Walt Disney Company Walt Disney Company Walt Disney, a name well known to almost everyone around the world. Mr. Walter Elias Disney created not only a company vested in bringing happiness to children but also bringing childhood back to adults back in 1923 (“About. com”, 2012).

Through the technological advanced techniques used in creating masterpieces like Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, to the computer enhanced characters of Toy Story and Monsters Inc. , and then to the creative theme parks known as Disney World and Disneyland, Walt Disney has captivated audiences with film, thrills and magic for decades.For good reason, the Walt Disney Company has withstood the test of time because their product is essentially “Happiness”. They sell the youth of childhood to adults and sell magic and imagination to children all over the world. The Walt Disney Company is much more than a child entertainment company and has multiple subsidiaries under cloaked names offering entertainment not geared towards children, which could for some call into question the perceived public values that Disney stands for: good, clean, wholesome, family fun.The purpose of this paper is to discuss whether the Walt Disney Company lives up to its espoused values, whether their communications add to or disparage their mission and the public’s perception of the company and how the use of conflict is used within the company to improve communication.

The culture of the Walt Disney Company is not something that is easily defined. People under their employ come from all over the world to work in their theme parks, on their cruise lines and work for their many subsidiaries like Touchstone Pictures.Walt Disney had to overcome multiple cultural and diverse barriers in order to operate successfully in the United States and abroad. Entire management teams had to assimilate to the culture in which they lived and had to learn how to operate in different and constantly changing cultural climates. The Disney theme park in Paris was not an overnight success for the Walt Disney Company and actually took many years to become profitable in that market (Best & Lowney, 2009).The mission of The Walt Disney Company is to be one of the world's leading producers and providers of entertainment and information.

Using our portfolio of brands to differentiate our content, services and consumer products, we seek to develop the most creative, innovative and profitable entertainment experiences and related products in the world (“About. com”, 2012). The following information was retrieved from Disneycareers. com and brings to light the companies’ culture and their expectations for its employees or rather, its “Cast Members”.Each of our companies has a unique ability to harness the imagination in a way that inspires others, improves lives across the world and brings hope, laughter and smiles to those who need it most. Together as one team, we embrace the values that make The Walt Disney Company an extraordinary place to work: Innovation, High standard of Excellence, Community, Storytelling, Optimism and Decency (Walt Disney Company, n.

d. ) This is most important because the culture that the Walt Disney Company encourages in their employees closely resembles their mission statement.The Walt Disney Company values the many ethnicities they employ because as stated, they want to be relevant in the world marketplace. To appeal to not only children but use their subsidiaries to appeal to the world as a whole. Disney has had some negative publicity because of more adult entertainment work done under their subsidiaries. Some believe that producing entertainment that is not G rated is disparaging what they stand for and conflicts with the message that Disney is reliable and trusted source for good, clean family entertainment (Best ; Lowney, 2009).

Communication plays a big role in the Disney Company’s perception and organizational culture. For example, they use a special language; employees are “Cast Members” Customers are “Guests”. Their slogan about their theme parks being the “Happiest place on earth” also lends a hand in guiding the public’s perception. The organizational culture of Disney is embodied in that very slogan and teaches its employees to live up to it as well by encouraging them to smile at the guests, be kind and courteous and provide exceptional service.Disney’s success comes down to how well they sell the magic and make it seem real for not only the children but for the adult guests as well. World class customer service and the overall customer experience have led the company to continued success.

Of course, their subsidiaries do not follow the same happiest place on earth guidelines as their purpose is different from that of Disney World this disparity is what affects the overall perception of the company.Public perception of the Walt Disney Company was somewhat negative when they felt Disney was not living up to the values that they believed Disney should follow when Disney got involved with the production of less child oriented entertainment ventures. What is important to remember though is that perception is not the truth it is simply how the situation is perceives by an individual. “A number of factors operate to shape and sometimes distort perception.These factors can reside in the perceiver; in the object, or target, being perceived; or in the context of the situation in which the perception is made” (Robbins ; Judge, 2011.

Pg. 168). Conflict has many advantages and disadvantages. “One value of conflict is that it makes a group test and challenge ideas” (Bebee ; Masterson, 2009. Pg.

151). Conflict can lead to great sharing of ideas but can also hinder them if someone gets too bossy and imposes their own idea onto the rest of the group without giving them the chance to speak their mind (Bebee ; Masterson, 2009).The Disney Company has used past failures to implement and improve future communications to increase business profitability. Without the conflict they encountered the necessary changes would never have taken place. In conclusion, while the Disney Company started its climb to success as a provider and producer of wholesome family entertainment, they were not afraid to reach into other untouched demographics that were seeking their own kind of entertainment. The Disney Company stayed true to their mission, to provide the best entertainment.

Disney saw a need and fulfilled it through their innovative leadership, training programs, communication skills, and willingness to adapt to our evolving tastes. References About. com. (2012).

About. com Retail Industry. Retrieved from http://retailindustry. about.

com/od/retailbestpractices/ig/Company-Mission-Statements/Walt-Disney-Mission-Statement. htm Bebee, S. A. , ; Masterson, J.

T. (2009). Communicating in small groups: Principles and practices (9th