Page 291 - Harnessing the Management Secrets of Disney in Your Company

272 The Disney Way

successful achievement of long-term goals in an environment of mutual trust and
respect.” There are many striking leadership similarities between our featured
organizations. Let’s consider the key elements of Walt’s definition beginning
with “establish”. Like Walt, each of our leaders established or changed their
organizations to create “magical moments” for their guests: an upscale casual
dining adventure offering 200-plus menu choices; a truly unique five-star hotel
experience based on The Golden Rule; a financial services firm where the staff
cares for the client and the firm cares for the staff; a hospital that is patient-
centered rather than physician-centered; a clothing store where wardrobe
consultants live the “I Guarantee It” philosophy; a school where students take
accountability for their own learning; a spa with “the Norm factor”—where
everybody knows your name. As diverse as these organizations are, they all have
a common thread—leaders who “dreamed” of a building something unique
that differentiated them from their competition; “believed” in the value of
their people; “dared” to take risks along the way; and then just “did it!”
The next key in Walt’s definition of leadership is “manage a creative
climate.” Walt defined managing as “developing your people through their
work and at the same time having fun.” Walt believed that leaders are respon-
sible for developing and training people and providing them with the tools
to succeed. All of our featured organizations are passionate about providing
opportunities for their employees to increase their competencies. Ernst &
Young has even achieved national recognition for its training, currently rank-
ing as number three on Training magazine’s Top 100 list. Aside from “hard
skills” training, our featured organizations are among the best at placing “soft
skills” training at the forefront of their cultural initiatives. They all provide
an orientation experience in which employees become immersed in their
respective cultures and, upon “graduation,” are energized and self-motivated
to live the vision and values of their organizations. It is also important to note
that in each of these organizations, fun is not a dirty word. Sure, everyone has
those days when everything seems to go wrong—when deadlines pile up, or
when you wish you had called in to report that you were “sick.” But as one
person told us, “I don’t always like my job when I go home at night, but I
am always excited to get back at it in the morning.” When employees truly
embrace the values of the organization, they not only feel a sense of pride but
can also experience the freedom to be themselves … and yes, have fun.
Let’s consider the meaning of “self-motivated”. All these leaders have real-
ized that when properly trained, their employees can and should be making