This case provides a brief history of management conflict and change at Walt Disney Company. Former CEO Michael Eisner was considered to be controversial because of his abrasive style and tendencies toward micromanagement. It was this style that strained several important relationships to the Disney Company. Though his reign as CEO during the 80’s and 90’s helped advance Disney Company, it was his conflicting management style that led to his demise and the beginning of Robert Iger’s epoch at Disney. Since Iger has taken the helm as CEO Disney was ranked 67th in the Fortune 500 list for largest companies, it has become the largest media conglomerate in the world, and relationships and disputes stemming from Eisner have been reconciled. …show more content…
During his 22-year tenure at Walt Disney, ex-CEO Eisner fought with the Miramax founders Harvey and Bob Weinstein over financial details relating to the purchase of Miramax. Eisner bumped heads several times with Steve Jobs who was then CEO of both Pixar and Apple Computer. The negative remarks Eisner made in front of Congress about Jobs Apple Computer was taken so personally that Jobs threatened to not renew the Disney-Pixar partnership if Eisner was still CEO of Disney. As well Eisner’s continuing disputes with Board of Director members Disney and Gold was that of disruptive behavior. For several years the long-standing board members repeatedly called for Eisner’s …show more content…
The case describes how soon after Iger took over as CEO at Disney, he reached out and reconciled relationships with the Weinstein brothers by making a settlement payment. In this instance I would argue that Iger implemented a problem solving approach. The Weinstein brothers may have received a payment of $100 million but Disney kept the Miramax name and film library worth $2 billion. It would appear that the brothers got what they thought was fair payment and Disney kept a lucrative business asset. Iger also reconciled relationships with Steve Jobs and Pixar by adding Jobs to the Disney Board of Directors. By adding Jobs to the board of directors not only did Iger add another influential and successful member to the team but also assured the acquisition of Pixar Animation Studios. This venture was an integrative (or win-win) negotiation for both Iger and Jobs. As stated in our reading, “when conflicting parties truly collaborate, this can result in a merger of insight, experience, knowledge, and perspective that leads to higher-quality solutions than would be obtained by any other approach.” In both of these conflicts the needs of all involved were
If upper management cannot promote the roll out of new movies or TV shows on their own time, then he or she might decide to decline the position for another firm that does not limit the venues to advertise feature productions. Another hindrance Disney can face when, onboarding senior executives, are not allowed to create partnerships or agency between parties under this agreement outlined in the miscellaneous section (“Non-Disclosure, Non-Circumvention And Non-Competition Agreement,” n.d.). If top level employees are not permitted to forge relationships outside of the Disney family, then the candidate can change their mind and seek employment elsewhere that does not put constraints on them because of the employer’s name and reputation. Even though Disney take liberties to ensure sensitive data is protected, there are benefits and consequences for the high-potentials signing confidential
problems. In a study done on the role of the Walt Disney Company, Vincent Faherty explains
The Walt Disney Company is a highly diversified media and entertainment company that has been growing by leaps and bounds since its inception in the late 1920’s. In the past few decades, The Walt Disney Company has expanded into numerous markets and diversified its business greatly. The company states that their corporate strategy is targeted at creating high-quality family content, exploiting technological innovations to make entertainment experiences more memorable, and expanding internationally. Upon studying the happenings of the company throughout the years, it is easy to see that the company is executing this strategy well through numerous strategic moves in the industry.
The Disney corporation is easily the greatest empire of entertainment in the world thanks to the creator Walt Disney and his brother. Disney’s influence has been great within culture and society and I learned how much of an influence Disney has had through our course this semester. This influence is reflected and broadcasted through the many works and readings that we examined in class. The articles gave me new knowledge about Disney that I was previously unaware of.
[1] Information was mainly taken from the Harvard Business Case Study “The Walt Disney Company: The Entertainment King”
In reviewing the vast corporation of the Walt Disney Company and all that it has to offer, one profound statement made by Walt Disney himself comes to the forefront, “I only hope that we don’t lose sight of one thing – that it was all started by a mouse” (Walt, n.d.). This statement suggests that the company has a strong focus to continually guide them in the way of the original idea of the company. Even as it watches the changes taking place in society and adapts to the new technologies and innovations, the Walt Disney Company has been able to implement diverse strategies for its growth and prosperity.
amounts of equity (Disney and Government) as well as with subordinated debt (Government), Disney had
Presently, Disney known for its mass media entertainment and amusement parks technically bring warm feelings to many children and some adults. Personally, Disney elicits magical fantasies that children enjoy and further encourages imagination and creativity. For decades Disney has exist as an unavoidable entity with its famous global sensation and reach. Furthermore, Disney is a multibillion dollar empire with an unlimited grasp on individuals and territories. An empire per se, since they own many media outlets, markets, shops, etc., you name it they got it. However, the film Mickey Mouse Monopoly presents an entirely new perspective on the presumed innocence projected in Disney films. This film exposes certain traits Disney employs and exclusively portrays through its media productions, specifically cartoons for directing and nurturing influence beginning with children. Mickey Mouse Monopoly points out camouflaged messages of class, race, and gender issues in Disney films that occur behind the scenes intended to sway viewers towards adopting Disney values.
One of the key factors of the successful diversification is the very strong branding of the name Disney. That the name was famous after the success in the early years made it among other things possible to go into the theme park industry. Evaluated isolated, the theme parks was a success. But when also accounting for the synergies created, the decision to go into this industry was a huge success. It has created a spiral of synergies, where the characters in the movies get more popular due to the parks, as well as the fact that when people are visiting the parks they get stimulated to buy the merchandise. This is just one example of the synergies that exist in Disney. When Michael Eisner took over control in Disney, he kept focusing on same corporate values as earlier, which are quality, creativity, entrepreneurialism and teamwork. These values have been preserved despite of the size of Disney, and are an important factor in sustaining and building the Disney brand.
Thomas, K. W. (1992). Conflict and conflict management: Reflections and update. . Journal Of Organizational Behavior, 13(3), 265-274.
According to McShane and Von Glinow, conflict is “a process in which one party perceives that his or her interests are being opposed or negatively affected by another party” (328). The Conflict Process Model begins with the different sources of conflict; these sources lead one or more parties to perceive that a conflict exists. These perceptions interact with emotions and manifest themselves in the behavior towards other parties. The arrows in the figure illustrate the series of conflict episodes that cycle into conflict escalation (McShane and Von Glinow 331-332).
Through the ratio analysis, we can conclude that Disney is a stable company, keeping up with industry trends and up to par with industry averages. Although at times it can seem that Disney is a risky and unstable company, those conclusions are false since the unstableness has come through decisions which will better establish Disney’s position on the market. Although Disney’s competition, namely CBS, is on a similar standing as Disney when comparing ratios, Disney will manage to remain the largest media conglomerate in the USA and one of the best corporations in the world.
The company that I choose to explore is The Walt Disney Company. Walt Disney started the Disney Brothers studio in 1926, after years of working as a cartoonist. I selected this company due to the fact I am a fan of their products and services. Disney produced some of my favorite films like Aladdin, Hook and The Lion King. After I visited their website, I discovered that Disney owns multiple media outlets, in such areas as film, Internet, music, broadcasting, publishing and recreation. According to Disney’s “The mission of The Walt Disney Company is to be the one of the world’s leading producers and providers of entertainment and information. Using our portfolio of brands to differentiate our content, service and consumer products, we seek to develop the most creative, innovative and profitable entertainment experiences and related products in the world”. The Disney brand is doing exactly what their mission states.
Recognizing and understanding what causes conflict in the business environment during its early stages, is the key to fast resolution of the issue. There are many warning signs. Lundine (1996) highlights five early detection signs.
From humble beginnings as a cartoon studio in the 1920s to today 's global corporation, The Walt Disney Company continues to proudly provide quality entertainment for every member of the family, across America and around the world. One of the key statements in the text states, “Disney’s greatest challenge today is to keep a 90- year- old brand relevant and current to its core audience while staying true to its heritage and core brand values.” (Kotler, Keller, 2012, p. 179) Diversification has been one of Disney’s smartest business decisions. Today Disney has ventured into various industries such as studio entertainment,