Page 221 - Harnessing the Management Secrets of Disney in Your Company

202 The Disney Way

demands of the bottom line and the quest for perfection. The key to this
balancing act is contained in the Disney philosophy that everyone—from
the groundskeepers at the parks and the animators in the movie studio to the
number crunchers in the accounting department—is responsible for doing
whatever it takes to deliver the “good show.” Even Bob Iger has “trash collect-
ing” in his job description when he’s visiting one of the theme parks! When
all parties are convinced of the importance of their individual roles, nothing
will be left to chance.
Most of the companies we work with are far removed from the Disney
environment of entertainment, yet they too have recognized that obsessive
attention to detail can pay huge dividends. Thus, they are calling on “casts”
of employees to present their own version of the good show to an “audience”
composed of suppliers and customers, and in doing so, these companies are
consistently delivering quality products and services to their target markets.

A Relentless Search for Perfection

There is a photograph in the Disney archives of Walt and 10 of his animators
standing around a studio table. In the middle of the table are five live penguins.
The birds are all turned toward Walt Disney as if they know where their next
meal is coming from. This arresting and charming image perfectly captures so
much of the Disney ethos and magic—the element of surprise, the embrace of
the animal kingdom, and always, the relentless search for perfection.
Disney, who was determined to exceed customers’ expectations, was
dissatisfied with the movements of his animated movie animals. They were
good, but they weren’t perfect. Up until that time, his animators had relied on
photographic stills or movie clips to give them the models for their figures. It
was clear to Walt that the animators could do better if they were able to copy
the real thing—ergo, the penguins.
“How can we do better?” is the question Walt Disney asked at every turn.
But then complacency is unnatural to the perfectionist. He strove continually
to improve the quality of his products. “Whenever I ride an attraction,” he
once said, “I’m thinking of what’s wrong with the thing and asking myself
how it can be improved.” 74
The story is told that after Disneyland was already up and running, the
boss stopped in to take a ride on the Jungle Cruise attraction. He emerged
furious. The ride was advertised as taking seven minutes, but he had timed it
at only four-and-a-half minutes. The very idea that a guest might be short-
changed was antithetical to the Disney culture and to Walt’s vision of quality;