Iger Retirement In Hindsight

[Kevin4321]

Maybe, I think Iger was the one who said I will come in and help. Iger was sort of still Chapek's boss since Chapek reports to Iger and the board. Either way its an interesting situation.

Iger is the Executive Chairman, which is different than a regular Chairman of the BOD. Chapek is not a member of the Disney BOD. Both are unusual for a company and suggest to me that the BOD did not feel Chapek was ready to be the CEO of all of Disney and this structure allowed him to learn other parts of the business with Iger’s mentorship and minimal politicking for the CEO job. The timing of the announcement and some other things seem suspect...maybe some day someone will write a book and fill in the missing parts.

My read on the article is that the pandemic is devastating Disney’s businesses right now and require an ‘all hands on deck’ response. The two worked together for many years and I assume they value and respect each other. I can only imagine the decisions Disney execs are trying to make right now, all with limited clarity about the future and most with gut-wrenching implications for the cast members. If I were in their shoes, I would welcome help from anyone and everyone right now.

 

[pahoben]

If you’re going to throw shots at least get my gender correct.

To me retirement would've been leaving the company altogether. He didn’t do that. He really couldn’t until the end of 2021 because of stipulations of the Fox deal. I think Iger is very much worried about his legacy which is part of the reason he’s retaken responsibility now. When he resigned from the CEO role he said he was doing so in order to take a more creative role with the company. He was done with the day to day operations.

I really didn’t intend to throw any shots. I tried to compliment you on your knowledge of Disney so not sure what I did wrong there. Sorry for the wrong personal pronoun and that wasn’t intentional either. This can be a Grumpy message board sometimes but really honestly intended nothing negative for you.

 

[rteetz]

I really didn’t intend to throw any shots. I tried to compliment you on your knowledge of Disney so not sure what I did wrong there. Sorry for the wrong personal pronoun and that wasn’t intentional either. This can be a Grumpy message board sometimes but really honestly intended nothing negative for you.

Tone doesn't always come across well in text. Thank you.

 

[pahoben]

Tone doesn't always come across well in text. Thank you.

I think you are a good moderator and know a lot about Disney so thank you also.

 

[OKW Lover]

I dont see how Chapek takes the reigns again. You dont normally see that in the corporate world.

either A, he walks because he feels the board "didnt believe in him"
or B the board makes him go away quietly because they really didn't believe in him.

There are some big egos at stake here.

I think he retakes the reins because the board is gonna be stubborn about the decision they just made and because this article is fatal to Chapek's viability as a CEO elsewhere unless he retakes the reins at some point and steers the ship back to shore. I can easily imagine a scenario where Iger gives everything back the second it becomes clear how and when this situation will end so Chapek can go execute the plan and claim success.

But it's very weird, and not great!

Some interesting points from both posters.

When the board announced Chapek's promotion earlier this year I was very much against it. So much so that I went back and changed my shareholder ballot to vote against the current board members. Not that my meager # of shares would even be noticed, but I felt better.

 

[TCunningham]

To me the whole think with Iger and Chapek sounds like when Jobs was called back in to fix the sinking ship of Apple in the mid-2000's. Now, I agree that Chapek couldn't have messed that many things up in the short time span that he was officially the CEO, but there are all of the things that go on in the background that none of us are ever privy to.

I just hope that all of this will sort it self out and the overall guest experience will improve. Chapek did not win a lot of fans with how he ran Disney World whereas D'Amaro has a loyal following based on his work on the West Coast.

 

[OKW Lover]

Just saw that Chapek has now been elected to the Board.

 

[rteetz]

Just saw that Chapek has now been elected to the Board.

Which per the statement they had been planning to do since he was named CEO just sort of a “proving” time I guess.

 

[CastAStone]

Which per the statement they had been planning to do since he was named CEO just sort of a “proving” time I guess.

They probably had to wait until an official board meeting.

 

[Kestryl]

Bob Iger is 69. He is allowed to put forth a plan to retire in the next few years.

 

[rteetz]

Bob Iger is 69. He is allowed to put forth a plan to retire in the next few years.

I don’t think anyone has denied that.

 

[OKW Lover]

They probably had to wait until an official board meeting.

Official Board Meetings can be held any time.

 

[WDWFan0813]

Iger is the Executive Chairman, which is different than a regular Chairman of the BOD. Chapek is not a member of the Disney BOD. Both are unusual for a company and suggest to me that the BOD did not feel Chapek was ready to be the CEO of all of Disney and this structure allowed him to learn other parts of the business with Iger’s mentorship and minimal politicking for the CEO job. The timing of the announcement and some other things seem suspect...maybe some day someone will write a book and fill in the missing parts.

My read on the article is that the pandemic is devastating Disney’s businesses right now and require an ‘all hands on deck’ response. The two worked together for many years and I assume they value and respect each other. I can only imagine the decisions Disney execs are trying to make right now, all with limited clarity about the future and most with gut-wrenching implications for the cast members. If I were in their shoes, I would welcome help from anyone and everyone right now.

As I was reading through this thread I was planning on making the same point about the "Executive Chairman" title. And also point out that the statement about Chapek not being a board member didn't age well.

I think it is an important distinction that he didn't take the CEO title back, and there has not been a new Chairman of Parks, Resorts, and Experiences named. Giving Iger more responsibility back may be a way to allow Chapek to focus more on the parks (whether that is good or bad I won't comment on).