Customer Care at Disney ain't Mickey Mouse

While Disneyland may be a world of fantasy, its customer service makes a real impact on their guests as well as their cast members (a.k.a. employees) who provide the excellent care. When service guru's talk of Mickey Mouse customer care, it's a good thing and all ears perk up with CEO's listening intently. Even today, thirteen years since my work experience at Disneyland, I still believe and practice the attitudes and skills of customer care that I learned there.

Service excellence begins with quality training. My training began before I was actually on the Disney payroll, on the day of my job interview. I was asked to report to the "Casting" Department. I felt that I was going to audition for a part in a terrific movie, not a job at a theme park. Disney is one of the few places that can create such a buzz for positions where applicants compete dearly for a part in the show that paid $3.75 an hour in 1986. During the "casting" (not interviewing), I was informed of the company standards, policies, practices and expectations of its cast members. It was made very clear to me what kind of person would fit the part. The message was, "This is what we stand for; this is the image we project. If you can't buy into this philosophy, you don't belong here." It was a simple and straightforward process matching the job to the appropriate person.

The next step involved a thorough orientation--a behind-the-scenes tour of the park, and participation in a full-day training session at Disney University. This set the tone for the show (the work environment), welcoming all cast members and stimulating passion for our new roles and responsibilities. Each cast member's role, regardless of what part they played was shaped around four primary concepts: Understanding and appreciating Disney tradition; a perspective of Disney--past, present and future; the importance of each role to the show and the responsibilities of a cast member. Succinct, yet an incredibly comprehensive and far reaching approach. A booklet on, "Disney Courtesy Policies", which was distributed to each cast member reiterated the expectations of management.

At Disneyland, image is definitely everything (it's not a trite PR catch-phrase the beverage company that rhymes with trite makes it seem). To be sure, image impacts customers' lives. Just try and imagine a 7-year-old Disney guest stumbling across Goofy on his 15-minute break smoking a cigarette next to the restrooms. That can never happen at Disneyland while cast members are on stage. Behind the scenes--backstage--while waiting to pick-up my work uniform(which was a space-like neon orange, polyester jumpsuit), I'd routinely see characters walking around half-costumed, running around having fun, literally out of character. However, when break time was over, cast members would seamlessly go back into character and play out their important roles.

Disney's management took a people-oriented approach to leadership, that is, they really believed in getting results through well-trained employees. They believed that good customer care was an acquired talent which had to be constantly practiced and reinforced. As a cast member, cross-training was accomplished on-the-job (OJT). From the start, the training you received as a cast member prepared you for several major roles within your department. Additionally, all roles at Disneyland were deemed vital, and every cast member was made to feel like a V.I.P. As it should be, the most important jobs were considered the front-line jobs, where cast members interfaced with guests daily.

At Disney, the belief statement, "the broader the base, the higher the peak"--meant that the more front-line employees understood and practiced the organizational philosophy, the more likely Disney was to achieve greatness. This philosophy continues to be successfully implemented today, perhaps because management truly conveys that message in their treatment of the employees. At least for me, I felt that my performance made a difference in how guests felt then, and how my customers feel today.