Category — w. Most Recent Stuff

WHAT IS THE DISNEY INSTITUTE?

The Disney Institute is the professional development –I would say leadership development– arm of Disney.

Through a variety of paid programs, it aims to help people build their toolkit to enable cultural change in organizations –particularly, but not only, in improving the quality of service delivery.

Disney Institute programs  are delivered in single and multi-day sessions at Walt Disney World and Disneyland.  Single day sessions are also done in various cities.

In addition, Disney will deliver a customized program at an organization’s site, and engage with organizations in long-term change journey.

See this for the current set of topics and current calendar of programs available to the general public.

I had the chance to see one of Disney Institute’s one-day programs a few weeks ago in my home town.

I thought it was terrific.  But I know I am odd.  So here’s a couple of thoughts for those less odd:

• Don’t attend a Disney Institute session unless you’ve to Disney World or Disneyland at least once–so those here planning their first time visit, don’t attend a session yet!
• Start by reading the key books first–they are much cheaper than attending a session
• If the books resonate with you, then try a one-day session, nearby or at Disney World
• Getting the full value out of the Disney Institute concepts requires sustained top leadership commitment and likely extensive changes in their behaviors.
  • If you aren’t the top leader, or the head of a unit with major control (e.g. over hiring, orientation, training, operations, etc.) then you need to get your top leaders on board.  Major change takes a multi-year effort that starts at the top.
  • It’s not about making front-line staff less annoying–your front-line people are annoying because by neglect or by mistake you’ve made it rewarding for them to be so. So it’s about the leadership team putting together a system of values, behaviors and processes that encourage, enable, and reward great service.

REVIEW: THE DISNEY INSTITUTE

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OVERVIEW: NOVEMBER 2012 AT DISNEY WORLD

This page reviews Walt Disney World in November 2012: crowds, prices, deals and discounts, weather, special events, and operating hours; and ends with week by week summaries.

Early November, with cooling but typically nice weather, low crowds (other than the week beginning 11/3 Jersey Week) and lower prices, has some of the best weeks of the year to visit.

Thanksgiving Week is more expensive, and much more crowded.

The last few days of the month begin one of the three best weeks of the year to visit Walt Disney World.

November also has two special  parties: the last shows of Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, and the first of Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, each a special evening event–with its own ticket–that have become  family traditions for many.

The Candlelight Processional begins the Friday after Thanksgiving.

The 2012 Epcot International Food and Wine Festival continues to November 12.  See this for more.

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DISNEY WORLD NEXT WEEK: APRIL 21 TO APRIL 29, 2012

The material below details operating hours, Extra Magic Hours, parades, and fireworks.

The same stuff is in the table, but organized by park, not by topic.

(For more on April 2012 at Walt Disney World, click here.)

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THANKSGIVING 2012 AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

Thanksgiving week at Walt Disney World is busy–particularly Wednesday through Saturday.

While not as crowded as some other holiday weeks–Easter and Christmas, for example–it can be very challenging, and the material below gives some hints on how to deal with it.

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DISNEY WORLD’S SPECIAL CHRISTMAS PARTY IN 2012

While Christmas itself is December 25 of course, Walt Disney World provides a special Christmas celebration at the Magic Kingdom many nights in November and December.

This celebration is called “Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, or “MVMCP” for short.

At the party, many of the Magic Kingdom’s rides are open, and cookies and hot chocolate, special events, and slightly different Christmas parades and fireworks, and even snow (!) are offered.

The official Disney World page for this event (where you can also buy tickets) can be found here.  For a review of MVMCP, see this.

MORE ON MICKEY’S VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS PARTY

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STARTING TO PLAN 2014 AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

The first step in thinking about 2014 at Walt Disney World is the calendar.

Early and later dates for key holidays that move make a difference, and the days of the week that stable-dated holidays like Christmas and New Years fall on matter too.

EARLY 2014 AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

A few key calendar points:

• New Years Day 2014 is midweek (Wednesday), and Presidents Day is on the earlier side (2/17/2014—the earliest possible day is 2/15)
• Easter 2014 is April 20, almost as late as it can be (4/25 is the latest possible Easter)

As a result, there won’t be as many low-crowd January and early February weeks as usual, but like 2011 with its late Easter, there should be not only good late February and early March weeks, but also good early April weeks.

The week before Easter 2014 will be mobbed as usual, but the week after Easter will be a little better—especially late week—than in 2012 and 2013, as many school districts that usually take the week after Easter off shift to the week before to avoid such a late spring break.

LATE 2014 AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

The key calendar points:

• Thanksgiving 2014, on November 27th, is almost as late as it can be
• Christmas and New Years Days are Thursdays in 2014

The result will be one more good November week at Disney World in 2014 than in some years, but only three good post-Thanksgiving weeks.

Christmas/New Years crowds will be split over two full weeks extending from December 20 2014 to January 4, 2015. Disney World will be horribly crowded both weeks, and the weekend of the 27th and 28th will be remarkable.

OTHER THOUGHTS ABOUT 2014 AT DISNEY WORLD

The Fantasyland Expansion will be complete in 2014, and there’s a good chance that NextGen will be fully in place as well. Avatar-land won’t.

MORE ON WHEN TO GO TO WALT DISNEY WORLD

• For when to go to Walt Disney World, see this
• For the next best dates, see this
• For the best and worst times to visit, see this
  • For 2012 weeks to visit, ranked in order, see this
  • For the 2012 Week Picker, see this
  • For 2013 weeks to visit, ranked in order, see this
  • For early thoughts on 2014, see this
• For forecasting crowds at Walt Disney World, see this
  • For the 2012 Crowd Calendar, click here
  • For the 2013 Crowd Calendar, click here
• For seasonal pricing at Walt Disney World, see this
  • For 2012 price seasons, see this
  • For 2013 price seasons, click here
• For weather at Walt Disney World, see this