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DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution

Case Study Description of DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE


The case tracks the story of Disneyland Resort Paris from its opening in 1992 until the end of 2006, illustrating how the resort's managers learned from their initial errors how to take a strong cultural product (the Disney experience) and implement it effectively in a multicultural environment. However, by the end of 2006 the park was still not profitable and the managers were hoping for 2007, the Park's 25th anniversary season, being a turnaround year. The case presents the dilemma of global integration vs local adaptation in a multicultural and culturally-sensitive environment.It draws upon unique insights from some of historic key players as well as the current ones and sets up situations that can be interpreted from different roles in an organization (marketing, operations, senior management, etc.) and some of the issues they faced being the first multi-cultural Disney theme park in the world. Disneyland Resort Paris opened its gates in April 1992 amidst enormous controversy as a bastion of American cultural imperialism in Europe. By 2006 it was the most visited tourist site in Europe with over 12 million annual visitors. In spite of a difficult tourist industry in the early 2000s, Disneyland Resort Paris's attendance remained stable: 60% of its visitors were repeat visitors, and guest satisfaction was extremely high. The operation had created 43,000 jobs, invested more than a??5 billion and contributed to the development of a new region. As the leaders developed their execution plans, they wondered what principles should guide them and how to interpret Disney in multicultural Europe. Guests from different parts of Europe wanted different things from a vacation: how could they keep the classic Disney magic yet successfully appeal to European consumers? After 15 years of switching between French and American leadership, the answers were still not obvious. The leaders agreed that the 2007 celebrations of its 15th anniversary should set the scene for Disney's recognition as a well established experience in the heart of Europe, and a long-term financial success. But what would it look like and what path would take them there? Learning objectives: The case was written to support two teaching objectives; the class can focus on one or both depending on time and instructor objectives. It raises issues that can be dealt with through perspectives of organizational behaviour, general management and marketing. 1. Identifying the complex role of national or ethnic cultures in multinational firms. Disneyland Resorts were "selling" one culture (idealistic American culture) to guests from many cultures, and only started to become successful when they could articulate cultural issues well. 2. Working with the global standardization vs local adaptation tension. Disneyland Resorts could be neither completely standardized nor adapted. Finding an "intermediate" solution is not obvious but is key to managing the Resort for high performance.

Authors :: Martha Maznevski, Karsten Jonsen

Topics :: Leadership & Managing People

Tags :: Globalization, Organizational culture, SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, TOWS, Weighted SWOT Analysis

Swot Analysis of "DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE" written by Martha Maznevski, Karsten Jonsen includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Disneyland Resort facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Globalization, Organizational culture and Leadership & Managing People.


Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE casestudy better are - – wage bills are increasing, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, talent flight as more people leaving formal jobs, digital marketing is dominated by two big players Facebook and Google, increasing transportation and logistics costs, technology disruption, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , etc



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Introduction to SWOT Analysis of DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE


SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Disneyland Resort, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Disneyland Resort operates in.

According to Harvard Business Review, 75% of the managers use SWOT analysis for various purposes such as – evaluating current scenario, strategic planning, new venture feasibility, personal growth goals, new market entry, Go To market strategies, portfolio management and strategic trade-off assessment, organizational restructuring, etc.




SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix


SWOT analysis of DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Disneyland Resort
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Leadership & Managing People field.
4. Making a Leadership & Managing People topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Disneyland Resort




Strengths DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The strengths of Disneyland Resort in DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE Harvard Business Review case study are -

Successful track record of launching new products

– Disneyland Resort has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Disneyland Resort has effective processes in place that helps in exploring new product needs, doing quick pilot testing, and then launching the products quickly using its extensive distribution network.

Analytics focus

– Disneyland Resort is putting a lot of focus on utilizing the power of analytics in business decision making. This has put it among the leading players in the industry. The technology infrastructure suggested by Martha Maznevski, Karsten Jonsen can also help it to harness the power of analytics for – marketing optimization, demand forecasting, customer relationship management, inventory management, information sharing across the value chain etc.

Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field

– Disneyland Resort is one of the leading players in its industry. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in its segment but also across the whole industry. The ability to lead change has enabled Disneyland Resort in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.

Highly skilled collaborators

– Disneyland Resort has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive segment. Secondly the value chain collaborators of the firm in DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.

Superior customer experience

– The customer experience strategy of Disneyland Resort in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.

Ability to recruit top talent

– Disneyland Resort is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.

Training and development

– Disneyland Resort has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE Harvard Business Review case study by analyzing – employees retention, in-house promotion, loyalty, new venture initiation, lack of conflict, and high level of both employees and customer engagement.

Operational resilience

– The operational resilience strategy in the DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE Harvard Business Review case study comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the industry, building diversified operations across different geographies so that disruption in one part of the world doesn’t impact the overall performance of the firm, and integrating the various business operations and processes through its digital transformation drive.

Diverse revenue streams

– Disneyland Resort is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE case study a diverse revenue stream that has helped it to survive disruptions such as global pandemic in Covid-19, financial disruption of 2008, and supply chain disruption of 2021.

Low bargaining power of suppliers

– Suppliers of Disneyland Resort in the sector have low bargaining power. DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Disneyland Resort to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.

High brand equity

– Disneyland Resort has strong brand awareness and brand recognition among both - the exiting customers and potential new customers. Strong brand equity has enabled Disneyland Resort to keep acquiring new customers and building profitable relationship with both the new and loyal customers.

Cross disciplinary teams

– Horizontal connected teams at the Disneyland Resort are driving operational speed, building greater agility, and keeping the organization nimble to compete with new competitors. It helps are organization to ideate new ideas, and execute them swiftly in the marketplace.



02468Sugar Bowl Rudi Gassner and the Executive Committee of BMG International (A) Suzanne de Passe at Motown Productions (A1) Rudi Gassner and the Executive Committee of BMG International (B) Taran Swan at Nickelodeon Latin America (C) DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE
Net Promoter Score



Weaknesses DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis

The weaknesses of DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE are -

High dependence on existing supply chain

– The disruption in the global supply chains because of the Covid-19 pandemic and blockage of the Suez Canal illustrated the fragile nature of Disneyland Resort supply chain. Even after few cautionary changes mentioned in the HBR case study - DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE, it is still heavily dependent upon the existing supply chain. The existing supply chain though brings in cost efficiencies but it has left Disneyland Resort vulnerable to further global disruptions in South East Asia.

Increasing silos among functional specialists

– The organizational structure of Disneyland Resort is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Leadership & Managing People segment. Disneyland Resort needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Disneyland Resort to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.

High cash cycle compare to competitors

Disneyland Resort has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.

Lack of clear differentiation of Disneyland Resort products

– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Disneyland Resort needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.

Slow to strategic competitive environment developments

– As DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE HBR case study mentions - Disneyland Resort takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the industry in last five years.

Skills based hiring

– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Disneyland Resort has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.

Need for greater diversity

– Disneyland Resort has taken concrete steps on diversity, equity, and inclusion. But the efforts so far has resulted in limited success. It needs to expand the recruitment and selection process to hire more people from the minorities and underprivileged background.

High operating costs

– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE has high operating costs in the. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Disneyland Resort 's lucrative customers.

Compensation and incentives

– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE, is just above the industry average. Disneyland Resort needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.

Capital Spending Reduction

– Even during the low interest decade, Disneyland Resort has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.

Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy

– From the instances in the HBR case study DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE, it seems that the employees of Disneyland Resort don’t have comprehensive understanding of the firm’s strategy. This is reflected in number of promotional campaigns over the last few years that had mixed messaging and competing priorities. Some of the strategic activities and services promoted in the promotional campaigns were not consistent with the organization’s strategy.




Opportunities DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The opportunities highlighted in the Harvard Business Review case study DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE are -

Better consumer reach

– The expansion of the 5G network will help Disneyland Resort to increase its market reach. Disneyland Resort will be able to reach out to new customers. Secondly 5G will also provide technology framework to build new tools and products that can help more immersive consumer experience and faster consumer journey.

Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19

– Consumer behavior has changed in the Leadership & Managing People industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Disneyland Resort can take advantage of these changes in consumer behavior to build a far more efficient business model. For example consumer regular ordering of products can reduce both last mile delivery costs and market penetration costs. Disneyland Resort can further use this consumer data to build better customer loyalty, provide better products and service collection, and improve the value proposition in inflationary times.

Building a culture of innovation

– managers at Disneyland Resort can make experimentation a productive activity and build a culture of innovation using approaches such as – mining transaction data, A/B testing of websites and selling platforms, engaging potential customers over various needs, and building on small ideas in the Leadership & Managing People segment.

Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities

– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Disneyland Resort to expand its talent hiring zone. According to McKinsey Global Institute, 20% of the high end workforce in fields such as finance, information technology, can continously work from remote local post Covid-19. This presents a really great opportunity for Disneyland Resort to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.

Increase in government spending

– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Disneyland Resort can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Disneyland Resort operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.

Reconfiguring business model

– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Disneyland Resort to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.

Loyalty marketing

– Disneyland Resort has focused on building a highly responsive customer relationship management platform. This platform is built on in-house data and driven by analytics and artificial intelligence. The customer analytics can help the organization to fine tune its loyalty marketing efforts, increase the wallet share of the organization, reduce wastage on mainstream advertising spending, build better pricing strategies using personalization, etc.

Manufacturing automation

– Disneyland Resort can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Leadership & Managing People segment. It can use CAD and 3D printing to build a quick prototype and pilot testing products. It can leverage automation using machine learning and artificial intelligence to do faster production at lowers costs, and it can leverage the growth in satellite and tracking technologies to improve inventory management, transportation, and shipping.

Leveraging digital technologies

– Disneyland Resort can leverage digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate the production process, customer analytics to get better insights into consumer behavior, realtime digital dashboards to get better sales tracking, logistics and transportation, product tracking, etc.

Learning at scale

– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Disneyland Resort to conduct training and development for its employees across the world. This will result in not only reducing the cost of training but also help employees in different part of the world to integrate with the headquarter work culture, ethos, and standards.

Finding new ways to collaborate

– Covid-19 has not only transformed business models of companies in Leadership & Managing People industry, but it has also influenced the consumer preferences. Disneyland Resort can tie-up with other value chain partners to explore new opportunities regarding meeting customer demands and building a rewarding and engaging relationship.

Buying journey improvements

– Disneyland Resort can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE suggest that firm can provide automated chats to help consumers solve their own problems, provide online suggestions to get maximum out of the products and services, and help consumers to build a community where they can interact with each other to develop new features and uses.

Lowering marketing communication costs

– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Disneyland Resort in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Leadership & Managing People segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.




Threats DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis


The threats mentioned in the HBR case study DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE are -

Easy access to finance

– Easy access to finance in Leadership & Managing People field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Disneyland Resort can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.

Environmental challenges

– Disneyland Resort needs to have a robust strategy against the disruptions arising from climate change and energy requirements. EU has identified it as key priority area and spending 30% of its 880 billion Euros European post Covid-19 recovery funds on green technology. Disneyland Resort can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.

Learning curve for new practices

– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE, Disneyland Resort may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Leadership & Managing People .

Backlash against dominant players

– US Congress and other legislative arms of the government are getting tough on big business especially technology companies. The digital arm of Disneyland Resort business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.

Capital market disruption

– During the Covid-19, Dow Jones has touched record high. The valuations of a number of companies are way beyond their existing business model potential. This can lead to capital market correction which can put a number of suppliers, collaborators, value chain partners in great financial difficulty. It will directly impact the business of Disneyland Resort.

Trade war between China and United States

– The trade war between two of the biggest economies can hugely impact the opportunities for Disneyland Resort in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The Leadership & Managing People industry is already at various protected from local competition in China, with the rise of trade war the protection levels may go up. This presents a clear threat of current business model in Chinese market.

Instability in the European markets

– European Union markets are facing three big challenges post Covid – expanded balance sheets, Brexit related business disruption, and aggressive Russia looking to distract the existing security mechanism. Disneyland Resort will face different problems in different parts of Europe. For example it will face inflationary pressures in UK, France, and Germany, balance sheet expansion and demand challenges in Southern European countries, and geopolitical instability in the Eastern Europe.

High level of anxiety and lack of motivation

– the Great Resignation in United States is the sign of broader dissatisfaction among the workforce in United States. Disneyland Resort needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.

Regulatory challenges

– Disneyland Resort needs to prepare for regulatory challenges as consumer protection groups and other pressure groups are vigorously advocating for more regulations on big business - to reduce inequality, to create a level playing field, to product data privacy and consumer privacy, to reduce the influence of big money on democratic institutions, etc. This can lead to significant changes in the Leadership & Managing People industry regulations.

Aging population

– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.

Stagnating economy with rate increase

– Disneyland Resort can face lack of demand in the market place because of Fed actions to reduce inflation. This can lead to sluggish growth in the economy, lower demands, lower investments, higher borrowing costs, and consolidation in the field.

Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution

– Disneyland Resort has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Leadership & Managing People industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Disneyland Resort needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Leadership & Managing People sector. According to Mckinsey study top managers believe that the adoption of technology in operations, communications is 20-25 times faster than what they planned in the beginning of 2019.

Shortening product life cycle

– it is one of the major threat that Disneyland Resort is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.




Weighted SWOT Analysis of DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE Template, Example


Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers in the HBR case study DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE needs to zero down on the relative importance of each factor mentioned in the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants. We can provide the relative importance to each factor by assigning relative weights. Weighted SWOT analysis process is a three stage process –

First stage for doing weighted SWOT analysis of the case study DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE is to rank the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. This will help you to assess the most important strengths and weaknesses of the firm and which one of the strengths and weaknesses mentioned in the initial lists are marginal and can be left out.

Second stage for conducting weighted SWOT analysis of the Harvard case study DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE is to give probabilities to the external strategic factors thus better understanding the opportunities and threats arising out of macro environment changes and developments.

Third stage of constructing weighted SWOT analysis of DISNEYLAND RESORT PARIS: MICKEY GOES TO EUROPE is to provide strategic recommendations includes – joining likelihood of external strategic factors such as opportunities and threats to the internal strategic factors – strengths and weaknesses. You should start with external factors as they will provide the direction of the overall industry. Secondly by joining probabilities with internal strategic factors can help the company not only strategic fit but also the most probably strategic trade-off that Disneyland Resort needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.



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