In the book “Inside the Magic Kingdom”, Tom Connellan (1997) talks about the physical kingdom of Disney, famously referred to as Disney World. In this book, Connellan utilizes a fictional tour of Disney world to put across the key lessons that have contributed to the success of Disney. One of the key lessons depicted by Connellan is that competition is anyone the customer compares you with. In most cases, competitors are usually considered competitors because they produce similar products or target the same customer bases. Tapp (1998) supports this argument and further claims that the definition of the word competitors should be larger than it is. As much as a particular company is not competing with another company for business, customers often compare their experience with one company to their experience with another. For instance, if customers call your company because they are experiencing difficulties implementing your inventory management software, your competition becomes every company that has ever provided that customer technological support.
Paying fantastic attention to detail is another lesson that Connellan has indicated in the book. Paying fantastic attention to detail is important because it filters through every interaction with the company’s customer. The commitment to detail is seen throughout the entire park of Disney. Murals are fantastically comprehensive to the point where visitors could see a mural many times and still find something new. The superlative experience of Disney that leaves nothing to chance has made Disney foster long-term loyalty. Another lesson learned from Disney is that everyone walks the talk (Johnson, 2010). At Disney World, every person starting from the cleaning staff to the costumed performer plays a crucial role in optimizing the customer’s experience. This simply implies that every individual at every level of the organization can pitch in support of the stated value of the company. Therefore, every interaction, as well as every moment of every day of the company’s work, needs to reflect the best effort to maximize value.
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Additionally, everything walks the talk is another lesson coined by Connellan. This lesson focuses on paying attention to detail. At Disney World, everything is as original as possible. The brass buttons found on a uniform jacket are pure brass rather than painted brass. Even though most customers do not notice this level of attention, few of them do appreciate. At Disney World, the team is not able to recognize the difference between gold paint and gold leaf but they know that carousel is painted the actual gold. Having “everything walk the talk” in your company expresses the company’s value (Collins, J. C., Collins, J., & Porras, 2005). It is therefore important for an organization to ensure that every aspect of it reflect key principles to commit to excellence. Another lesson that Connellan talks in his book is that customers are best heard through many ears. At Disney World, team members carry out formal surveys and also make an effort to listen to customers as individuals at every available opportunity (Yang & Seddon, 2004). At each shift, the team come together and discusses the positive as well as the opportunities for improvement. The use of this piece of information conceives a more valuable product as well as customer experience.
Apart from hearing customers, it is important to reward, recognize and celebrate people. As Connellan points, rewarding good work with recognition and praise is a fundamental component of a highly motivated team. Because Disney World is well known for its magical stories and experiences, it is important to recognize the efforts of team members so that they can go beyond the call of duty. The last lesson from Connellan’s book is that everyone makes a difference. From this lesson, it is evident that every piece matters. To wholesomely achieve wild success, the organization should be consistent from top to bottom and also listen to its customers and reward them accordingly.
References
Collins, J. C., Collins, J., & Porras, J. I. (2005). Built to last: Successful habits of visionary companies . Random House.
Connellan T.K.(1997). Inside the Magic Kingdom: Seven Keys to Disney's Success. The Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management , 18 (3), 73.
Johnson, R. (2010). A strategy for service—Disney style. Journal of Business Strategy , 12 (5), 38-43.
Tapp, S. R. (1998). Inside the Magic Kingdom: Seven Keys to Disney's Success. The Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management , 18 (3), 73.
Yang, S., & Seddon, P. (2004). Benefits and key project success factors from enterprise systems implementations: lessons from Sapphire 2003. ACIS 2004 Proceedings , 27.
