entire city, they'll drop the accent.

 

[bhg469]

Agreed. I wish they'd send them off to London. Once they realize there's like only 15 actual brits in the entire city, they'll drop the accent.

I added to my comment LOL I may get flack for that!

 

[mkt]

I added to my comment LOL I may get flack for that!

 

[mkt]

Disney cast members are some of the best employees of any company.

Thinking it over more, if they are so great, then why is Disney's turnover so high?

 

[bhg469]

Thinking it over more, if they are so great, then why is Disney's turnover so high?

Low Pay, low benefits, inconsistent treatment across the board, high expectations with little reward for exceeding them...

I think that question was supposed to be Rhetorical...

 

[Matt_Black]

Thinking it over more, if they are so great, then why is Disney's turnover so high?

Lots of reasons. Management, for instance. Moving on to other jobs or school. Dissatisfaction with some policies. Take your pick.

 

[mkt]

Low Pay, low benefits, inconsistent treatment across the board, high expectations with little reward for exceeding them...

I think that question was supposed to be Rhetorical...

I don't mean the ones that are smart enough to find better employment elsewhere or take their careers into a more financially beneficial direction. I mean the countless ones that are termed.

 

[mkt]

Lots of reasons. Management, for instance. Moving on to other jobs or school. Dissatisfaction with some policies. Take your pick.

Like I said:

I don't mean the ones that are smart enough to find better employment elsewhere or take their careers into a more financially beneficial direction. I mean the countless ones that are termed.

 

[Jahona]

Thinking it over more, if they are so great, then why is Disney's turnover so high?

When you employ 70,000 people at one location in most jobs that don't have much room for advancement your not going to have a lot of people staying with the company for a long time. Also along those lines you're bound to have bad apples in a sample size that large. I'm curious what the percentage of people that are let go from Disney.

 

[Chef Mickey]

Thinking it over more, if they are so great, then why is Disney's turnover so high?

Because the pay is low and many of the jobs are seasonal and filled by students who move on.

That makes it even more impressive. Despite the high turnover, the cast members do an excellent job during their time and Disney ramps up a new stuff very effectively to maintain a consistent experience.

Service industry jobs are high turnover by nature due to the reasons listed above. They typically aren't careers, but there are plenty of cast members who worked their way up from hourly jobs.

 

[mkt]

Because the pay is low and many of the jobs are seasonal and filled by students who move on.

Pay in Orlando is low - WDW is no exception. That's why I opted for Tampa over Orlando when I returned to Florida this year ($22k more per year for the same job with the same company, all because I applied for the Tampa based position).

Anyway, would you say that many = majority?