Verified Document

Analyzing Walt Disney Conflict Essay

Walt Disney Conflict Sources of Conflict and Politics that have Plagued Walt Disney in the Past

Walt Disney has had quite a number of highs and lows over the past two decades. One of the biggest problems that they faced during that period was excessive authority by the company's executives. This made several members of the upper management to feel disenfranchised by the executive. This problem started by the appointment of Michael Eisner as the company's CEO. Upon his appointment to the position, Michael Eisner brought with him a new style of management; he required that every important decision that was to be made by the corporation had to pass through him. This centralized decision making process and slowed down the company's decision making process. This, in turn, slowed down some aspects of its operations and also the speed with which it developed new strategies. Thus, within a few years of Michael's leadership, the company started experiencing lower performance, and other lower returns on its investments during the period between 2000 and 2006. Slow decision making not only slowed its operations, but also its rate of adopting new strategies and techniques to keep up with the highly competitive entertainment industry. The centralized decision-making process meant that the company's operations had become too bureaucratic.

How Iger Used Conflict Resolution and Political Strategies to Address the Problem

When Iger took over as CEO of Disney, he immediately realized that he had to do something to save the situation. So as to resolve the conflict, he decided to apply organizational power. Organizational power is described as the ability/power to surmount the resistance by other parties so as to settle a dispute and attain the desired goals. Iger decided to change Disney's organizational structure. He wanted to get rid of the approach of the "dictatorial approach" that...

This, he was able to achieve by dismantling the company's "central strategic planning office." Thus, he was able to reclaim the power of allocating resources, which was previously held by the office and using this power he was able to redirect the company's resources to generating innovative products. He also used his positional power as Disney's CEO to redeploy the company's staff so as to make the most use of each talent. Unlike his predecessor, he appointed individuals strictly on merit and not on any personal considerations (Stapleton, 2014). Iger knew that he had to use his positional power or else the company's fortunes would continue to dwindle. He knew that his predecessor was overbearing and that that had been part of the problem. So, he decided to change the company's structures, sit back and let the spotlight fall on his lieutenants. He runs Disney through agreement and not fiat. And rather than dismissing or demoting Eisner's allies, he has decided to largely retain the management team (Grover, 2007).
Sources and Effects of Power on Organizational Structure

There are different sources of organizational power. Some powers come from personal qualities while others are derived from a firm's structure. All these sources of power have different impacts on the subjects that they control. The six main types of organizational power are:

Legitimate Power

This is also referred to as positional power and it comes from one's position or station in an organization's structure. Legitimate power often emanates from official authority given unto the holder of a certain office by its shareholders or by the organization's constitution.

Referent Power

Referent power is derived from an individual's ability to be friendly, build partnerships, lead others and make them loyal to his or her cause. This kind…

Sources used in this document:
References

Boundless. (2015, July 21). Sources of Power. Retrieved March 3, 2016, from Boundless Management: https://www.boundless.com/management/textbooks/boundless-management-textbook/leadership-9/defining-leadership-68/sources-of-power-339-7332/

Grover, R. (2007, February 4). How Bob Iger Unchained Disney. Retrieved March 3, 2016, from Bloomberg: http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/stories/2007-02-04/how-bob-iger-unchained-disney

Heil, K. (n.d.). Strategy In The Global. Retrieved March 3, 2016, from Reference for Business: http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/management/Str-Ti/Strategy-in-the-Global-Environment.html

Stapleton, S. (2014, March 17). The Five Sources of a Leader's Power, and how (and how not) to use them. Retrieved March 3, 2016, from LinkedLn: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20140317135313-14015966-the-five-sources-of-a-leader-s-power-and-how-and-how-not-to-use-them
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Analysing Politics in Walt Disney
Words: 870 Length: 3 Document Type: Essay

Politics Walt Disney Conflict, Politics, and Conflict Resolution A major source of conflict that plagued Walt Disney in the previous periods was organizational conflict. In particular, organization conflict is defined as the battle that takes place when the goal-oriented behavior of one party impedes and interferes with the goals of another party. In this case, organizational conflict came about when Michael Eisner the CEO of Walt Disney started to lose the support

Organization Management the Walt Disney the Walt
Words: 2052 Length: 6 Document Type: Essay

Organization Management The Walt Disney The Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company An organization is any social entity that has a well-designed structure to coordinate its functions, and the organization has to have a specific goal. Most organizations hardly work internally alone, but rather involve the external environments. Some organizations are profit oriented, like the business organizations, while others are non-profit making (Daft et al. 2010). In this context, a contemporary focus is

Disney Australia Case Study Management Theories Aim
Words: 3227 Length: 10 Document Type: Case Study

Disney Australia Case Study Management theories aim to improve the operational and financial performance of business organizations and help them in achieving their strategic goals. The internationally accepted Management theories provide a framework to organizations in every aspect of their business. The policies and procedures formulated in the light of these theories can give them a competitive advantage and a sustainable future in the industry (Tripathi & Reddy, 2006). Organizations follow the

Bolman Deals Human Resource Frame and Disney
Words: 2254 Length: 8 Document Type: Essay

Human Resource Frame Overview of the Organization The Walt Disney Company is one of the largest media and entertainment companies in the world. Its products and services meet the needs of billions of consumers around the world, through storytelling and the creation of fantasy and entertainment. In order to produce these outcomes, the Disney Company needs to engage around 200,000 employees (Forbes, 2018). The Walt Disney Company is ranked as one of

Mary Pickford: United Artist's Founder,
Words: 2531 Length: 8 Document Type: Research Paper

The films Pickford brought to life as a producer later in her career were often nothing like those she starred in as an actress: For example, "in 1945, during the independent production boom at the end of World War II, she organized Comet Pictures to make medium-budget films with Ralph Cohn, the son of Columbia Pictures cofounder Jack Cohn. At Comet she produced probably her finest later film, the noir

Alamo in Sleuthing the Alamo, James Crisp
Words: 920 Length: 3 Document Type: Essay

Alamo In Sleuthing the Alamo, James Crisp does not think that Sam Houston gave the racist "half Indian Mexicans" speech. This is contrary to the fact that the speech has been widely attributed to Sam Houston. "The words of the speech were harsh," as Crisp states it (p. 10). Houston speaks about the "phlegm of the indolent Mexicans," and calls them "half-Indians," thus denigrating both Tejanos and Native Americans," (cited by

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now