FROM: Perfecting the Customer Experience A Disney Dispatch Feature
Jeff Kober and the Disney Customer Experience
Mickey's methods, the business principles that Disney perfected over time to provide an optimal 'customer experience', can be learned and applied by others. The best way to learn Mickey's methods is from a great teacher. Like Jeff Kober...
Later this month, J. Jeff Kober and Ted Topping will be offering "Perfecting the Customer Experience," a boot camp-type workshop that takes people into the wonderful world of Disney to find out how Disney creates service magic for millions of guests each year. The three-day seminar, held the last week of April in Anaheim, California, may seem like just a lot of fun, but through relevant business lessons we will explore what companies must do to exceed customer expectations consistently year after year.
We caught up with Jeff to ask him a few questions about his experience and insights.
You've been teaching Disney business principles for quite awhile.
JEFF: Yes! I was associated in the 1990s with the Disney Institute. By then, Disney had already made a name for itself in providing great guest service. Business people around the world wanted to know how to make this magic come alive in their own organizations. My job was to provide them with those insights.
We would go beneath the tunnels of the Magic Kingdom, to the top of the tank at the Living Seas, and on stage with the performers from Voyage of the Little Mermaid. I literally went from one corner of Walt Disney World to another looking for the best examples and bringing those benchmarks to the participants.
And now you are on your own?
JEFF: That's right. I left to build my own consulting business. That, too, was incredible, because I had given those examples for so long, but had never really seen how it applies to a government agency, or to a hospital, or to an insurance company.
What did you learn?
JEFF: They do apply! There are incredible lessons at Disney that could be useful to any business, non-profit, or public service organization. That's what has been so exciting about the last number of years. And I've really honed in on those practices that are most applicable to any organization.
How do you stay connected with Disney?
JEFF: I go to the parks! You can't walk the guest experience any other way. I live only a few minutes away from Walt Disney World and so I'm at the parks 1-2 times per week, except when I'm traveling to spend time in the trenches with clients helping them to integrate Disney principles into their own workplace.
What I love is that I can impart my experiences effectively because I have experienced these three essential view points: (1) Disney Cast Member; (2) Disney Guest; (3) Proven Consultant. I know what really goes on at Disney, and I know how to really make those learnings come alive in the day-to-day business world and the everyday workplace.
And that's what this workshop is all about?
JEFF: Yes, we want to lead a core team of individuals through an experience that will help them see how all this works. While the setting is fantastic, the experience is immersive, with practical tools that can be applied in the real world. The key point is that these lessons can be applied to any size business. You don't need a huge operation to make these standards and tactics part of your business.
And to find out more...
JEFF: Call us! I can be reached at 407-973-3219, and Ted (in Canada) at 604-685-7571. You can also learn all the details at PerformanceJourneys. There are only a limited number of spaces available in this program. Now is the time to discuss your attendance. Our promise is that you'll have an unbelievable experience!
For more information about Perfecting the Customer Experience, please contact Jeff Kober or Ted Topping. The next public programs are September 27 to 29, 2011 and February 21 to 23, 2012. Companies may prefer a private, tailored experience. Neither the program nor its facilitators are associated in any way with The Walt Disney Company.
Stuff Not to Skip
- Perfecting the Customer Experience
- Performance Journeys [Jeff Kober]
- Creative Insights [Ted Topping]