FROM: Communication Around the 'World' A Disney Dispatch Feature
The Real Business of Disney
In a student report written for David Zanolla's course about Disney organizational culture and communication, John Felker explains some of what he learned in the course, including the realization that Disney's real business isn't about parks or rides but guests.
David Zanolla teaches an advanced honors course at Western Illinois University called Communication Around the "World". Disney World! In addition to standard lectures and projects, students will spend a week at the happiest place on earth. Cool, eh?
As part of the course requirements, each student must write a short report both for David and for ... Disney Dispatch! Cool, eh?
When I tell people about my class, "Communication Around the 'World'," which focused on the organizational culture and communication principles of Walt Disney World, they consider it a 'blow-off'.
They think that spending a week in Disney World to do research was really just an excuse for a vacation.
They're completely wrong.
It's one thing to read about how an organization 'intends' to provide a guest experience, but to truly understand it you must experience it, and that's what we did at Disney World. Our week there was an invaluable learning experience. I witnessed first-hand principles taught in class put into practice. A few things, especially, stuck out.
The True Business of Disney
One of the first things that struck me about the organization is the idea that the company is in the 'guest experience' business, not the theme park, movie, hotel, etc., business.
This idea of the guest experience being central to the Walt Disney World culture is prominently on display from the moment you arrive at Orlando International Airport.
During our class visit with the Vice President of Epcot, Dan Cockerell, he talked about how the company wants to make sure Guests return, and so they work hard to eliminate the reasons not to return.
For example, Disney picks up your luggage at the airport and delivers it to your room; their buses transport you anywhere on property; they provide 'extra magic hours' for Guests staying at Disney resorts and FastPass tickets for popular attractions.
Let Disney Do the 'Driving'
Each of these luxuries addresses something that Guests despise about traveling. Who doesn't hate waiting for their luggage? How difficult is it to get transportation to and from the airport? How expensive is it to rent a car, park in a crowded park lot, and then wait in traffic to leave that crowded parking lot at the end of the day?
Disney's successful attempts to solve these 'problems' not only draw people back to the parks, they also represent the original purpose behind Walt Disney's 'Florida Project', his decision to build a second theme park in central Florida. Walt wanted people to leave their world behind and enter a new, magical world, where all their needs would be met.
Unlike traveling to Las Vegas, for example, where you're responsible for your own trasnsportation, or to Six Flags, which has no hotels or internal transportation of its own, Disney World provides these services, and more.
John's Takeaway
So much is on display at Walt Disney World that if you don't know what to look for, or don't take the time to look for it, you'll miss a lot of the magic.
After spending eight weeks in class learning about Disney World, and then eight days in Disney World experiencing what I learned in class, I know for sure that Cast Members not only 'talk the talk' but 'walk the walk'.
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