“One-Disney”, Multiple Layoffs

WDWNT on February 19, 2009

While we provided you with Disney’s side of the story yesterday, the Orlando Sentinel is offering a fresh perspective into the entire shake-up going on throughout the domestic “Disney Parks” in both Orlando and Anaheim:

The Walt Disney Co. on Wednesday said it will eliminate an undisclosed number of jobs as part of a sweeping corporate overhaul at its domestic resorts, which includes plans to combine back-office operations at Walt Disney World and Disneyland. Disney would not say how many jobs it intends to cut or how much money it expects to save through the moves. The company employs about 80,000 people at its U.S. resorts, including 62,000 in Central Florida.

With the shake-up, Disney will consolidate East and West Coast “operating infrastructure” — responsibilities ranging from procurement to menu-planning to merchandise — under Al Weiss, the president of worldwide operations for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. The plans also call for uniting disparate creative engineering and business-development units under single executives.

In a statement, Disney said it was forced to speed up corporate streamlining plans by the worsening global recession, which has eroded revenue at its theme parks and elsewhere across the Burbank, Calif.-company’s media and entertainment empire.

“These changes are essential to maintaining our leadership position in family tourism and reflect today’s economic realities,” Parks and Resorts Chairman Jay Rasulo said in the statement. In a separate memo to employees Wednesday, Rasulo wrote that “organization changes require difficult decisions, including the elimination of some roles.”

“These decisions were not made lightly and we know this will be a challenging transition. The people affected are our friends and colleagues, and they have made valuable contributions,” Rasulo added in the memo. The announcement comes the same month Disney revealed that its first-quarter profits fell 32 percent. Operating profit in the parks-and-resorts division fell 24 percent during the three-month period, which ended Dec. 27. It also follows Disney’s decision last month to offer buyouts to more than 600 executives at its domestic resorts. A spokesman said Disney received “a satisfactory response” to the offer, though Disney would not say how many executives took the buyouts.

The risk of over-cutting

John Gerner, managing director of Leisure Business Advisors, a Richmond, Va., consultant firm, said Disney likely will be able to make deep cost cuts by consolidating operations.

“I think it definitely has quite a lot of potential for savings. . . . As far as the theme parks go, there’s definitely economies of scale in being able to merge all those operations together to the extent that they can and centralize them,” Gerner said.

But Gerner said Disney, which relies on a constant infusion of fresh content to fuel everything from park attendance to DVD sales, must not cut too deeply in creative areas.

“They’ve got to be careful because there are so many very specialized people that work for Disney, especially on the creative side, that would be very difficult to replace once things turn around,” Gerner said. “That’s what a lot of creative companies, not only Disney, have to rely on.”

In addition to steering “operating infrastructure” at the Orlando and Anaheim, Calif., parks through Weiss, Disney said that its Walt Disney Imagineering unit would be reorganized into a single practice reporting to Bruce Vaughn, executive vice president and chief creative executive, and Craig Russell, executive vice president and chief design and project-delivery executive.

A new ‘global’ team

The company also said it would establish a new “Global Business Development team” headed by Executive Vice President Nick Franklin, which will be charged with combining existing business and real-estate development functions. The unit will be responsible for focusing growth strategies at existing parks-and-resorts businesses and identifying new opportunities around the globe. Vaughn, Russell and Franklin all are based in California.

Disney said other departments will make “appropriate changes” in the coming weeks.

As an example of what it hopes to achieve through the streamlining, Disney pointed to the simultaneous development of Toy Story Mania! attractions at both Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Orlando and Disney’s California Adventure in Anaheim, which helped hold down design costs.

The corporate overhaul means fewer employees will now report directly to Meg Crofton, president of Walt Disney World, and Ed Grier, president of Disneyland.

Major Announcement: Four Parks, “One-Disney”

WDWNT on February 19, 2009

If you weren’t a fan of “Disney Parks” combined branding, then you’re not going to like the next major step that was taken today. Here’s the press release from Disney:

BURBANK, Calif. – February 18, 2009 – Jay Rasulo, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, today announced organization changes to deliver a “one-Disney” experience by simplifying the Parks and Resorts operating structure, streamlining decision-making and eliminating redundancy.

“We know that our Guests want a ‘one-Disney’ experience and we must organize around that expectation,” said Rasulo. “The long-term success of Parks and Resorts depends upon our ability to adapt and innovate and respond to Guest preferences. These changes are essential to maintaining our leadership position in family tourism and reflect today’s economic realities.”

Today’s announcement accelerates the evolution of the Parks and Resorts management structure by creating seamless behind-the-scenes operations across domestic Parks and Resorts, while preserving the uniqueness, character and culture of our individual destinations.

In a memo to employees Rasulo explained: “In 2005, we announced a new Walt Disney Parks and Resorts operating structure. We transformed our organization to match consumers’ expectations: ‘one-Disney,’ regardless of how or where they experience our products. We put in place a new leadership team, integrated key business functions and implemented a consistent set of best practices. This allowed us to more rapidly and efficiently roll out new creative projects and better anticipate changes in travel trends.

“We’ve already seen innumerable benefits. Prime examples of our successes are the establishment of many maintenance and safety practices, holiday castle lighting that began in Paris and expanded into our other theme parks, the speed with which we integrated the High School Musical shows into our parks around the world, and the simultaneous openings of Toy Story Mania at Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Disney’s California Adventure.

“We have made significant progress. However, the long-term success of Parks and Resorts depends upon our ability to continue to adapt and innovate, to respond to ever-changing Guest preferences, and to implement an organization and cost structure that meet today’s economic realities. We must accelerate the evolution of our business and further refine our structure to work in a more integrated and effective manner.

“We know that our Guests want a ‘one-Disney’ experience and we must organize around that expectation. Our new structure will enhance our ability to Identify and Develop the next great Disney experience, Create and Build Disney destinations that incorporate our rich storytelling heritage and Operate them in a way that delivers a unique, memorable experience that transcends geography. Economic realities require that we do this in a simplified and streamlined manner that eliminates redundancies.”

Organization Changes Announced Today

A new Global Business Development team led by Executive Vice President Nick Franklin will combine the existing development functions of business and real estate development. The team will be responsible for driving growth by working with existing businesses on their development strategies, while also exploring new business opportunities around the globe.

Walt Disney Imagineering under the leadership of Bruce Vaughn, EVP, Chief Creative Executive and Craig Russell, EVP, Chief Design and Project Delivery Executive, will be reorganized into a single practice merging resort development with attractions and entertainment development to bring the creativity of Disney storytelling to the design and delivery of products at all Disney destinations.

Al Weiss, President, Worldwide Operations, will lead the work of merging the operating infrastructure at Walt Disney World and the Disneyland Resort to create a single domestic organization and “back-of-house” operation.

In the coming weeks, other functions will review their organizations and make appropriate changes.

In his memo Rasulo acknowledged the challenges inherent in a large-scale reorganization: “Organization changes require difficult decisions, including the elimination of some roles. These decisions were not made lightly and we know this will be a challenging transition. The people affected are our friends and colleagues, and they have made valuable contributions.”

The changes announced today are effective immediately.

What this basically means is that more attractions and entertainment offerings will be developed for both the Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resorts, rather than just for one of them. This announcement would lead us to believe persistent rumors that attractions such as “Radiator Springs Racers” and “The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Adventure” that are going to Disney’s California Adventure as part of the billion-dollar expansion plan will also find their way to one of the four Walt Disney World theme parks sometime in the not-so-distant future. Stay tuned to WDW News Today as we get more information on this announcement and what it means to the future of the Walt Disney World Resort.

Chris Lastrapes’ 2/14/09 Photo Report

WDWNT on February 14, 2009

WDWNT’s very own Chris Lastrapes was at the Disneyland Resort celebrating his birthday this past Thursday, and shares with us a few photos of the latest happenings around the Resort:

Workers were working outside the gates of The Haunted Mansion up to it’s soft re-opening Thursday afternoon.

The attraction was closed early in the day.

The painting of Mickey’s Fun Wheel is pretty much done. Just a little bit left to do on the stars.

Lots of work going on in the Paradise Pier lagoon.

We’ll end this short photo report with the new covering for Mr. Potato Head.

Grim Grinning Ghosts Come Out to Socialize Early

WDWNT on February 13, 2009

Our very own Chris Lastrapes is currently on location at the Disneyland Resort and reports to us with the news that The Haunted Mansion has re-opened early from its refurbishment. According to Chris, nothing much is new, except for some fresh coats of paint.

Stay tuned to Disneyland News Today as I will be visiting the Resort tomorrow, and will bring back plenty of pictures of The Haunted Mansion.

Maintaining Orbit

WDWNT on February 8, 2009

In a very interesting turn of events, it seems rumors are floating around saying that the Astro Orbitor will be removed sometime before the summer season arrives. The reasoning for this seems to be maintenance issues, that for some reason the attraction costs too much to maintain (what about Dumbo?). If all goes according to plan, some form of the old Rocket Jets will go back up on top of the PeopleMover station, but we have no idea when or if that will happen.

Let’s just hope they remove those enormous rocks as well…

Guest Favorite “it’s a small world” Reopens at Disneyland Park

WDWNT on February 7, 2009

It’s back! The Fantasyland favorite “it’s a small world” is reopening at Disneyland Park with more magic than ever before. Walt Disney Imagineers have reinvigorated the classic attraction by adding some familiar faces and an all-new scene. Peek behind the wizardry to see how Imagineers seamlessly wove in references to Disney and Disney Pixar Characters with new costumes and enhancements to the beloved “it’s a small world” song. Guests of all ages will celebrate the return of “the happiest cruise that ever sailed.”

Small World America Scene Draws Inspiration From Mary Blair

WDWNT on February 6, 2009

Once again from the LA Times Travel Blog:

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With the debut today of the rehabbed It’s a Small World ride at Disneyland, the public gets its first look at the controversial new “Spirit of America” scene — the focus of much angst and anguish in chat rooms and blog posts.

On one side of the boat ride, the new scene features an American West tableau with cowboys, Indians and “Toy Story” characters Woody, Jessie and Bullseye. On the other side, farmer dolls in overalls and straw hats populate an agricultural heartland montage.

“Spirit of America” replaces a tropical rainforest scene, which got severely truncated and unceremoniously tucked into another room on the ride.

Walt Disney Imagineer Kim Irvine, who oversaw the Small World rehab, explained her approach to the new American scene during a boat ride through the attraction today.

Irvine based the new scene, in part, on original concept art by Small World ride creator Mary Blair. Fellow Imagineer Tony Baxter accidentally discovered the sketch at a recent Comic-Con event.

“It just confirmed our suspicions that she always meant to have a scene for America,” said Irvine, who says the scene may have been cut from the original attraction because of time constraints.

The original sketch includes many elements — buttes, cactuses and the sun — incorporated into the new American West scene.

“It really helped me get the color tones right,” Irvine said of the sketch. “The hardest part for me was really capturing Mary Blair’s style. It really has an innocent, childlike quality.”

A lasso-twirling cowboy, familiar to many Small World fans, was relocated from the finale to the American scene.

The goal of the renovation, Irvine said, was for the changes to be as seamless and unobtrusive as possible.

“We stuck to Mary’s story,” Irvine said.

It’s a World of Laughter, a World of Tears

WDWNT on February 6, 2009

its's a small world

A beloved Disneyland attraction returns to Fantasyland on Friday, Feb. 6, when “it’s a small world” opens with some new storytelling magic. With the premiere of a new “Spirit of America” scene, new musical enhancements, and a new look for some of the attraction’s familiar child dolls, “it’s a small world” will once again take guests of all ages on “the happiest cruise that ever sailed.”

This classic attraction has been renovated and enhanced while retaining the world-renowned charm that holds such a special place in the hearts of Disneyland guests. The “it’s a small world” journey continues to celebrate children of the world and their message of harmony and friendship. And now, for the first time, guests will be able to find some of the child dolls dressed as their favorite Disney characters, in the countries where their stories take place. For example, dolls dressed in Aladdin and Jasmine costumes play in the Middle East scene, and a doll dressed as Alice from “Alice in Wonderland” appears in the Great Britain scene.

Guests will enjoy riding “it’s a small world” again and again as they search for the 29 Disney and Disney•Pixar characters now represented in the attraction. Some appear as child dolls and some are playful-looking toys, such as the White Rabbit who accompanies Alice. The new doll costumes and toys are fashioned in the same artistic style that has made “it’s a small world” an icon around the globe. That style was created by art director, color stylist and Disney Legend Mary Blair, whose sense of design shaped “it’s a small world” from the very beginning.

“We know that many people have been eagerly awaiting the opportunity to relive their ‘it’s a small world’ memories and to create new ones with children, grandchildren and friends,” said Disney Imagineer art director Kim Irvine. “It’s a pleasure to once again offer this beloved attraction to Disneyland guests, now with some special Disney enhancements.”

  • Among the enhancements is a new “Spirit of America” scene based on original concept art by Disney Legend Mary Blair, in keeping with the “it’s a small world” theme that friendship crosses all nations, including the United States.
  • Child dolls that are costumed as stylized representations of their favorite Disney characters can be spotted in several scenes.

  • The children in many “it’s a small world” scenes will have a variety of new stylized toys to play with, inspired by Disney and Disney•Pixar characters: Woody and Jessie for “Spirit of America,” a Mushu dragon kite for China, “The Three Caballeros” marionettes for Latin America, and others.

  • Additional fresh touches will be heard in the augmented “it’s a small world” soundtrack. The renowned “it’s a small world” song, written by Academy Award®-winning composers Richard M. and Robert B. Sherman (“Mary Poppins”), will still play throughout the attraction. Now, however, some subtle film music is woven into the song as counterpoint melodies, fitting the characters and scenes.
  • All of the boats in “it’s a small world” are new and designed to evoke the look and feel of boats that children of the world might play with anywhere.

It’s a Small, Small World

WDWNT on February 6, 2009

Our friends over at the OC Register’s Around Disney blog have an interesting interactive map up showing the layout of the ride, along with where the new characters are located with an accompanying picture. They also have a photo slideshow up. You can view both of which by clicking the photo links bellow:

smallworldslideshow

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Again, stay tuned to Disneyland News Today, as I’m sure we will have even more information and material on It’s a Small World for you tonight.