First Word
by Scott Madison Paton
Pixie Dust
What words come to mind when you think of Disney? Quality? Cleanliness?
Friendliness? Fun? Notice the trend? All positive labels that every organization
wishes that its customers thought of them. How does Disney do it?
I recently had the opportunity to take a behind-the-scenes peek at the inner
workings of Walt Disney World when I attended the 25th anniversary of the
theme park. My wife, Heidi, and I (along with 5,000 other members of the
media) were invited to attend the celebration. What a party! Three glorious
days of celebrations ranging from a rededication of the Magic Kingdom to
a private tour of the much-heralded underground tunnel system.
Aside from the obvious fun of attending all the anniversary-related parties
and special events, the celebration gave me an opportunity to visit the
Disney University-Disney's internal training facility-and the Disney Institute-Disney's
"external" training facility. The results of my visit with Disney
will appear in a special report, "Quality, Disney Style," which
will appear in our January 1997 issue.
While touring the Disney University, I asked Jayne Parker, director of the
Disney University, how Disney manages to so completely integrate quality
into everything they do. Why is it apparently so easy for Disney and so
difficult for everyone else?
Parker smiled slyly and replied, "Didn't we tell you about the pixie
dust?"
While it's easy to dismiss such notions, there is definitely magic at work
within Disney. It's the magic or corporate spirit associated with employees
(Disney calls them cast members) who know that they are critically important
to the success of the "show." They know that they are working
with a special organization whose business it is to make people happy. They
know that their organization views each and every one of their jobs equally.
Not hard to do when the only big cheese is a mouse. Guess who is responsible
for keeping the park clean? Every single cast member, from CEO Michael Eisner
to a parking attendant.
Granted, most organizations don't have employees running around in costumes
or running high-speed thrill rides. But is the image projected by your organization's
preferred business attire any less important to your customers than Mickey
Mouse's suit? Is your assembly line operation any less important than the
operation of Space Mountain?
Most parents who have teenage children can tell you of the difficulty in
getting them to keep their 12' x 12' room clean. Yet Disney manages to get
18-year-olds, many of whom have never worked before, to keep the entire
49 square miles of Walt Disney World spotless. It's the pixie dust at work.
Incidentally, the areas guests never see are just as clean as areas they
do see.
A lot of organizations talk about empowering employees and motivating employees
and rewarding employees. But it's difficult to do many of these when visions
of downsizing dance in employees' heads. And it's difficult to communicate
the importance of customer service when employees never see, never hear
or never interact with customers.
Of course, Disney cast members are mere mortals. They have good days and
bad. But like actors in a play, they manage to put the customer first.
What's your organization's equivalent of pixie dust? Why not mail or e-mail
me a note about what makes your organization unique. Perhaps we can share
it with our readers.
-
Scott Madison Paton
Publisher
spaton@qualitydigest.com
