Walt Disney World Business Analysis

The Walt Disney World corporation is known for succeeding in all areas of guest relations. As the world’s most reputable company, they manage to maintain and excel in guest satisfaction. In the past four months, I was able to see first hand how the company operates to keep a high profile reputation. Through my Corporate Communications class taught by a Disney cast member, I was able to learn theories and see how they are used in the work force. Through internal and external communication, methods of communication flow, and involvement in corporate social responsibility, the Walt Disney World company strives in brand management. While being at a cast member at Disney World, I experienced the company’s use of both internal and external communication.
While working in main entrance operations at Magic Kingdom, I was able to see how their management team works in this certain department. Downward communication consists of electronic and verbal methods of informing employees about their organization, their performance, and their own contribution and performance. It involves the, “information flowing from the top of the organization management hierarchy and telling people in the organization what is important (mission) and what is valued (policies)” (Andrews and Herschel 165). In my operations department, the management ranking goes from leaders, coordinators, trainers, full time, part time, and then college program cast members. Leaders are in charge of the department, and have little to no interaction to cast members, unless they are in troubles. They are the one’s making new rules and enforcing old ones. Coordinators are the cast members that are present during all shifts, and are the ones in charge of making sure the area is running efficiently. If there were a new rule to be enforced, it would be the leaders telling the coordinators, who would then tell the trainers. It is the trainers responsibility to learn this new rule, and then inform the rest of the cast members of this new rule. This shows the principal of downward communication because general and specific information is being moved from the of management
The company prides itself of the satisfaction of not only the guests, but also their employees. Throughout the entire park in each location, there are many suggestion boxes and also “near misses”. A near miss is a card a cast member can write about an accident that almost occurred. The point of this card is for management to see what is and what is not working in an area, in order for them to improve the working situation. This is the idea of upward communication because it is feedback and suggestions that can be reported to higher management. In my area, the use of horizontal communication is present when cast members are using each others knowledge or training for problem solving, task coordination, or conflict