Inside Disney’s bombshell move to fire Bob

Chapek and restore Bob Iger as CEO

WALT DISNEY

Walt Disney was founded on October 16th, 1923.The Walt Disney Company is
widely regarded as a pioneer in the field of entertainment. Competitive
advantage, a growth strategy, and a renewal strategy are among the Walt
Disney Company's strategies. When someone talks about a theme park, they
usually think of Disney. Even though they weren't the first theme park, they've
mastered the art of making memories for both adults and kids. "Alice in
Wonderland" was Walt Disney's very first short film. After becoming a major
success by the early 1940s, the company diversified into live-action films,
television, and theme parks in the 1950s.

The company's profits began to decline after Walt Disney's death in 1966,
particularly in the animation division. During a time period known as the
Disney Renaissance, the company experienced unprecedented success after
shareholders elected Michael Eisner as its CEO in 1984.

Disney has created and acquired corporate divisions since the 1980s to
promote content that is more mature than what is typically associated with its
family-oriented brands. Walt Disney Studios, which includes Walt Disney
Pictures, Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar, Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, 20th
Century Studios, 20th Century Animation, and Searchlight Pictures, is the
company's film-studio division. Television, broadcasting, streaming media,
theme park resorts, consumer products, publishing, and international
operations are among Disney's other main business units.

There have been 16 investments and 18 acquisitions made by the Walt Disney
Company. The organization has spent more than $ 89.23B for the acquisitions.
The Internet First Media, OTT Video, and Mom & Baby Care are just a few of
the many industries in which the Walt Disney Company has made investments.

Its major brands are iPhone, Mac, iPad, Air Pods, Apple TV, Apple Watch, Beats
Products, Home Pod, iPod touch

ABOUT THE NEWS

The world's largest entertainment company, Walt Disney Co., Shortly after the
company brought back former CEO Bob Iger and fired CEO Bob Chapek, rumors
are circulating that the new CEO may sell the company to tech giant Apple.
Under a new two-year contract, Iger will receive approximately $27 million
annually upon his return to the business. According to a company filing last
week, he will receive a bonus of the same amount as his base salary. He will
also receive annual stock awards with a target value of $25

Insiders also have belief in they have knowledge of how the loved one 71-year-

old chief company manager will discover a new way to come out on top
in during his last 2 years at Disney 1 because he is back at the company less tha
n three years after Bob chapek his selected agent coming after, took over.

Additionally, securing a deal with Apple would establish Iger's legacy. A former
top Disney executive told American news website TheWrap that the two
businesses have "similar brand identities" and could benefit from a merger and
he would be the last CEO of Disney," he said. One Disney insider who has
worked for CEO Iger predicted that ,he would be selling the company to Apple .

Under Iger's direction, Disney spent nearly $100 billion on acquisitions to

acquire Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, and 21st Century Fox, all of which were
powered by Rupert Murdoch. However, he has publicly lamented one
acquisition as a transformational deal that was not realized: a merger with
Apple, a technological powerhouse.
dealmaker.”
According to reports, Iger wrote chapters in his 2019 autobiography "The Ride
of a Lifetime" about his friendship with Steve Jobs. He and his wife, Willow Bay,
were close friends with Laurene Powell Jobs and Steve Jobs, and they even
went on vacation to Hawaii together on holidays.

In 2011, Apple's former CEO Steve Jobs passed away. According to the report,
Disney is a difficult company to swallow, with a market valuation of $180
billion that could easily rise to $200 billion if Apple were to acquire the studio.

In April, Apple CEO Tim Cook might have given Wall Street a big hint because
he is otherwise known to be a safe player and has only made a few acquisitions
under his leadership. Cook reportedly stated that he would not rule out
acquiring a large company during a call with investors and that the primary
goal was to acquire strong intellectual property and well-known brands.

According to the report, Cook had stated, "We are always looking at
companies to buy; we acquire a lot of smaller companies, and we will continue
to do that for IP and to incorporate talent." If an opportunity arises, we do not
discount something larger. We're always looking, but I won't go through my list
with you on this call.

The report says that Apple, which has been experimenting with a grab in the
streaming space with hits like "Ted Lasso," has the money to make this kind of
deal. In addition, Apple shares have soared since Jobs and Iger began doing
business together.
In 2006, Disney paid $7.4 billion to acquire Pixar, which was run by Steve Jobs.
As a result, the animation studio's CEO was appointed to the entertainment
company's 10-member board. Apple's share price was approximately $3 on the
day of the announcement, while Disney's was approximately $25.
With a $2.3 trillion market cap, Apple is currently the most valuable company
in the world and trades for around $150, an increase of more than 240% in the
past five years. Disney, on the other hand, has seen a 6% decline over the same
time period, with its share price hovering around $98.

Now, the outcome of this much-anticipated Apple-Disney deal remains to be

seen, but it may be anticipated that it will be finalized or at least announced
until Iger takes over as Disney CEO for the next two years.

Change in the CEO

After Bob Chapek left, Bob Iger is back as Disney's CEO. Investors,
shareholders, and Disney fans all have high hopes for this leadership change,
and Iger's status as a near-hero to those groups may make his return more
difficult than some anticipate.

Iger reported he was venturing down as Chief of Disney, a job he held for quite
some time. While the coronavirus pandemic wreaked havoc on many of
Disney's core businesses, he took an active leadership role even though he
officially handed the reins over to Bob Chapek at the time.

The intention was for Iger to serve as executive chairman until the end of 2021,
so his departure is imminent. Many people believed that he would again take
the position of CEO

he problem is that, as Iger acknowledges, success comes with a price. The price
of being a leader is that you begin to believe everything is your fault. It's "built
up," according to Iger. When that occurs, you believe that your thoughts are
the only ones that matter and that you are invincible. That is not only foolish
but also dangerous. It poses a threat to both you and your company.

The pinnacle of a career is to be CEO of a company like Disney. It comes with

power, prestige, and wealth. The Walt Disney Company has only had seven
CEOs, and the majority of people will not leave this position unless they are
forced to.

The section on emotional intelligence (EQ) comes into play here. The ability to
change how you think about a situation, behave differently, and identify your
own emotional response to it is known as EQ. It necessitates self-awareness
and a certain amount of humility, two traits that are uncommon for those at
the top.

It's important to note Iger's response because, let's face it, it's rare for a top
leader to acknowledge publicly that they had begun to disregard other
people's contributions and value. More than that, Iger realized that it was time
to make a change and that his leadership as well as the company he was
tasked with running could suffer as a result of his response to feedback.

The most difficult thing for a leader to do is acknowledge that they may be
holding the organization back from expanding, innovating, or rising to any
challenge it faces. It implies conceding that there's something that
requirements to change, and at times that thing is you.

The decision by the Disney board to hire Iger over Chapek demonstrates that it
is more certain that Iger will achieve better results. People familiar with the
situation say that despite selecting Chapek as his successor in early 2020, Iger
has opposed several of Chapek's changes to Disney.

The company's reorganization under Chapek, which consolidated budgetary

authority for Disney's content and distribution divisions under Kareem Daniel
and established a new division called Disney Media and Entertainment, or
DMED, may have been the most contentious issue. It would be messy and
time-consuming to undo a company's entire restructuring, but it is unlikely that
Iger will maintain Chapek's organization. Additionally, Daniel's position at the
company becomes less secure. He has close associations with Chapek.
In addition, Iger was of the opinion that Disney+ ought to undercut the prices
of rival streaming services in order to improve consumers' perceptions of the
service's value. As of December 8, Chapek decided to raise Disney+'s price to
$10.99, making it more expensive than other streaming services that don't
have ads, like Paramount+ and NBCUniversal's Peacock.
Iger clashed with Chapek’s initial handling of how Disney reacted to Florida’s
controversial “Don’t Say Gay” legislation, privately expressing angst about how
the Disney brand may be affected. It wouldn’t be surprising if Iger’s first order
of business, before unwinding any of Chapek’s structural changes or reeling in
direct-to-consumer spending, is to bring a sense of pride back to the
company’s culture.
APPLYING ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOUR CONCEPTS
BOB IGER
Bob Iger has always been an Id personality. He is happy to lead and
enthusiastically contributes ideas. Iger has been viewed as a creative, driven
individual who enjoyed exploring new opportunities throughout his successful
career at Disney. To help him accomplish everything, he heavily tapped into his
Influencer personality type's inherent strengths.
Characteristics
Decisive: Iger is extremely decisive; Even if his decisions are wrong, he is able
to think independently and stand by them. Even during periods of significant
change, other Disney stakeholders were able to feel at ease thanks to his
confidence in his actions. Iger was able to lead the movement to acquire major
production studios because of his ability to make decisions.
Risk Tolerant: Like other Influencers, he is accustomed to taking substantial
risks. Disney benefited from the majority of Iger's decisions, though they were
costly and high-risk at the time. He ended up increasing Disney's market value
from $48.4 billion when he started as CEO in October 2005 to approximately
$273 billion by December 2019. He did this by acquiring businesses, opening
new theme parks, and producing expensive blockbusters.
Innovative: During his 15 years as CEO, Iger's creative and innovative spirit
helped Disney flourish. He was able to help Disney take on major, out-of-the-
box projects like investing a lot of the company's resources back into animation
by driving the growth of Walt Disney Animation Studios and acquiring Pixar. He
also pursued new, exciting ideas on a regular basis.
Optimistic : Iger is a hopeful person ordinarily, and he is frequently ready to
see the positive qualities in a circumstance. He was able to quickly recover
from failure or dissatisfaction and look for the next best idea rather than
dwelling on losses. Disney most likely saved time subsequently, and eventually,
they put resources into a ton of extraordinary organizations and thoughts.
Authentic: Iger is many times seen as a charming, genuine pioneer. He inspires
others to admit their errors, demonstrate concern, and conduct business with
a high moral standard. Iger valued openness and honesty in his professional
relationships more than just pursuing success. In the past, he has made it clear
to the public where he thinks he has made mistakes.
BOB CHAPEK
Bob Chapek is a more reserved, logical, and patient Stabilizer (SC), whereas
Bob Iger is an outgoing, lively, and wildly innovative influencer. As CEO, Chapek
is more likely to focus on ensuring that Disney can continue its success. Chapek
is likely to put time and resources into their current projects to ensure their
success rather than taking on a lot of new ones at once.
Characteristics
Organized: Chapek who is organized is naturally detail-oriented and organized.
He may be able to see each plan through to completion with his ability to
oversee multiple projects at once and ensure that every detail is taken into
account, but he may also experience a lot of stress at such a large company.

Reserved: He is more reserved than Iger. Chapek prefers to avoid the

spotlight, whereas Iger is outgoing and charismatic. Even though he still enjoys
interacting with others and is likely to be approachable, a position that
frequently requires him to be the centre of attention could drain him.
Security Arranged: Like most Stabilizers, Chapek appreciates solidness and
security in his life. Instead of jumping into something out of the blue, he
prefers to steadily work toward long-term objectives. The company might
benefit from this shift; Chapek will likely be skilled at maintaining the
company's balance and investing resources into what they already have,
whereas Iger was able to bring on so many new projects and endeavors.
However, it might also cause the business to divert attention away from its
status as innovative.

Risk-Averse : He is also somewhat risk-averse when making decisions. Chapek

usually likes solutions that are reliable and easy to predict. He might have a
more troublesome time chasing after novel thoughts in the event that they
accompany significant dangers. However, by preventing others in the
organization from making decisions that are too risky or hasty, his careful
thinking may help Disney maintain its equilibrium at the top.
Analytical: Chapek is analytical and typically lacks experience in the creative
and development side of things, like in movies or television. This will likely set
him apart from Iger, who spent decades working in television before becoming
CEO of Disney. Because it is likely outside of his comfort zone, Chapek may
need to exercise caution when providing creative input. He should allow and
encourage those in charge of the creative aspects of the business to lead, not
take charge.

Here in this news we can apply the OB theory of Charismatic leadership

theory. SO in this theory the most applicable person that I found is Bob Iger .It
is a leadership theory sating that followers make attributions of heroic or
extraordinary leadership abilities when they observe certain behaviours in
others . His role in Disney is very important .Most of the members of Disney
loved the leadership of Iger . He worked very hard to keep the company stable
during the Covid pandemic times .
We can also apply the concepts of perception ,learning and individual decision
making. Perception is a process by which we organize and interpret sensory
impressions to give meaning to the environment.
So his perception was, According to Iger, who places Disney's creativity first,
working in an office fosters creativity and teamwork. However, he did not
declare an end to Covid's work-from-home arrangements. Iger stated,
"Working in the same location has a tremendous value." I will invest a ton of
energy here, and I trust it isn't forlorn," he added.
However, the CEO also stated that Disney would seriously consider cost-cutting
measures and that he did not intend to lift a hiring freeze. Similar to other
streaming services, Disney Plus has invested billions in content only to discover
that post-pandemic lockdown subscribers are costly to acquire and frequently
challenging to retain.
Talking about the decision making , "More decision-making back in the hands
of our creative teams and rationalize costs" was Iger's primary objective. The
effort exemplifies the decentralization of creative decision-making that
characterized a significant portion of Iger's initial tenure as CEO, which lasted
from 2005 to 2020.
How people respond when under pressure is a true test of leadership.
Additionally, the most ruthless managers are typically those who believe in
their own power. The best managers are precisely those who resist submission
to authority. It's the ones who keep their feet on the ground.

According to his writing, Iger had a keen sense of the predicament and
discovered that the only way to triumph was to remain true to oneself.

“We still have the impression that we are essentially the child we were at some
simpler time long ago, despite who we become or what we accomplish.
Holding on to that awareness of yourself despite the world telling you how
powerful and important you are, I believe, is also a leadership trick. You've lost
your way the moment you look in the mirror and see a title emblazoned on
your forehead, the moment you start to believe it all too much.

I've observed that the most effective managers treat their employees with
kindness. In a variety of ways, Iger demonstrated this respect for his
employees.

Pay attention: In a company like Disney, if you don't work, the people around
you immediately notice, and they stop respecting you. You must pay attention.
Meetings are frequently required of you, and if you had the option, you might
decline to attend them. You must comprehend and learn. You must listen to
other people's problems and assist in locating solutions. Being a great manager
requires all of this.
Be punctual: One of the most important management skills is time
management, both for oneself and for others.
Iger's business strategy was to surround himself with "people who are good in
addition to being good at what they do."

Learnings
1.Always be aware of the dangers of focusing solely on the product rather than
the people
2.The integrity of a company's workforce is critical.
3.On the off chance that you trust your own senses and approach individuals
with deference, the organization will come to address the qualities you live by.
Recommendations
Proposals are for upgrading Disney's industry position and market reach by
taking advantage of chances in the business climate. Through new or
additional partnerships with food service companies like McDonald's, Wendy's,
Burger King, Dunkin' Donuts, Starbucks, and Hard Rock Cafe, the company can
expand its market reach and boost sales revenues for its consumer goods
business.
Reference
https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/nov/28/bob-iger-disney-returns-as-
ceo
https://www.thewrap.com/bob-iger-sell-disney-apple-power-move/
https://www.thewrap.com/inside-disney-bob-iger-chapek-bombshell/
https://www.forbes.com/sites/stephaniedenning/2019/12/28/disneys-bob-
iger-on-how-to-be-a-good-manager/?sh=503cf3856f8e
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/11/20/bob-iger-return-disney-impact.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
The_Walt_Disney_Company#2005%E2%80%932020:_Bob_Iger's_leadership,_
expansion,_and_Disney+