Category: Disney

What Makes The Video Melodramatic

I think that the most prominent features making this video melodramatic are animation and music. Melodrama is known to be something exaggerated in an emotional way, and this video is exactly like that. The way in which anopheles and dangers caused by them are depicted, as well as the utter hardships experienced by the man who has been bitten by a mosquito, are overdramatized (“Disney ’43”). When anopheles is pictured bigger than the house, it produces a strong melodramatic effect. Such an approach makes the audience feel as if one representative of this mosquito family can destroy a person’s health, his business, and his entire household. However, if not to overdramatize the situation, it is clear that the man’s family can take care of him and continue his work so that no great harm is done to their welfare.

Another melodramatic element in the video is the choice of musical accompaniment. At the very beginning, the melody is so tense that it makes the viewers feel anxious and scared. Further, it gets even more strained, especially at the moments when the narrator talks about anopheles and the risks they may cause. On the other hand, at the moments when dwarves are fighting with the nasty mosquitoes, the music is extremely triumphant.

Finally, the video is melodramatic because of the dwarves participating in it. It combines a serious topic of a deadly disease with some of the children’s most favorite characters. The dwarves’ fight against anopheles brings a note of sensational exaggeration.

Therefore, the main melodramatic features in this video are the visual and audio presentation of the information and the characters chosen to participate in it.

My Opinion of the Environmental Behavior of the Dwarves

The ways in which the dwarves are fighting the anopheles may help to save people’s lives, but the harm caused to the environment during this process is disastrous. Three major terrible mistakes in regards to nature are spraying oil over water, burying the cans, and dusting Paris green everywhere (“Disney ’43”). The narrator explains that when oil is sprayed over water, larvae have no chance to survive. However, he forgets to mention that such a method will also destroy other animals and plants living there. Not only anopheles larvae will be deprived of access to fresh air but also fish and other organisms. Thus, such a suggestion is rather damaging to the environment.

The second action with adverse outcomes performed by the dwarves is burying cans in the ground. The material of which these cans are made does not decompose easily. When put in the soil, such material will stay there for years. Therefore, it would be better if the dwarves took those cans to some recycling center or at least make sure there is no water in them but not bury them in the ground.

Another damaging thing that the dwarves do is dusting Paris green on plants and inside the house. This substance is known to be highly toxic, and using so much of it is rather harmful. While it helps in the fight against the mosquitoes, considerations regarding other elements of nature and especially people should be made. It is not acceptable to use such amount of toxic chemicals in and around the places where people live.

Thus, the environmental behavior of dwarves is very negative. However, allowances should be made as to the time when the video was made. Back then, there were not too many options that would destroy mosquitoes without causing harm to nature.

My Initial Impression of the Video

The video is rather engaging and fulfills the purpose of sharing the information about a dangerous disease, how it can spread, and the methods of fighting with anopheles. The melodramatic character of the clip makes it easy to comprehend very serious data and creates an atmosphere of optimism regarding the possibility of coping with a deadly illness.

I think that using dwarves as the main characters of the video makes the situation look less threatening and draws the attention of various age groups. The choice of music creates an atmosphere of apprehension, but at some moments, it produces the effect of a joke, which makes the situation look more hopeful. The triumphant music at the moments when dwarves manage to destroy the mosquitoes acts as the motivator for joining the fight against anopheles.

What made a negative impression on me was the instances of the anti-environmental behavior of the dwarves. Along with destroying the anopheles, the characters are damaging nature. Such actions should not be encouraged. People have to treat the world in which they live with respect. I think that the only justification for such behavior can be that over half of a century ago, people did not have a lot of options that would combine killing the mosquitoes with saving the environment.

Overall, my initial impression of the video is more negative than positive. Even though it teaches people how to protect themselves against a deadly illness, it also contains a lot of instances of anti-environmental conduct. In my opinion, such actions should not be encouraged. Disney characters have always been favored by children and their parents. Thus, this company should be extremely cautious about the content of their videos.

Work Cited

“Disney ’43 – The Winged Scourge.” YouTube. 2008. Web.

Introduction

The movie Mulan is about woman who went to the military to save her father’s life, to make her family happy and make people proud of her, and this woman was called Mulan. Mulan is an animation movie created by Walt Disney in 1998.

This movie is a way to learn about the Chinese culture. Also, the movie has a lot of points; these papers will discuss four argumentum topics. The four arguments questions are: the role of gender in mulan? What makes Mulan happy, lessons learnt by women from the film and the appropriateness of the theme?

Role of gender

Role of gender is understood as the “behavioral norms that are usually associated with male or female in a given social group” (Giroux 1).

Mulan is a female character in the movie described as independent and not thinking about finding a husband like other women but she is instead trying to transform herself to a man the fact that Mulan remains subordinate to men despite her abilities and capabilities qualifies her into Giroux understanding of gender.

The movie showed men as the undisputed heroes and any feat by a woman to match this was considered exceptional and Mulan is taken to be special.

This was showed when Mulan, despite her success in the army, still had to defend herself before her dad who showed the respectful and submissive character and expectations of women and to some extent to which her dad was not interested in her distinctions (Blum 5).

This is despite Mulan joining the military to rescue her father, she cannot however stand up to her father as opposed to other men in the military because it is only her father who understands her whereas other military men don’t know that mulan as a woman since she exhibits the qualities of a man

There was gender inequality in Mulan; this was due to the fact that there were social expectations of each gender that were strictly observed. Since it was a patriarchal society there was male dominance and control of women.

Women were treated as inferior and only existed to serve men as evidenced in the family of Mulan where her father refuses to appreciate her efforts.The fact that the little girl informed Mulan that no one would listen to her because she was a woman was a clear indication of how women were ignored in the patriarchal society.

This was also evidenced at the end of the movie when the emperor’s counselor Chi Fu comments that despite Mulan’s success, she still was a woman and not worth anything (Blum 5). This is a clear indication that women are not worth any appreciation or recognition and hence no gender equality in Mulan.

Mulan shown men as unclean; she picked this construction about men when she entered the military. In the military, she noticed men “picking their noses, spiting on the ground and showing bad manners” (Blum 5). Also men were depicted as strong and violent people who could easily start a fight.

This point was supported by the words of Robert Connells that “violence is a way of asserting masculinities” (Blum 7). Men were taken as people who did not think carefully before they acted as was demonstrated by their combat against the bad people which they never won unlike Mulan, a woman who thought carefully before she acted and she made successes by winning over the battle.

She achieved this by looking for a quicker way of breaking the door as opposite to the men who tried to break the door using physical strength. Women were presented as negative; this was seen in the emperor’s counselor Chi Fu.

He described his superiority over women by rebuking them and his personification of stereotyped negative masculine characteristics (Blum 5).

Mulan describes a society that is characterized by strict role definition based on ones gender as illustrated by the fact that Mulan’s father and the emperor are against her joining military because she is just a woman, women are suppose to be married off and oriented towards domestic tasks.

Gender stereotyping was an overriding act in the movie. This was deep rooted to the extent that an exemplary action by a woman could not erase it. Mulan was severally scolded; this however changed in some conditions, for example, when she saved the lives of fellow soldiers she was referred to as a heroine and given a respect.

She was abandoned and despised when it was realized that she was a woman (Heather I). Mulan’s happiness-being man or woman

Mulan was happier being a woman than a man; this was demonstrated by her desire to venture into men related roles. Mulan proved that there were several ways of bringing honor and dignity into a family other than only through marriage and by her excuse that she did not need a man to be respected.

That she was proud of being a woman was demonstrated by her respect from her dad, a demand expected of women in the society. Any determination by a woman to overcome this mentality was criticized, ridiculed and despised as demonstrated when Mulan was referred as treacherous snake when she was discovered to be a woman, this happened despite her achievements as an army officer (Giroux 123).

Mulan is happy as a woman since she is more interested in displaying to the male chauvinistic society that what men can do, women can also do it better

It can also be argued that Mulan was not happy and proud of being a woman. This was because despite her joining the army, she disguised herself as a man and went further to demonstrate the physical and mental qualities that were typical of men and other masculine qualities.

She disguised herself as a man till she returned home from the fighting and it was only noticed and realized when her male soldier friends came to visit at their home of which they were amazed. It is upon realization that she was a woman that led to her abandonment by her fellow soldiers. After knowing if Mulan was happier as a man or as woman, women can learn a lot from the film.

Women should learn to overcome criticisms emanating from the public and self reproaches and they should be determined to succeed even in a patriarchal society, they should define themselves.

Consequently, women should overcome the insurmountable odd of stereotyping in the same way that Mulan overcame it to join the army which was predominantly men domain and that eliminated the stereotypical feminine mentality. This stereotyping of women as people to perform certain limited roles should be despised.

This was depicted by a young girl who mentioned certain qualities of a typical woman which included quite and shy, graceful, polite, delicate, poised and punctual (Blum 3).

Women should also learn that the desire to succeed is inherent and only demands personal conviction. The fact that Mulan joined the army and succeeded in fighting the battles clearly showed this notion, and that the stereotyping was just mental constructions by men in the society.

The determination of Mulan to overcome social constructions by men and the perception of woman in society to become successful in the army should actually act as a motivation to women who are faced with similar challenges or those who come from similar societies.

Just like Mulan women should be determined to break the gender specific prison, the social norms of the society and seek to move towards independency and self-definition of a woman (Blum 6). They should always demonstrate determination to succeed and the ability to pass tests.

The story inspires women who once cowed from challenging men and eliminates from their minds the traditional school of thought, the story ended by praising women, the story also supported that women be given positions that match those of men.

The story gave women a hint? of what an independent modern woman should be like. The determination by Mulan to prove herself and to discover and appreciate her identity is the exact picture of a young woman today.

Modern women are struggling to define themselves and to justify their worth and they often get into trouble when they try to define and distinguish themselves. From the story, women can learn that it is not the physicality that defines gender roles but intellect and tenacity that defined.

After all what you have read above, the appropriateness of the message being passed in the movie is gender equality and should be encouraged. There are always gender related roles and women are considered to be subordinates to men.

The role of women in the society is the domestic one and there are specific professional fields that are reserved for particular genders. The message in the movie Mulan is appropriate especially for women who are marginalized in various contemporary societies.

Women will learn how to overcome certain odds that the society traditionally expects of them by taking an analytical look at Mulan and how she managed to succeed in such a patriarchal society. Women will find Mulan a perfect role model who can inspire their determination to succeed in life in societies which have not fully accepted women as equals of men (New York Times 1).

The message is also appropriate for men that what men women can do it better. In addition, men can learn from the movie that times are changing and the traditional expected roles of women have changed and they should pave way to the realities of a modern woman who is prepared to do all roles that were reserved for men.

No man seems to learn from this message, this is demonstrated by the failure of Mulan’s dad to appreciate and recognize the efforts of Mulan and also when Mulan is ridiculed by other fellow military men when she is realized to be a woman (Gonzales 1).

Conclusion

The movie is about strive for gender equality in the society, Mulan in the movie epitomizes women who are struggling for space in the current society which is dominated by men who are unwilling recognize the upcoming position of women.

The ridicule and the despising of Mulan despite the exemplary task she performed and that was unmatched by any man describe how women are unappreciated. The movie indeed brings fore to the reality that men and women are equal and what men are able to do can also be done by women.

Works Cited

Blum, Sonja. The Representation of Gender in Walt Disney’s Mulan. New York: Cengage Learning, 2008. Print.

Giroux, Henry. Breaking in to the movies: film and the culture of politics. New York: Wiley-Blackwell, 2003. Print.

New York Times. “Film Review, a warrior, she takes on Huns and stereotypes”. New York Times Review, 1998. Web.

Gonzales, Edward. “Review of Mulan”. Slant Magazine, 1998. Web.

The essay entitled “Representation of Disney Princesses in the Media” by Isabelle Gill compares the portrayal of women in the media with the depiction of Disney princesses in film reviews. The author argues that both women in the media and Disney princesses in the reviews assume strong feminist features and are primarily seen through the lens of passiveness and domesticity. To effectively present her point of view, the author analyzes the trends in the current depiction of princesses. The author claims that these tendencies comprise “traditionally feminine vocabulary, degrading physical descriptions, and critiques that serve to trivialize accomplishments” (Gill, 2016, p.100). To make her argument, the author uses exposition rhetorical mode, which consists of a thesis, arguments to support it, and the restatement of the author’s idea.

THESIS: The essay “Representation of Disney Princesses in the Media” by Isabelle Gill shines a light on the representation of Disney princesses in film reviews, and the author argues that princesses are portrayed to have mainly feminine, passive, and domestic features.

Personally, I agree with Gill’s view on the topic as, in my experience, Disney princesses tend to be described in language that highlights their feminine and passive features. Serving as inspiration for many young women worldwide, these characters usually encompass gentleness and kindness, which are typically feminine traits. Moreover, many reviews focus on their physical appearance highlighting the sexuality of the Disney princesses. However, I would do it differently if I were to present this argument. I would compare the representation of male and female personas in Disney films’ reviews to show the drastic difference in the choice of lexis and overall representation. Some people may disagree with the author’s stance because some Disney princesses exhibit masculine features such as courage and recklessness. However, these character traits are often downgraded in film reviews that people read. I believe female audiences would benefit from reading the articles since girls and women will see how they are being manipulated through film reviews to fit the roles envisaged by men.

Isabelle Gill’s research of Disney princesses highlights the gender bias that continues to be perpetuated through film. She raises awareness about how this language is unusual of strong female characters by evaluating 95 adjectives that are employed in a way that is stereotypically associated with femininity. In her findings, common descriptions given for heroines include “feminine” and “flirty,” and these words take away from their character depth as well as what it truly means to be a princess (Gill 2016). Through proper recognition, however, we can remind ourselves that each heroine deserves more than just a stereotypical description. They deserve strength-filled connotations worthy of such powerful figures. Therefore, we must champion a new, brave approach to portraying princesses in our culture that encourages independence and resilience over antiquated notions of femininity. Doing so will allow young girls everywhere to foster positive self-worth while providing future generations with broadened perceptions of strength and confidence. With such an effortless shift, we can empower children around us and ensure they never forget their infinite worth as royalty.

With Disney characters displaying physical characteristics, often weakening their portrayal in films, the disparity between men and women remains a lingering presence. Gill (2016) found that 20% of these movies focus on heroines’ appearances rather than identities a seemingly derogatory practice that fosters society’s beauty standards held predominantly by males. This suggests an underlying message to women: compliance with existing stereotypes is often more beneficial than challenging them head-on. The lack of accurate representation can further perpetuate feelings amongst females that they cannot compete at the same level as men without conforming first. Today, women are leading the charge in a rapidly changing working world and demonstrating that extraordinary accomplishments can be achieved through intelligence and perseverance. This brave shift towards gender equality is, unfortunately, being overlooked by much of our mainstream media. They seem to depict princesses as weak, incompetent role models who do not represent society’s progression as they should. Instead, we should celebrate these real-life heroines for their courage and determination.

Gill (2016) further suggests that media outlets often portray princesses in a way that reinforces femininity stereotypes, minimizing the positive qualities typically associated with them. Despite attempts to present more progressive images of these female characters, their perceived frailness remains largely unchanged and presents an ethical problem for how they are presented. Moving forward, carefully considering this issue when producing content related to Disney’s iconic heroines is important. Gill states, “Future research could examine children’s perception of the Disney princesses at various age levels to determine whether or not adults are more likely to subscribe to these inaccurate portrayals than children” (Gill, 2016, p. 107). Thus, a change in how the media portrays the strengths of women.

Disney movies have been criticized for perpetuating stereotypes about the capabilities of women, teaching children that they cannot stand on their own and need protection. Gill’s article pointed to this conditioning as part of an unbreakable cycle and if these values are passed down through generations, it becomes difficult to challenge them in society today. Criticisms such as not finding characters empowered enough only reinforce existing assumptions instead of proposing change or progress upon societal conventions. Women have waged a long struggle for self-empowerment, and one way to make an impactful statement is by revising the portrayal of princesses in Disney films. Transcending entertainment value, this act can encourage continuous strides towards bettering society’s attitude towards women now and far into the future.

Gill provides compelling evidence that instances of gender prejudice in the media are prevalent and can lead to far-reaching social repercussions. She has skillfully presented an argument that exposes the detrimental misrepresentation of Disney princesses within past reviews. Her robust insight and analysis highlight their significant influence over gender roles, especially in children, and cannot be underestimated. As a result, she demonstrates how a shift from such inaccurate depictions is urgently needed to mitigate further damage caused by these seemingly innocuous characters.

Reference

Gill, I. (2016). Feminist figures or damsels in distress? The media’s gendered misrepresentation of Disney princesses. Young Scholars in Writing, 13, 96-111. Web.

Walt Disney created a work of art that he hoped would help him jump-start a fledgling career. When he started he may have known that success was within his reach but he never could have imagined that Walt Disney can become a global brand, known all over the planet even among people that cannot speak the English language.

The success of the Disney brand has its shares of critics and fans alike. Critics are uncomfortable when it comes to Disney’s influence as a dispenser of knowledge and shaper of culture and politics. Although, the influence of Walt Disney is beyond argument its pedagogy is limited because Disney is more of a source of knowledge rather than a teacher shaping the minds of the future generation.

Pedagogy

A basic understanding of pedagogy is the process of teaching and learning. Teachers need to understand this concept very well in order to increase the efficiency of their teaching method and to achieve learning. Those who are not aware of the importance of pedagogy continue to spend time discussing and performing activities that are believed to be related to teaching but the impact of such actions could not be considered a successful process in terms of the goals set beforehand.

It is interesting to point out that a significant number of scholars have used the terms Disney and pedagogy together in one sentence. Their contribution can be seen in the way they ignited the consciousness of the general public regarding the true intents and purposes of Walt Disney as a mass-market oriented and profit-generating organization. However, their criticism must be balanced by the appreciation heaped by millions of people who demonstrated their love for the brand by purchasing anything related to Disney – from films to apparel.

If Mr. Walt Disney is alive today and somebody approach him to say that he has created one of the greatest teaching tools for mankind, he may reject the idea outright. His primary goal was to entertain, and make money while doing so, but it is unlikely that he created his company with the vision of teaching children all over the world the value of honesty, perseverance, courage, forgiveness etc.

But the argument can be made persistent by reminding him about the achievements and significance of the company in the 21^st century as seen in the following:

The Walt Disney Company not only makes movies and runs the world’s various Disneylands, it owns the Disney Channel and a TV station, it records music and publishes books, it buys books to make into movies that are shown on its cable channel and it licenses and produces songs and stories to publishers (Bell & Haas, p.6).

Walt Disney may argue that all of the above are just indirect consequences of creating highly-entertaining products. But a counter-argument can be easily produced by pointing out that in 1988 the company acquired Childcraft which is a company that manufactures educational toys (Bell & Haas, p.7).

At the same time Disney is a major sponsor of the Teacher of the Year Awards as well as offers free admission to Florida school children during lean months so that they can soak in the sights and sounds of their theme park located at Orlando, Florida (Bell & Haas, p.7). This significant capability to influence school children has prompted many observers to remark that Walt Disney can be considered as a special type of public school system (Bell & Haas, p.7).

Disney’s Teaching Style

The core content of Disney products from films to theme parks are elements that can be found in classic folk and fairy tales. The originals may have come from Europe and other parts of the world but today there is no other version more well-known and better received than those created by the company. This assertion is especially true in the United States.

Other organizations can emulate what Disney had accomplished but the success of the company can be traced to the clever use of sanitization, adaptation and Americanization that when combined together would yield a process known by critics as disneyfication (Wasko, p.113). Disneyfication as a byproduct of Hollywood made it easier for the company to build a multi-billion dollar enterprise.

If it is true that Walt Disney as an organization is directly influencing the mind of little children through the release of their products then the company succeeded because of the creation of films and animated features that are interesting, have great entertainment value but highly predictable.

The films and cartoons usually contain humor and music. As mentioned earlier the stories are heavily edited with a great dose of “Disneyfication” where the characters are “anthropomorphized, neotenized animal characters; formulaic heroes and sidekicks with stereotypical representations of gender and ethnicity” (Wasko, p.114). For instance, Mickey Mouse is not a real depiction of a mouse because it is a character that is lovable and kind as opposed to a vermin that can bite and carry diseases.

Criticisms

A major criticism of Disney is that there is no depth to it and it is nothing more than a mechanism that was constructed to make money. Thus, the common complaint of critics is that the output is nothing but a “high tech visual space where adventure and pleasure meet in a fantasy world of possibilities and a commercial sphere of consumerism and commodification” (Grioux, p.101). The value of this type of criticism can be appreciated from the point of view of artists and original thinkers.

Aside from the negative view stemming from the argument that the company is a greedy mass marketer of low-quality entertainment the other complaint comes from those who prefer classical works as opposed to what is fashionable and popular. This includes historians, literary experts, and defenders of high-culture.

For instance, they are quick to point out Pinocchio did not originate from the studios of Disney but from the pen of Carlo Collodi and in the original version the author created a social deviant, a Pinocchio living in the a world that is “ruthless, joyless, filled with hypocrites, liars, and cheats” (Bell & Haas, p.68). One way to interpret their disapproval is the clamor for films that are based on originals and not scripts that are highly sanitized.

Critics seem to be unhappy with the fact that Disney’s creativity knows no bounds. History, culture and art are boundaries that are sacred to them. Their argument makes a lot of sense to a college professor or philosopher but may sound confusing to a parent.

If one would adhere to the ideas of the critics then Disney should be forced to create highly artistic films that are not guaranteed commercial successes but can contribute greatly to the education of the people.

However, parents would not allow their 3-year old child to watch a movie about English settlers blowing the heads of American Indians with the title: Pocahontas. It is just a matter of common sense that Disney has to modify the story so that children can enjoy it.

Alternative View

Those who criticize the outputs of Disney do so with the claim that the company can be compared to a “public school system” that is easily accessible and highly influential with the only difference that children and families had to pay for the learning experience. With this perspective in mind they argue that Disney should discontinue its use of “disneyfication” when it comes to modifying folk tales and fairy tales.

But it can be argued that they are wrong in two levels. First of all Disney does not consciously educate the masses. Secondly, not everything stamped with the Disney logo can create a negative effect on the lives of people. With regards to the argument that Disney is not actively educating the masses, consider the following definition:

Pedagogy is the professional knowledge of the teacher, and the enacted practice of teaching, set within the context of theories of human development and learning, cultural reproduction and transformation, political and social progress and intellectual engagement …. centered on nature of learning; sources of knowledge; and role of the teacher (Anderson, p.2).

This definition of pedagogy clearly states that pedagogy has three major components: a) teacher, b) source of knowledge; and c) learning process. It can be argued that Disney as a company is not the teacher and cannot dictate the learning process. Thus, Disney is nothing more than a significant source of knowledge. Although Disney sponsors an award for teachers, the company has no direct control over the teachers.

The second major weakness of the critics’ argument is the refusal to give credit to whom credit is due. The opponents of Disney fail to comment on the positive impact of the company to the lives of people.

There has been so much weight given on the power and influence of Disney over the general public that there has been little discussion regarding the fact that customers and consumers also play a key role in shaping the products that came out of Disney studios. In other words, Disney has to consider the inputs of customers making it unlikely that Disney has complete and total control of the artistic process.

Conclusion

Disney is one of the most influential companies in the world today because it has products that can affect the worldview of children regarding morality, a sense of fair play and the values needed to help build a strong community. But the company is not actively pursuing the role of a teacher. A careful analysis of the core elements of pedagogy would reveal that the company is merely a source of knowledge and not the one who facilitates the learning process.

It is the parents and teachers in school that facilitate learning and they simply use products from Disney as a source of knowledge. Even if they keep on watching Mulan, Snow White, and Pinocchio, the stories would not make sense unless a teacher comes in and talks about the importance of honor, humility, and honesty. Disney simply provides the materials and nothing more.

Works Cited

Anderson, Philip. Pedagogy Primer. New York: Peter Lang Publishing, 2009.

Bell, Elizabeth & Lynda Haas. From Mouse to Mermaid: The Politics of Film, Gender, and Culture. IN: Indiana University Press, 1995.

Giroux, Henry. Breaking in to the Movies: Film and the Culture of Politics. MA: Blackwell Publishers, 2002.

Wasko, Janet. Understanding Disney: The Manufacture of Fantasy. MA: Blackwell Publishing, 2001.

The Walt Disney Company, headquartered in Burbank, California, is one of the most well-known corporations in the world. Disney is a well-known and popular family entertainment and media enterprise (The Walt Disney Company, 2020). The venture incorporates Disney Parks and the accompanying experiences and products (DPEP), Disney Media & Entertainment Distribution (DMED), Disney Studios, General Entertainment Group, and Disney Sports (The Walt Disney Company, 2020). Overall, the company is highly diversified and is a viable option for investment.

Although the COVID-19 pandemic has substantially impacted the company, it is a worthwhile long-term investment. Financial forecasts predict a stable increase in the value of the company’s stock in the next 12 months, with a median projection of a 39.57% increase on the last stock price of $138.64 (CNN, 2022). Thus, the stock price is estimated to rise to $193.5, while earnings per share are expected to increase to over $2 per share compared to the current $0.74 per share (CNN, 2022). In addition, sales are predicted to increase to $83.4 billion in 2022 and $93.0 billion in 2023 (CNN, 2022). It can be assumed that with the ease of preventative measures to stop the spread of COVID-19, more people are likely to visit Disney Parks, increasing the company’s overall revenue. In addition, Disney remains one of the leaders in digital entertainment, with Disney Studios producing successful outputs. Thus, it can be argued that Disney will grow further shortly and, therefore, is a viable investment.

In addition, historical and current data also indicate that Disney is a good perspective investment. A market capitalization of 283 and a dividend yield of 0.7% indicate that the company is stable (“Last Assignment: Corporate Governance,” 2022). In addition, the company has a stable cash flow of $1.99 billion, a high gross margin of 33.06%, an operating margin of 4.46%, and a profit margin of 2.96% (Stock Analysis, 2022). Nevertheless, some of the measures can be further improved through active engagement.

The Walt Disney Company is a family-focused entertainment company that provides customers with a range of leisure options. The company’s mission is to “entertain, inform and inspire people around the globe through the power of unparalleled storytelling” (The Walt Disney Company, 2020, para. 1). Disney strives to incorporate innovative technologies in delivering entertainment to customers and aims to employ the most creative minds in the industry to ensure its position in the market (The Walt Disney Company, 2020). Furthermore, such measures as return on equity (ROE) and return on invested capital (ROIC), among others, should be considered (“Last Assignment: Corporate Governance,” 2022). Although the current ROE measure is low at 2.3%, the venture’s ROIC is relatively high at 3.8% (Stock Analysis, 2022). In addition, the return on assets (ROA) is low at 1%; however, it should be noted that the company has little debt and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08 (Stock Analysis, 2022). Disney’s Total Shareholder Return is evaluated at a low 52% (“Last Assignment: Corporate Governance,” 2022). Considering these measures, it can be argued that Disney is a feasible option for investment.

Disney is a publicly-traded company with a dispersed ownership structure, with no single shareholder controlling the company. Nearly 67% of all shares are held by mutual funds and other institutional investors (CNN, 2022). The largest institutional investor is the Vanguard Group, Inc, a mutual fund that holds 7.15% of Disney shares (CNN, 2022). The Second largest investor is BlackRock Fund Advisors mutual fund which holds 4.24% of shares (CNN, 2022). It is unclear if these institutional investors are activist shareholders.

Moreover, the company’s board of directors can be defined as a monitoring board because the majority of board members are not employed by Disney (The Walt Disney Company, 2021). In addition, the responsibilities are separated between the chairperson & CEO. Thus, the CEO, Robert A. Chapek, is responsible for managing the company’s operations (The Walt Disney Company, 2021). Meanwhile, the chairman, Robert. A. Iger, is tasked with providing leadership to the board and ensuring the board of directors and the management team communicate clearly (The Walt Disney Company, 2021). Thus, the company is well-managed and monitored by external board members.

It can be argued that the company’s quality of management is high due to the experience of the board members and Disney’s sensitivity to risk. The majority of board members occupy executive positions in other major companies, such as Nike and Oracle Corporation (The Walt Disney Company, 2021). Thus, they can recognize the potential blunders of the Disney management team, prevent them from happening, and ensure the interests of both the company and the shareholders are considered. In addition, the company’s annual report accounts for a variety of business, economic, market, and operational risks (The Walt Disney Company, 2021). The report indicates that the company is aware of all potential risks and is prepared to mitigate such risks should they arrive.

The main engagement point that should be addressed when investing in Disney is improving market value through diversifying the customer base. It can be argued that the entertainment and digital outputs of the company are aimed primarily at children and young adults, while other age groups are not catered to. Therefore, the corporation should consider investing in products for other age groups to bring new revenue streams to the company.

References

CNN. (2022).DIS – Walt Disney Co forecast. Business News – Latest Headlines on CNN Business – CNN. Web.

Last Assignment: Corporate Governance [PowerPoint]. (2022).

Stock Analysis. (2022). The Walt Disney Company (DIS). Web.

The Walt Disney Company. (2020).Disney – Leadership, history, corporate social responsibility. Web.

The Walt Disney Company. (2021). 2020 Annual Report. Web.

Strategic Business Units and application in Disney

Strategic Business Units are the divisions that an organization creates to deal with specific issues affecting it in the market (Koontz & Weihrich, 2007). They are usually self-contained in that they operate independent of the other units in an organization.

The pooling of different sections of an organization allows SBUs to cut across diverse lines and geographical locations in order to serve specific market needs more efficiently (Koontz & Weihrich, 2007). For the SBUs to achieve their intended goals, they need to account for corporate responsibilities and the needs of the organization. This way, it becomes easier to allocate finances and resources and hold each unit accountable for its deeds.

The Walt Disney Company has four SBUs in its organizational structure (Banton, 2008). The four strategic business units found in Walt Disney are Disney consumer products which develops and sells Disney branded products, studio entertainment (which comprise of theater and music divisions), park and resorts (responsible for the operation of the holiday resorts and theme parks), and media and broadcasting (which gathers the entities entailed in the promotion and advertising of the brands through the media) (Banton, 2008). Walt Disney uses SBUs to independently reach its different segments in the market.

This is an indication of just how diversified the company is. This has ensured that the company reaches its different consumers in different geographical regions by pooling of resources from different units in a more efficient manner. As a result, Disney has managed to maintain its market share, consumers, competitive edge, and profits.

Vision and mission statements

A mission statement describes the fundamental purpose of the company. In this case, it tries to explain why the company exists (Ledgerwood, 2006). On the other hand, a vision statement focuses on the future of the organization as it tries to answer what it would like to achieve. In general, the difference between a vision and mission statement is that whereas the latter places more emphasis on the present state of an organization, the former emphasizes on the future of the organization.

Walt Disney Company operates using a mission statement without the inclusion of a vision statement across all its strategic business units. The reason why a company may choose to operate with a mission statement and not the vision statement is that a mission statement clarifies a company’s direction, purpose and values (Ledgerwood, 2006).

For example, Disney’s mission statement contains all these aspects as its direction is to develop the most innovative and creative experiences based on profitable entertainment (Branton, 2008). Its values are upheld on its usage of brand portfolio in the provision of its products and services. The direction of an organization defines its vision. Therefore, in one way or another, a mission statement contains a vision statement albeit indirectly.

Another useful aspect for using a mission statement is that it finds application in the process of strategic planning as it defines the values and specifies products of a company, services, target consumers, profitability, growth plans, geographical allocations, and its philosophy (David, 2009). This can be used to focus on the present and the future. Therefore, a company can operate without the inclusion of a vision statement as a mission statement is more powerful and acts as a directive to the company.

Copyright Infringement

Some of Walt Disney’s strategic units have been involved in copyright infringement especially the media networks, broadcasting and consumer products units. For instance, the company has been in and out of lawsuits after some companies used the Disney consumer products or brands without consultation. According to Smoodin (1994), Disney is usually anxious and litigious when its copyrights are infringed.

For instance, when Ontario town in Canada planned to celebrate by erecting a statute that resembled the Milne character, Walt Disney warned that its copyrights had been violated (Smoodin, 1994). A deal had to be struck to solve the issue. In another incident in Florida, the Disney characters were used without proper license, prompting Walt Disney to sue the company as they believed that Mickey Mouse was part of its copyrights and the use of stakeholders finances had to be accounted for.

In 1989, Disney sued Motion pictures academy for using its characters in a production that was termed as awful (Smoodin, 1994). The motion picture academy had to apologize publicly to Walt Disney as this was a classic example of copyright infringement. The company also sued 500 vendors as defendants on the claim that they had sold fake movies.

The reason behind these lawsuits it to protect Walt Disney’s intellectual properties from companies willing to use them maliciously or by taking advantage of its brand name. The use of copyrights gives a company a competitive edge as it reduces the number of players in the market. Furthermore, a company is also able to control its products. This reduces competition encouraging innovation and creativity in the production sector. The company has also been able to make profits by selling its copyrighted products.

Selling or using of products and services that are not copyrighted implies that the owner of the intellectual property does not get proceeds from the sales made. In order to safeguard its key assets, Walt Disney has to cooperate with other players in the economy by ensuring that its products are copyrighted and the laws distributed to its collaborators. Walt Disney can also collaborate with other Hollywood companies to ensure that proper mechanisms are put into place to counter copyright infringements.

Economic Downturn

During the Great Depression it is claimed that individuals indulged in movies as a way of escaping from reality. The current economic downturn is affecting almost all strategic business units of Walt Disney. For example, before the 2008 market and financial crisis, the parks and the resorts were the largest contributor of the Disney’s growth.

However, the financial crisis has since reduced the disposable income of the consumers leading into inclination to the Disney theme park visitors (Branton, 2008). People can no longer afford the luxury of visiting the park as inflation has increased the cost of living and consumers have to live within their budgets.

Watching movies from networks and broadcasting channels owned by Disney has not been affected much as people continue to watch these movies. However, cinema halls have been adversely affected as the cost of living has doubled. For example, during the Great Depression the fuel price was not affected as is the case now. People are trying to minimize their electricity bills and the cost of fueling their cars to and fro the movie cinemas halls.

This will adversely affect the studio entertainment as the cost of fuel has limited consumers’ disposable income. Therefore entertainment expenses have increased (Branton, 2008) forcing them to turn to low cost entertainment. However, watching movies does not require a great or real deep economic crisis to act as a motivator. Based on scientific studies, people always want to be entertained when they are in bad moods or situations (Pincus-Roth, 2009).

People consume entertainment as part of their adaptive measures in mood management. Therefore, the current global recession is not likely to reduce the number of movie goers. Disney will continue to have more movie consumers but not around the cinemas. Since the company has initiated entertainment through the internet and the iPhones, the entertainment strategic unit will not be affected much by the recession.

Business strategic units are essential in operations of a company as they assist in developing a competitive edge within an organization. Walt Disney has been using SBUs to reach different segments of its target population (David, 2009). Intellectual property rights like copyrights reduce copyright infringements as they protect the owner from competitors and other users. It also gives a competitive edge to the company.

Through regulations, issues associated with copyrights can be minimised. People like entertainment as a part of mood management. Therefore, the current recession is less likely to affect the entertainment sector of Disney Company. However, its cinemas and park themes and resorts will be adversely affected as the cost of living; fuel, unemployment, and inflation have risen affecting the disposable income of the people.

Reference List

Branton, M. (2008). Walt Disney Company-2007. 30-43. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall/Pearson

David, F.R. (2009). BUS 490: Strategic management concepts and cases: 2009 custom edition (12th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall/Pearson

Koontz, H., & Weihrich, H. (2007). Essentials of management: An international perspective. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill.

Ledgerwood, J. (2006). Transforming microfinance institutions: Providing full financial services to the poor. Washington, DC: World Bank Pubns.

Pincus-Roth, Z. (April 12, 2009). “Hollywood tries to come up with its best recession fare”. Los- Angeles Times. Retrieved from https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-apr-12-ca-escape12-story.html

Smoodin, E. L. (1994). Disney discourse: Producing the magic kingdom. Newyork, NY: Routledge publishers.

Introduction

At approximately 2.00 am 5^th July, 2009, an accident occurred at the Walt Disney Resort. It involved a collision of two monorails that were moving on the Epcot beam, next to the Concourse station in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. The accident took place after one of the monorails (the Pink monorail) reversed via an improperly aligned-beam, in effect hitting the Purple monorail (National Transportation Safety Board 2). Although the six passengers did not sustain any injuries, the operator was seriously injured and he later died.

On the other hand, the Purple monorail only had the operator as the sole occupant. He was rushed to hospital and upon examination, was discharged (National Transportation Safety Board 2). At the time of the accident the weather was very clear. The damage as a result of the monorail accident was estimated to have amounted to $ 24 million.

Cause of the accident

The federal investigators who were commissioned to initiate a probe into the probable cause of the monorail accident reported that lack of sufficient safety protocols may have contributed to the occurrence of the two monorails in Walt Disney Resort. These investigations were conducted for almost two-and-a-half years. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released a 14-page report on the accident, in which a couple of employee errors were highlighted as the main causes of the accident (National Transportation Safety Board para. 1).

This report appears to somewhat contradict with the investigations conducted by the federal government investigators, who noted faulted the lack of standard operating schedules at the Walt Disney World Resort, arguing that this could have played a significant role in establishing an unsafe environment, in effect causing the accident when the train reversed and hit the other one.

How the monorail system in Disney World works

There are two areas set aside to facilitate servicing of the monorails in Disney World. The first designated area is referred to as the Epcot, while the second designated area is referred to as Magic Kingdom Park. On the one hand, the Magic Kingdom Park service area is made up of two monorail beams.

The two monorail beams run parallel, effectively forming a complete loop (National Transportation Safety Board 4). The Express beam is on the outside, while the Lagoon/Resort beam is on the inside. On the other hand, the Epcot service area is made up of the Epcot beam. The Epcot beam has also formed a complete loop.

When the accident took place, there were a total of five monorails operating at the Walt Disney Resort and they were identified the Purple, Pink, Red, Coral, and Silver colors (National Transportation Safety Board 6). A spur beam acts as a link between the two service areas. Switch beam 9 lies at one end of the spur-beam, while switch-beam 8 lies at the other end. If you want a monorail to move from one beam to another, all you have to do is reposition them accordingly.

The closure of the Magic Kingdom Park does prevent the monorails from undertaking their duties as there is a time allowance allocated to facilitate this. By and large, the Express beam monorails may operate for about an hour once the park has closed. After 3 hours following the closing of the park, the monorails on the Resort beam can no longer work, and this have to be returned for nightly maintenance at the mechanical facility via the Express beam.

When this particular accident took place, three monorails were operating on the Epcot beam. They include the Purple, Pink, and Coral monorails. Because all the passengers had already disembarked from the Pink monorail, it was directed to the Express beam first so that it could be serviced overnight.

It is important to note that the Pink monorail could have only accessed the mechanical facility via the Express beam. At approximately, 1.53 am., the central coordinator of the monorail issues instructions to the Pink monorail operator to enable him get onto the Express beam and back to the mechanical facility. However, the Pink monorail did not stop until it had moved beyond the switch-beam 9.

That is when the operator communicated with the central operator and told him that switch-beam 9 had been cleared. This prompted the central coordinator to get in touch with the shop panel operator so that he could line “switch-beams 8 and 9 to the spur-line with power” (National Transportation Safety board, 2009). Power was then switched from the Epcot beam to facilitate the switch-beam realignment.

Upon conducting further investigations, the National Transportation Safety Board concluded that the shop panel operator may have failed to position switch-beam 9 properly, and this could have led to the collision. The board also took issues with the monorail manager who is supposed to play the role of a central coordinator in determining the position of switch-beam 9 prior to authorizing the driver of the Pink monorail to reverse.

The investigations further revealed that once the operators had switched off power to the beam, there was no prompt initiation of the switch-beam realignment. The shop panel operator received a call from the operator of the Silver monorail at 1:55 Am., so that he could be guided while entering the mechanical facility. At 1:56 Am., the shop panel operator received another call from the Red monorail operator who also wished to enter the facility but he was requested to first hold at a given location (Orlando Business Journal para. 4).

During the interrogation, the shop panel operator told the investigator that the reason why he switched on power to the Epcot beam was because according to his understanding, there was proper alignment of the switch-beam.

At 1:57 Am., the Pink monorail operator was given the clearance to reverse by the central coordinator, having been informed by the shop panel operator that “Switch-beams 8 and 9 are on the spur-line with power” (National Transportation Safety Board 6).

When the operator of the Pink monorail started to reverse, switch-beams 9 and 8 were yet to be repositioned and as a result, he ended up colliding on the Epcot beam. It is important to note that the Pink monorail was previously travelling on the Epcot beam, and the Purple monorail was also following the same beam.

Verdict of the investigators

The National Transportation Safety Board has also taken issue with Walt Disney over the accidents on three fronts. According to the investigations, employees from the World Resort are not obliged to observe specific operating guide. This means that monorail drivers are not obliged to shift to the back cab first before they can drive in reverse. This way, they are in a position to drive the trains in a ‘forward-facing’ position (National Transportation Safety Board 8).

Moreover, the investigator noted that the management at Disney World had not implemented a rule that would ensure that the central coordinator did not leave the central tower. At the tower, there is an emergency shutdown switch and a grid that shows the alignment of all the monorail beams and as such, the central operator would have been in a position to prevent the collision had he been at the control tower when the collision occurred.

Finally, there were no procedures at the resort that demanded monorail shop operators to certify that indeed the beam had already been aligned once they had activated the switch command (National Transportation Safety Board 9).

Although there are video monitors at the shop that enables the shop operators to view the positions of the switch beams, nonetheless, the shop operators informed the investigators that they mainly used the monitors when they needed to determine if there was any train on the beam prior to activating the switch, as opposed to certifying if there had been a realignment of the track once the command had been entered.

Conclusion

Investigations into the collision of two monorails at Walt Disney Resort confirmed that the accident took place due to the failure by poor operating procedures by the personnel in-charge of the monorail maintenance shop that is charged with the responsibility of controlling the switches at the track system.

Also, investigations revealed that at the time of the accident, the central operator had left the central tower and as such, he could not have been able to manage the accident promptly. From the control tower, the monorail systems coordinator would have been in a better position to detect that there was an improper alignment of the track system, and this could have prevented the collision.

Works Cited

National Transportation Safety Board. 2009. Railroad Accident Brief. Web.

National Transportation Safety Board. 2011. NTSB releases final report on 2009 monorail collision at Walt Disney World. Web.

Orlando Business Journal. 2011. NTSB issues report on Disney monorail crash. Web.

Introduction

Walt Disney has transformed tremendously since its inception in 1923. It is recognized all over the world as one of the premier companies that specialized exclusively in recreation and entertainment. This corporation is viewed as an icon of creativity due to its successful forays in TV, radio, magazines, theme parks that continue to entertain funs from all over the world.

This company has certainly withstood the test of time. Through the years it has been changing managers and managerial styles therefore forms a good basis for evaluating different managerial styles. In order to understand this company and its management styles over the years, let us critically analyse three questions:

• How have the skills for a successful manager at Disney changed over the decades?
• Why is it critical for Disney to be a learning organisation?
• What important management skills did Michael Eisner bring to Disney? Do you think his skills are still effective in today’s environment?

How the skills of a succesful manager have changed

Management is dynamic as the prevailing internal and external environments of a firm influence it. A management style that was applicable and effective twenty years ago cannot be as effective in the modern day. Managers have to change by adapting to the changing environments if they are to be successful. Successful corporations such as Disney land are proof that change is inevitable.

To understand the importance of change in management, we shall look at the evolution of Disney land’s management styles and skills since its inception in the 1923 up to the successful reign of Michael Eisner. Management skills may be classified broadly as: (Wheten, 1998)

• Interpersonal
• Conceptual
• Diagnostic
• Technical
• Leadership

1923-1966 (Walt and Roy Disney)

As their surnames suggest, Walt and Roy Disney are the founding fathers of Disneyland. They led this corporation together from 1923 to 1966, when Walt passed away and Roy was left in charge. We can study the management skills they employed when they were at the helm. It is also possible to study how these skills have changed to date (Cole, 2003).

During this period, Roy handled money while Walt handled creativity. This brings about the technical skills of these two managers, as both were able to channel their strengths into a specialized field. This specialization was key to the growth of Disneyland. The success of Mickey Mouse can be attributed to Walt who introduced synchronized sound, a concept that had never been tested before. It is through his innovation and inventiveness that Disney took off to such a great start.

During their reign, all employees of Disney felt equally important. There were no titles or anything to show which manager was on top of the other in the corporate ladder. Cooperation and teamwork was only made possible through the great interpersonal skills of Walt (Goldrat, 2002).

1966 – 1984 (Roy Disney)

Walt passed on in the year 1966 and Roy was left in charge. The success of this corporation had so far been attributed to Walt’s creativity and innovation. After he passed, the corporation’s creative side was dealt a big blow. Managers lacked sufficient technical skills to come up with new productions, instead they tried too much too emulate Walt and this did not pay off.

His brother on the other hand continued to demonstrate great conceptual skills by overseeing the opening of Walt Disney land and the Tokyo Disney land. Conceptual skills are particularly necessary for senior most managers who largely have cater for the interests of the firm as a whole. With the opening of this two functions Roy turned Disney’s opportunities into a reality, this requires proper coordination and vision that are a prerequisite in conceptual skills (Grant, 2001).

1984 onwards

In 1984, Michael Eisner came into the helm at Disney, at a time when the corporation was suffering from all fronts. Not only were Disney’s finances in shambles, the corporation was lacking in creativity and innovation. Eisner brought many changes in Disney land through his superior management skills.

Through his interpersonal skills, he saw the need to involve employees more in the management process. Employees were trained and made fully aware of the corporate strategy. This greatly improved goal congruency by minimizing interdepartmental conflicts. In addition, synergy and cohesion in the corporation also improved tremendously.

He believed in upholding the Disney culture as an important way of generating employee loyalty and building good relations. Eisner not only focused on the work but mostly on the workers. Human resource was well managed during his tenor (Harmon, 1999).

Eisner came in at a time when the company was going through a slump and through his diagnostic skills he resurrected brought it back to the right track. He diagnosed the problems that were facing the firm and strategized on how to overcome them and steer Disney to greater heights (Wheten, 1998).

Why it is critical for disney to be a learning organisation

Since its creation, Disney has been operating in the entertainment industry. Its operations are centred on theme parks, cartoons, Films, radio and TV shows that are aired all over the world. For a corporation that ventures into so many fields in the entertainment industry and whose audience is scattered all over the world, so much is expected in terms of change and growth.

Eisner brought in a very important concept to Disney land, that of a learning organisation. A learning organisation is one that continuously transforms itself and its human resources to conform to emerging methods and techniques in the industry. This was very important for the survival and growth of Disney land due to the following major factors (Grant, 2001).

Competition

The entertainment industry is very lucrative and therefore attracts a lot of attention. Brand name is very important if a corporation is to succeed in this field. Competition is very stiff therefore; Disney had to keep up to date with the current trends. This can only be done if an organization has an open mind and is keen to learn new ideas and techniques.

Innovation and inventiveness

Lack of creativity and riding on the back of Walt Disney’s creative legacy almost brought Disney to its knees before Eisner came to the rescue. Learning is very important if a corporation is to develop new ideas and implement them. It is through training and introduction of new managers from paramount with fresh ideas that Disney was resurrected from its slump when Eisner too over.

Technological advancements

The entertainment industry largely depends on media. TV, radio, newspapers and magazines are some of the media that Disney employed. Technology affects the media so much, making it very dynamic. Disney had to be updated of any changes in the media e.g. Methods of prod casting since it directly affect their business.

International Audience

Disney is a well renowned corporation all over the world. Its productions are broad casted and loved in many different parts of the world. The corporation therefore has to be well aware of the socio – cultural environment of its foreign audience in order to be effective.

Embracing Change

Michael Eisner brought many changes to Disney land when he arrived. These changes were made possible since he was able to transform Disney into a learning organization. Change is very important for the survival and growth of a firm. During the post Walt era managers failed to embrace change, instead they held on to Walt’s Legacy and this caused Disney more harm than good.

Improving Quality of output

Using monthly operating reports and other cross-divisional initiatives, Eisner improved the quality of output in each unit of the firm. Quality improvement is very important for firms especially those in the entertainment industry. As Disney’s products are created mainly to entertain, maintaining high standards of quality is inevitable. Constant improvements in quality increase the effectiveness and efficiency of a firm.

Creating a corporate Image

It was important for Disney to embrace learning in order to build a reputable corporate image to both its workers and its audience. Eisner saw the need to develop and impose the Disney culture to its workers. This goes a long way towards generating employee loyalty and reducing the rate of labour turnover. Employees have to be educated on the corporation’s objectives if the goals of the firm are to be met.

Goal Congruency

For a large corporation such as Disney with many different units and departments within the firm, goal congruency is imperative if the company is to avoid interdepartmental conflicts and harmful competition. (Goldrat, 2002)

Michael Eisners management skills and their relevance in todays environment

The turnaround of Disney’s fortunes is largely attributed to Michael Eisner. Through his management skills he brought in many changes that steered Disney to the empire that it is today in the entertainment industry. In order to have a good understanding of the current environment, it is important to look at the contemporary theories of management.

Contemporary management theories

The present day management theories are an improvement of the classical theory championed by Henri Fayol and Max Weber among other management scholars. The most commonly used and well-developed theories are the contingency theory and the systems theory.

The contingency theory states that there is no standard approach towards management. Management should be influenced by the present situation and environment of a firm. What works for one corporation may not necessarily work for another, each has unique needs, which cannot be met using a standardized approach. The system theory advocates for a systematic approach towards management. The whole process of management should be broken down into different parts that are systematically executed.

Relationship between Eisner’s skills and today’s environment

The most prominent of Michael Eisner’s management skill that propelled Disney into success is his great Interpersonal skills. Eisner was able to get employees involved and feeling part of the company by fostering relationships. He initiated training programmes meant for bonding as well as education on the corporate strategy and culture.

He was able to create teamwork among the various units hence greatly improving goal congruency. Interpersonal skills are very important in today’s environment where the welfare of the employee is very critical. Today’s workers are more aware of the rights and obligations hence it is important to get them involved in the management process.

Michael Eisner also exhibited great diagnostic skills through the introduction of learning concept in Disney. Eisner saw the need to inculcate a culture of willingness to learn in the employees and this paid off in the end. This is in accordance to the contemporary contingency theory, which perpetuates flexibility in the management process. Eisner studied the situation and came up with solutions for the problems that Disney was facing.

He’s hands on style of management as opposed to the traditional leisure faire model where the manager was only concerned with top level management work can also be emulated in today’s corporations. The nature of business nowadays requires that the manager be involved in the day-to-day affairs of the firm. Like Eisner, managers should provide leadership instead of sitting back and pulling the strings from behind the scenes.

Through his leadership skills, Eisner was able to align all units of Disney towards a common objective therefore creating harmony and streamlining Disney operations. In today’s environment, managers must not only have conceptual, diagnostic, interpersonal and technical skills, but they must also be leaders. One can be a great manager but without the ability to influence others towards a common objective, then the management process will not be a success. (Cole, 2003)

Reference List

Cole, G. A. (2003). Management Theory and Practice. London,Oxford publishers Press.

Goldrat, E. M. (2002). The Goal: A process of ongoing improvement. Boston, Boston Library Publishers.

Grant, R. M. (2001). Corporate strategy analysis. Chicago, Chicago Publishers Press.

Harmon, P. (1999). Business process change. New York, MK/OMG press.

Wheten, D. A. (1998). Developing management skills. Michigan, Harper Colege.

Transformation of managerial skills

Walter’s period

For over the decades, Disney has experienced significant transformation in successful managerial skills. The transformation has been due to change of individual managers and the existing market conditions. There are two major transformation illustrated in this case. The first occurred during Walter’s period while the other came during Eisner’s period.

The managerial skills have changed from participative management to scientific management. In fact, in some instances managers have used almost all known skills of management. This has transformed into the blended form of management with hybrid managerial skills. On its formation, the then management applied various skills in operation of the organization.

Specialization and division of work was the first managerial skill used. As evidenced by Walter and his brother, Roy, the organization extensively deployed specialization (Walter Disney Co, 2011, p.1). Roy headed the finances while Walter led the creative department. They also divided the organization’s roles among the employees based on skill and talent. These skills led into strategies, which enabled the employees to focus their energies and talents to their areas of specialization.

The managers used people-oriented leadership blended with some aspects of task-oriented leadership to administer their respective departments. Non-hierarchical organization in which the management put the interest of its employees first, manifests this kind of managerial skill. However, the management also focused on the individual performance of its employees.

There was also the element of participative management, in which the managers emphasized on cooperation and teamwork among the employees. Walter encouraged teamwork and cooperation (Walter Disney Co, 2011, p.1). The managers also used the scientific skills of management, as illustrated by Walter’s common saying that every employee should be dedicated for creativity. As a result, the organization grew to become among the best in the entertainment industry.

Eisner’s period

In his period, as the chairperson, Eisner transformed the management skills into the concept of learning organization. Learning organization aimed to empower the employees to enhance their creativity for the growth of the company. During this period, the management was a blend of variety of management theories such as participative, scientific, administrative and learning organization.

Learning Organisation

Learning organization is very critical for the Disney’s organization due to several reasons. First, learning organization concept enhances innovation. Application of learning organization empowers employees thus enabling them to cultivate self-efficacy (Samson & Daft, 2009, p.84). This motivates and provides employees with the urge to exploit challenges as opportunities.

As a result, this would enhance creativity and increase the company’s performance. As an entertainment company, Disney needs to empower its workforce in order to enhance creativity and compete adequately within the entertainment market.

Secondly, to reduce the cost of restructuring, Disney needs to adopt the learning organization concept. Restructuring cost is the cost that a company incurs in training new recruits to fill positions left by the experienced lot of employees.

The management can reduce this cost by either hiring highly qualified employees or enhancing knowledge transfer through learning organization. To retain the creativity and grow the Disney’s brand, the management should ensure transfer of skills among the employees. Learning organization enhances knowledge and expertise exchange between the incumbent workforce and the new recruits.

Instead of training new recruits for the company, Disney critically requires to be a learning organization so that the outgoing workforce can transfer their skills to these recruits. In this way, the company’s creativity will increase and its brand will grow. It will also perpetuate Eisner’s mantra and reduce the cost of restructuring.

Learning organization adds value to products and services. The products of Disney require high level of value to command considerable market in the creative industry. Learning organization dictates for application of knowledge in product creation while knowledge-based production adds value to products and high value products command premium prices in the market.

Learning organization therefore, would increase the company’s net earning; a trend Eisner kept for more than 15 years. In addition, the company would deploy the best practices of production and management. Subsequently, the company will continue to record impressive trends. In fact, the learning organization concept would boost globalization of the company beyond the current coverage.

Management skills

Eisner introduced cross-divisional initiatives. In management view, these initiatives illustrate participative management. Participative management calls for teamwork and cooperation among the employees regardless of the level of management (Samson & Daft, 2009, p.83).

People working together in cooperation, are likely to give high quality output due to the advantages of the combined effort. The theory enhances combination of ideas and efforts from different individuals and departments for a common goal. The cross divisional initiatives, created a platform for sharing of ideas and consultation. As a result, the company’s initiative grows enhancing creativity. Managers can still use this skill today to promote teamwork.

Learning organization is another skill of management, which Eisner introduced. Learning organization enhances empowerment of the employees. Once empowered, employees develop responsibility to their duties (Samson & Daft, 2009, p.83). Such employees do not require close supervision; they can undertake their roles without any supervision.

In this skill, Eisner created good working condition for the Disney’s workforce. Good working conditions promote creativity and innovation. In this way, Eisner enhanced job enrichment for the employees. Employees feel motivated when left to make some important decisions about their tasks. Through learning organization therefore, Eisner motivated the Disney’s workforce leading to creativity. Managers can still use this skill to empower their employees.

In Addition, Eisner introduced the skill of recruiting the experienced and highly qualified employees. As noted in the case study, Eisner lured some of the managers from Paramount Pictures Company into Disney. The strategy has several advantages to the management. First, it relieves the company of the cost of training new inexperienced recruits. The management in such a case, channels the cost instead, to train its employees for expansion of the company, particularly the production.

Secondly, experienced personnel have potential solutions to the company. In fact, some of them may have solved the difficulties, which the company may be experiencing currently. In addition, these employees may provide new skills to the employees of the company. Employing the experienced employees Disney benefited from the reiterated advantages, which are very significant for growth of the company.

Eisner also used the hands on skill of management. In this skill, the manager is usually close to the employees. Being closer does not imply controlling the employees but understanding their work-related issues. As for this case, the hands on management illustrate a blend of task-oriented and people-oriented skills of management.

Eisner used the skill to ensure comfort among the employees while undertaking their roles. As a result, creativity and promotion of the company’s brand ensued. People-oriented management considers the issues of the employees while task-oriented management cares for execution of the tasks. A blend of the two results into a compromise, which enhances both the performance and the life of the workforce.

References

Samson, D., & Daft, R. L. (2009). Leading in Organizations. South Melbourne, Vic.: Cengage Learning Australia.

Walt Disney Co. (2011). Once upon a time at Disney. Retrieved from <https://dpep.disney.com/>.

The Walt Disney Company was established in the year 1923 by two brothers: Roy Disney and Walt Disney. The company started from a very humble beginning as a cartoon studio, but later ventured deeply into the entertainment industry by introducing its own films such as the animated films.

Today this company has many affiliate companies and also sells consumer products such as clothes and electronics. Moreover, Walt Disney Company has improved its productivity because of good organizational culture that is practiced by employees and stakeholders of the organization.

Disney encouraged people to participate in the civil war by producing pieces that expressed the theme of fighting during the First World War. Victory Through Air Power and Education for Death are among the films that were used to spread awareness during the civil war. However, Walt Disney died in 1966, and five years later his brother also passed on. Their death was a big blow to the company, but fortunately the people who were left in charge of the company had been trained by the two brothers, and thus they were able to follow their legacy (Neal, 2007).

The success of Walt Disney Company is owed to its strong emphasis on values and work ethics. The company’s values include innovation, quality, community, storytelling, optimism, and decency. The values are part of Disney’s core mission of “providing quality entertainment for people around the world” (Disney, n.d, para. 2).

The company has an established code of ethics that must be observed by all employees regardless of their location or duty. The company is committed to the wellness of its employees and this is done by availing a favorable working environment where there are adequate and efficient channels of communication between the employees and the administrators.

In addition, Neal (2009) outlines that the company strives to produce goods and services of the best quality which is essential to meeting its customers’ needs. The items and services offered by Disney are regularly vetted to make sure they are safe. The success of quality is attributed to efficient communication between the customers and the company; customers provide feedback on Disney’s products to help the company in improving product quality.

Cohesion is also encouraged at Walt Disney, which makes it possible for employees to team up in achieving organizational goals. The teams at Walt Disney are comprised of people from various backgrounds and it is this diversity that guarantees excellence due to the difference in skills and abilities.

Likewise, the company is recognized as an equal opportunity employer because it does not discriminate against race, gender or any other matter. Furthermore, if an employee has to be fired there are established procedures that are to be followed to retain the integrity of the company and the employee (Neal, 2007).

Similarly, the company boasts of many achievements one of them being the setting up of Disney parks which are used as parents and children amusement parks. The company has won various trophies in the past such as the academy award, which was accorded to The Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs films.

Moreover, the company has managed to buy most companies in the entertainment industry and some of them include Marvel Entertainment and ABC. In this light, Miner (2007) suggests that when the espoused values of an organization align with its enacted values, the company is able to increase its productivity. Disney’s achievements show that the company’s values are appreciated by its employees and the target market because it fulfils their expectations.

Despite all these achievements Walt Disney has encountered a lot of resistance from people who argued that some of its films had sexually explicit content. The Catholic Church in the US has been discouraging its followers from purchasing products made by Walt Disney because of the company’s stand on homosexuality. Even though the two brothers are long dead, the company has continued to thrive day after day because of good organizational culture.

References

Disney. (n.d). The Walt Disney Company and Affiliated Companies – Culture. Retrieved from https://jobs.disneycareers.com/

Miner, J. (2007).Organizational Behavior: From Theory to Practice. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, Inc.

Neal, G. (2007).Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination. New York: Random House.