What Has Bob Iger Done That You Really Like?

Chef Mickey

Chef Mickey

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I make no secret...I think Bob Iger has done a brilliant job for shareholders, but a terrible job at WDW in particular. For the purposes of this thread, let's keep it to things that impact WDW in particular.

He's on auto pilot. Absolutely sucking every dollar he can from guests who visit WDW and really not adding much of anything. That got me thinking: What exactly has been added to WDW on his watch that you really like?

Off the top of my head, his biggest projects are/were:

Fast Pass+/Magic Bands/NextGen
New Fantasyland
Disney Springs
Hub Project
Test Track 2.0
Updated Star Tours
I believe Toy Story

There are more, but when I look at the core things I enjoy at Disney, I realize Iger is just standing on the shoulders of the geniuses before him. I actually tend to dislike the newer things more than the older. Sure, I might be an old bleeding heart nostalgic Disney guy, which I am in some respects, but there is really no arguing the drop off in new and innovative attractions.

Splash
EE
Tower of Terror
RnR
AK Park

All were in place before he came around. I realize there are new projects in the works, but where are they? I reserve the right to change my mind on his tenure once we see new things come to fruition. As of now, he gets a D- from me and I hate that the parks have suffered so much under his watch. EPCOT has been utterly ignored, AK largely ignored, and HS has almost died.

What is it you like that's been on Iger's watch?
 
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sshindel

sshindel

The Epcot Manifesto
Chef Mickey said:
I agree...it was a big investment, but knowing they spent more than what was was spent to build all of EPCOT, it kind of makes you sick, doesn't it?
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Actually no, correcting for inflation it would have been more expensive to build EPCOT (if my online calculator doohickey is correct, Epcot would have cost around 3.4 billion today). Plus, I'm a fan of the NextGen project as a whole.
 
Chef Mickey

Chef Mickey

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
sshindel said:
Actually no, correcting for inflation it would have been more expensive to build EPCOT (if my online calculator doohickey is correct, Epcot would have cost around 3.4 billion today). Plus, I'm a fan of the NextGen project as a whole.
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Absolutely, inflation is a factor. However, the ambition to build EPCOT is lacking today.

My point was, they were willing to spend billions on NextGen, but have no invested billions back into the parks that need the investment. Since it's more time comparable, they spent more on this system than the entire Fantasyland Expansion.
 
sshindel

sshindel

The Epcot Manifesto
Chef Mickey said:
Absolutely, inflation is a factor. However, the ambition to build EPCOT is lacking today.

My point was, they were willing to spend billions on NextGen, but have no invested billions back into the parks that need the investment. Since it's more time comparable, they spent more on this system than the entire Fantasyland Expansion.
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Sure. However, it can be argued that it has a massively larger impact on the resort as a whole than FLE, or Avatarland, or any similar singular addition to the parks.
It impacts guest experience (good or bad), operations, cast members, guest spending, and the company as a whole in terms of the analytical insight that it can help derive.

I know most people think it was not a worthy spend, I tend to disagree, but either way, it was a massive investment into the resort. Just not one everyone agrees with.
 
Chef Mickey

Chef Mickey

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
sshindel said:
Sure. However, it can be argued that it has a massively larger impact on the resort as a whole than FLE, or Avatarland, or any similar singular addition to the parks.
It impacts guest experience (good or bad), operations, cast members, guest spending, and the company as a whole in terms of the analytical insight that it can help derive.

I know most people think it was not a worthy spend, I tend to disagree, but either way, it was a massive investment into the resort. Just not one everyone agrees with.
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I think at minimum, the jury is out on NextGen systems and I'm not sure the ROI will ever be realized or fully understood. Disney's popularity hasn't wavered as a result of the the missteps of management, which means they won't change their ways until the bottom line is impacted.

However, true fans can see the difference in product today versus 10-20 years ago. The investment hasn't been made to sustain the next 20 years of growth and many things are old and tired. Disney is still getting by on their name and the fact so many new visitors haven't seen it.
 
sshindel

sshindel

The Epcot Manifesto
Chef Mickey said:
I think at minimum, the jury is out on NextGen systems and I'm not sure the ROI will ever be realized or fully understood. Disney's popularity hasn't wavered due the the missteps of management, which means they won't change their ways until the bottom line is impacted.

However, true fans can see the difference in product today versus 10-20 years ago. The investment hasn't been made to sustain the next 20 years of growth and many things are old and tired. Disney is still getting by on their name and the fact so many new visitors haven't seen it.
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Once again, hate to disagree here, but blanket statements like "true fans" means that you are implying that everyone who does not share that opinion is not a true fan. I do not share that opinion about a lot of the resort, I do about other parts of it. I'd likely fall out of your definition of "true fan", though can assure you that I am.
 
Chef Mickey

Chef Mickey

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
sshindel said:
Once again, hate to disagree here, but blanket statements like "true fans" means that you are implying that everyone who does not share that opinion is not a true fan. I do not share that opinion about a lot of the resort, I do about other parts of it. I'd likely fall out of your definition of "true fan", though can assure you that I am.
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You are in the minority (from what I've seen and experienced) on saying NextGen has been a positive. Not saying you're wrong, but those of us that have visited the parks all these years and experienced the before don't tend to agree.

Which is all fine...we have to disagree to have something to discuss. My point in this thread is that Iger has done very little from a WDW perspective to expand, improve, and invest for the future. We aren't really discussing NextGen in particular here; rather, it's just one aspect of my perceived failures of this administration. It's a sad day when the biggest investment was in a system full of bugs and actually negatively impacted the experience for many guests.

My wish is for Disney to have invested for the future much earlier in his administration and not rely so heavily on greatness from the past. I see there are some big projects on the horizon, but today, we don't have the parks we should...at least in my opinion.
 
sshindel

sshindel

The Epcot Manifesto
Chef Mickey said:
You are in the minority (from what I've seen and experienced) on saying NextGen has been a positive. Not saying you're wrong, but those of us that have visited the parks all these years and experienced the before don't tend to agree.

Which is all fine...we have to disagree to have something to discuss. My point in this thread is that Iger has done very little from a WDW perspective to expand, improve, and invest for the future. We aren't really discussing NextGen in particular here; rather, it's just one aspect of my perceived failures of this administration. It's a sad day when the biggest investment was in a system full of bugs and actually negatively impacted the experience for many guests.

My wish is for Disney to have invested for the future much earlier in his administration and not rely so heavily on greatness from the past. I see there are some big projects on the horizon, but today, we don't have the parks we should...at least in my opinion.
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So, maybe instead of "What has Bob Iger done that you really like?", the thread should be titled "What has Bob Iger NOT done that he should have?"

As I said, like it or not, NextGen was a massive investment in the WDW resort, one that has far reaching impacts which are just starting to be realized. I said it in another thread yesterday, my trips with NextGen in the past few years have been some of the least stressful, most enjoyable trips in the 20 years I've been visiting as an adult (I figure the 18 years of trips before that don't really count, since you know, kids like lots of stuff that don't make sense).

You asked what Iger has done at WDW that I like, and I answer NextGen/MagicBands.
 
anchorman314

anchorman314

Well-Known Member
Chef Mickey said:
My point in this thread is that Iger has done very little from a WDW perspective to expand, improve, and invest for the future. We aren't really discussing NextGen in particular here; rather, it's just one aspect of my perceived failures of this administration.
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That is your opinion. There are others whose opinion is that NextGen is the groundwork for expansion, improvement, and investment for the future. Just like the Hub expansion, you need to prepare the existing facilities so whatever comes in the future can be successful.
 
Chef Mickey

Chef Mickey

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
sshindel said:
So, maybe instead of "What has Bob Iger done that you really like?", the thread should be titled "What has Bob Iger NOT done that he should have?"

As I said, like it or not, NextGen was a massive investment in the WDW resort, one that has far reaching impacts which are just starting to be realized. I said it in another thread yesterday, my trips with NextGen in the past few years have been some of the least stressful, most enjoyable trips in the 20 years I've been visiting as an adult (I figure the 18 years of trips before that don't really count, since you know, kids like lots of stuff that don't make sense).

You asked what Iger has done at WDW that I like, and I answer NextGen/MagicBands.
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Perhaps, but it's essentially the same to me. I thought it was understood, but I'm speaking from a WDW perspective in particular. I'll add to my original post.

If you like the Magic Bands, I'm glad. I don't and I've used them. MAYBE they will turn out to be great once they optimize everything.
 
imagineer boy

imagineer boy

Well-Known Member
I'm personally not a fan of the Marvel acquisition even though it has been profitable. I think Pixar and Lucasfilm purchases were much better, not to mention no brainers.

When it comes to WDW, I guess FLE might've been his best thing. But when will there ever be a CEO that gives all aspects of the WDC equal amounts of attention and dedication to quality?
 
Chef Mickey

Chef Mickey

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
anchorman314 said:
That is your opinion. There are others whose opinion is that NextGen is the groundwork for expansion, improvement, and investment for the future. Just like the Hub expansion, you need to prepare the existing facilities so whatever comes in the future can be successful.
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Agreed on that. I hope I am wrong. However, there is no excuse for letting the parks get to this state...even if they are laying groundwork for a master plan.
 

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