| Walt Disney | 500 S. Buena Vista St., Burbank, CA 91521-9722 |
| www.disney.com | (818) 560-1000 Fax: (818) 560-1930 |
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Storybook history
Disney's history reads like one of its own movie scripts. Walt and Roy Disney started their film studio in 1923, and Walt directed the first Mickey Mouse cartoon five years later. Feature films like Snow White, Fantasia, and Pinocchio established Disney as a major Hollywood force, and the opening of Disneyland in Anaheim, California in 1955 and Disney World in Orlando in 1971 made the company a staple of family vacations for generations to come. Now, Disneyland Paris has become France's biggest tourist attraction and its production studios, including Buena Vista, Miramax, and Touchstone, are churning out bigger and more successful movies each year. Disney was the most profitable movie studio in 1999, thanks to hits like Toy Story 2, Tarzan, and Sixth Sense. The company is also behind such blockbusters as Pulp Fiction, The English Patient, Pretty Woman, and Shakespeare in Love.
Empire of mice
In addition to its world-renowned theme parks and motion picture studios, Disney's empire includes a booming retail business, several publication companies, its own cable television network, a majority share in popular sports network ESPN, and teams in the National Hockey League (The Mighty Ducks) and Major League Baseball (Anaheim Angels). And Disney continues looking for new ways to expand. After contracting an outside cruise line, Disney decided in 1998 to launch its own passenger ship, the Disney Magic, with a second ship, the Disney Wonder, in 1999.
Mickey's hierarchy
Despite the warm and fuzzy material it produces, at its core Disney is a rigid corporate bureaucracy. At the top of the Disney organizational pyramid, decisions about new business developments and financial operations are made through an unusual process first instituted by late president Frank Wells and former chief financial officer Gary Wilson. In addition to a manager, a member of the "strategic planning department" oversees each division. The head of that department reports to CEO Michael Eisner independent of the division managers, thus acting as a check on their power. This method invites constant tension between managers and planners, which Disney believes results in optimum efficiency and creativity. Many members of the strategic planning department are eventually given their own Disney business to manage. Ironically, many of those planners promoted to manager have left the company after growing weary of the constant struggle with their own strategic planners. Disney has also been suffering from an exodus of high-level executives, most notably president Michael Ovitz (who left with a multi-million dollar payout) and studio chief Jeffrey Katzenberg, who received a $250 million settlement.
Go go go.com
The Disney reach extends to the Web. In June 1998, Disney paid over $70 million for a 42 percent stake in Infoseek, one of the largest search engine companies in the nation. In January 1999, the Disney and Infoseek jointly launched the Go Network, a web portal in stiff competition with brand names like Yahoo and Excite. In July 1999 Disney acquired the remaining 58 percent of Infoseek and combined all of its Internet holdings under the auspices of the Go network. The stake is worth approximately $1.5 billion. The site hopes to lure customers with a variety of popular features, including free e-mail and personalized news delivery.
From each, according to his ability; to each, according to his tolerance for children's entertainment
Ever looking to expand its cultural reach Disney announced tentative plans to build a Disney theme park in Hong Kong. The proposed deal was announced in September 1999 and called for an investment of $1.7 billion by the Hong Kong government, though Disney would keep the majority of admission, merchandise, and food sales revenue. Disney itself would invest $250 million in the project. The company has seven theme parks open, and four more planned for the near future, including a second park in Anaheim, California.
Sacre Bleu!
French intellectuals were no doubt incensed by Disney's September 1999 announcement of plans to build a second theme park outside of Paris next to its Magic Kingdom park. The $642 million new attraction is to have a movie theme and open in 2002. The French government will chip in a highway interchange and help build a training center for new employees. In return French and European films are to be as prominent as Hollywood pomp and circumstance, and French will be the predominant language at the park. Oh, and the new park will generate $66 million in annual taxes and create 5,000 jobs.
Ebb tide
Disney announced that its fiscal fourth-quarter net income was down 71 percent in November 1999. The meager figures have been attributed, in part, to a $132 million charge the company took in conjunction with cost-cutting and consolidation initiatives. Disney has also suffered from poor sales in its home-video and consumer products division. CEO, Michael Eisner, and CFO, Thomas Staggs assured analysts that the company is enacting cost cutting measures that will eventually right the ship. Neither executive was willing to put a time frame on Disney's return to growth, indicating that a rebound may be a ways off. In May 2000 the Disney-owned ABC Network was disconnected from 3.5 million viewers due to a contract dispute between Disney and Time Warner. Disney is pushing for greater regulatory scrutiny of cable providers, claiming that their monopoly on pipelines creates unbalanced distribution of content to viewers. Despite the conflict occurring during the critical "May sweeps" period, ABC was only marginally affected, and its "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" drew a record audience during the blackout.
Put on a happy face
Disney is pulling through the rough times, and is continuing its rapid expansion. New hotels, such as the 1,300 room Animal Kingdom Lodge coming to Orlando in 2001, are going up at Disney locations across the globe. In December 1999 work started on the Walt Disney Concert Hall. Designed by Frank O. Gehry, architect of the famed Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, the hall will be the new home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. An alliance with Compaq Computer Corporation resulted in Compaq sponsorhip of numerous Disney ventures such as a new Mission: SPACE attraction at Epcot and a Skystravaganza for the 45th anniversary celebration in CA.
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Disney is looking for everything from accountants to interviewers to marketing analysts. The company's hiring is generally decentralized, with different geographic areas handling their own staffing. Regardless, Walt Disney's job hotline is a good ticket into the Magic Kingdom. The hotline gives information on the requirements and responsibilities of available jobs in all of the company's business units, including its theme parks, retail business, and creative studios. Each unit has an individual address and fax number, which are available on the hotline.
Disneyland openings are also listed at Disney.com. Resumes can be submitted by fax or regular mail, and applicants should not be afraid to submit them frequently. "Cold resumes do not end up in the right pile," warns one Disney corporate worker, so applicants are advised to keep up to date on the job postings. Disney employees have stressed the importance of temporary work in landing that permanent job at the Magic Kingdom.
Candidates with MBAs tend to get hired into either Strategic Planning, Consumer Products, or Operations Planning. Most work in finance positions, such as Operations Finance in one of the theme parks, or in Marketing and Sales finance. Some go into Financial Reporting (basically an accounting group), although in that field, "most come from regional MBA programs like Rollins." A lucky few are drafted into Imagineering, or the real estate groups.
For creatives, the application process is complicated. Portfolios should be submitted with resumes and a cover letter detailing areas of interest. Portfolios should measure 24 x 30 inches or smaller, and shouldn't exceed 25 "pages" in length. A "page" can consist of individual drawings, several smaller drawings, a sketchbook, or a short videotape. Work should either be behind plastic or mounted on sturdy paper - chalk, charcoal or pastel drawings must be mounted behind plastic. Slides or photocopies will be accepted, though not preferred. VHS or "reels of no more than four minutes in length" are okay as well. What doesn't pass, however, are rolled submissions, stretched or framed work, and portfolio pages not bearing the artist's name or initials.
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Still corporate
Insiders say that the image of the Happiest Place on Earth is a bit of a facade. "Disney is a big company, and it comes replete with the problems of a big bureaucracy. It has all those problems plaguing massive companies that you hear about," says one MBA. Disney is "a big company and they act like one. The culture is very bureaucratic and straitlaced, and they make very few decisions on the fly." Most sources simply advise prospective employees to understand that there is more to the company than just cuddly characters and exciting attractions. Says one insider, "it's important not to lose sight of the fact that Disney is a huge company which is in business for the sake of our stockholders - owners who want to make money by growing the company's value. Often times new cast members are disillusioned because they envision The Walt Disney Company as a Magic Kingdom kind of place which is a fairytale land devoid of bureaucracy, politics, and other unsavory things like financial analysis. No such place exists and often new cast members who come to us with unrealistic expectations leave unhappy."
Pay doesn't match prestige
The Disney pay scale, unfortunately, "doesn't match the high sheen of the Disney name." What with "the exorbitant executive salaries," employees on the lower end often feel as though they are "constantly coming out on the short end." Disney has "a hard time attracting MBAs because of the pay scale," according to insiders. Among those who are hired, "they expect that people will leave, [which creates a further] sense of alienation."
In recruiting, "Disney is not very open to negotiations. They just pitch a package to you," which the prospective cast member can either accept or decline. "Disney is an 800-pound gorilla in the marketplace," says one Disneyite. "They know it and aren't afraid to use it, which can be frustrating." Insiders advise candidates to keep each other apprised of their negotiations, and let Disney know that they are aware of what others have been offered. Once "you accept, they make everything smooth," such as relocation and other issues. The pay scale is said to be "10 to 15 percent below the market" for comparable work elsewhere. Raises come in "a slow progression." Corporate employees get a "shitty four percent raise per year, [although] year-end bonuses can be 10 percent." When performance and tenure-based raises are given, they are usually in the 10 to 15 percent range. People in "strategic planning come in at $85,000, but it's more selective and they work much more - about 65 hours a week." Employees in other groups find that "there are people that have been here five years making the same as people right out of MBA programs going into consulting jobs."
Some employees feel, however, that "in a way, you're paid just with the Disney name." This works to Disney's advantage, but can be a trap. Warns one insider, "once the pixie dust wears off, if the only [other] thing keeping you here is money, it won't work."
For love of Disney and resume
"At the same time, there is no other job I'd rather have at this point in my life," a longtime employee comments, and many at Disney would agree with such a sentiment. "My job has exceeded all expectations," another comments, adding that "there's a lot of responsibility to go around, and you get exposure to upper management - which is always ready for dialogue and feedback." Another employee states, "So far it's been like a five-year vacation for me. I've gained experience that I never could have earned somewhere else." A number of caveats must be heeded before taking a job, however. According to one employee, "[you get] a lot of satisfaction from what you do, but you must put up with the bureaucracy to get there." Some MBAs and others with similar credentials may find that "you don't have the exposure to use your skills." Overall, advises one Disney veteran, "you have to come here for the right reasons. Having Disney on a resume and spending time in this sector will go a long, long way. [You should] look at it as a building block."
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Human Resources
(818) 558-2222
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Movies;Television programs;Publications;Consumer Products;Theme parks;Hotels;Disney Cruise Line;
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