by Larry Lynch

As an MRO Pro, you might wonder, "How can my business learn from an entertainment and resort company?" In fact, the Walt Disney World Resort is actually comprised of many different businesses, from theme parks and resorts to transportation, telecommunications and manufacturing. All these businesses are designed to support the show we call "the guest experience." Every year, thousands of business professionals from hundreds of industries come to Disney Institute to learn "the business behind the magic" and how it applies to their organizations. (Editor’s note: Click here to read "It’s a Small World After All.")

With this article, we’re pleased to inaugurate a five-column series examining what we at Disney consider the backbone of our business: our corporate culture.

We hope this series provides you with insights and best practices you can adapt to forge a stronger culture in your own company. This first column addresses why culture is such an important factor in organizational performance.

Future columns will explore the topics of hiring, training, communication, and reward and recognition — all of the elements necessary for building pride in any workforce.

Building your stage
Whether you know it or not, you already have a corporate culture. The question is, what kind do you have? Is it a thought-out, carefully cultivated and maintained culture that supports your business? Or, is it a culture developed by happenstance that sometimes works for you and sometimes against you?

At Disney, our culture is designed to permeate all of the experiences of our cast members and guests. Disney culture has three elements:

1) It’s by design (thought out).

2) It’s well-defined (portrayed consistently).

3) It’s clear to all (no one has to guess what is the right thing to do).

We’ve created a service-driven culture by tapping our company’s show business roots. As such, we use specific language to support this concept. For example, we don’t have employees, we have cast members. They have a role to play in the show, not a job. They wear costumes, not uniforms. When everything is in place and working right, that’s considered "good show." If something isn’t up to standard, that’s "bad show." And, we perform in front of an audience of guests, not a crowd of customers.

The term "guest" is the most important concept. While one can argue that many people don’t know how to treat customers, almost everyone knows how to treat a guest. Having cast members understand this concept is a critical first step in getting them to embrace the Disney culture.

Why do we create our own language? Because these terms serve to reinforce our culture. They touch at the essence of what makes our company different.

Our culture is the tie that binds our human resources practices.

As a service-driven organization, our policies and procedures are geared toward one thing: creating magic moments for — and exceeding the expectations of — our guests.

These special interactions happen by instilling pride in our cast.

That pride is the direct result of a thought-out and cultivated culture.

Working toward common goals
Another important part of our culture is working together toward common goals, such as keeping our theme parks and resorts clean and litter-free. That means everyone — from senior executives to the front line — picks up trash. When cast members see a leader stop to pick up a piece of trash, that sends a very powerful signal that keeping areas clean is everyone’s business. It’s a simple example, but an important reminder that all cast members must model the corporate culture.

To educate our workforce on the culture, we use a variety of training efforts to define and portray the heritage, traditions, quality standards and shared values which we believe are critical factors to success. This foundation creates a unique environment that embodies our culture.

How do we know people "get it" about culture? Find a cast member that refurbishes carousel horses in our Central Shops manufacturing facility and ask her about her job. She’ll tell you about the thousands of pictures that will be taken of children riding on that horse, and about the delight guests will experience years later when they look at those pictures. So the paint on that carousel has to be perfect! She understands her role in delivering a successful product.

The meaning behind symbols
One way we make our culture clear to all is through the use of symbols, both on stage where our guests can see what’s going on, and backstage (behind the scenes). At Disney, everyone from the CEO to the maintenance worker wears a nametag with the person’s first name listed. It’s a little thing that speaks volumes about the warm type of culture we’re seeking.

Backstage, cast member bulletin boards emphasize pride in performance (quality improvements), diversity (maps indicating where cast members hail from, photos from diversity celebrations) and teamwork (recognition to cast members who go beyond the call).

The process takes time
What are the symbolic messages you send about your culture to plant employees, customers and suppliers? Do your symbols reinforce your culture or create mixed messages? Is your backstage as neat and orderly as your on-stage areas?

Forging a meaningful culture can’t happen overnight. Your leaders can’t just invite people together into a room and say, "Let’s change our culture," and expect instant miracles. Rather, every individual in your plant has a role in making, or tarnishing, your culture.

As a leader, one of the most important things you can do for the long-term health of your operation is to continually clarify your expectations about culture.

Ensure your verbal and written comments about culture are clear and consistent, and reward and recognize others in a meaningful and sincere way for doing things that support the culture you’re looking to build.

It takes more than "pixie dust" to build and maintain a corporate or plant culture. Continually fostering a strong culture is hard work. However, we’ve discovered that these efforts pay both measurable and immeasurable dividends in improved morale, reduced turnover, quality improvement and guest loyalty. And that has a dramatically positive bottom-line impact.

Take a few minutes today and consider how you design, define and communicate your culture to your workforce. There’s always room for improvement. Chances are, you can find many easy, inexpensive and inspiring ways to build a more positive culture.

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