Hong Kong Disneyland - Case Study Example

Hong Kong Disneyland Name: Course: Tutor: Date: Hong Kong Disneyland Introduction Hong Kong Disneyland is located in Lantau Island on a reclaimed land. It is owned and managed by Hong Kong international Theme Parks. The park opened its doors in 2005. Cultural differences often exist in every country. It is for this reason that Disney tried to incorporate the Chinese customs, traditions and culture in the design and building of the resort. This was all in an attempt to avoid cultural problems. The Disney Company also tried to adhere to the rules of feng shui. Disney has experienced great accomplishment, which is marked by innovation and creativity across the globe. They have a collection of brands that grow stronger by the day. This is because the new markets and platforms provide new opportunities for high quality experiences and content. Their dedication is in the creation of quality family content, providing accessible innovative technology, making experiences more memorable and growing internationally. Its future rests in the wonderful stories they tell, the experiences created, and also how they do a lasting business that promotes positive change. It is well positioned to meet challenges in the ever-changing entertainment and media space. Cultural considerations are important for any organization. This is because it affects employee engagement in several ways. It prevents bad business behavior and practice, encourages innovation, risk taking and trust, guides and inspires employee decisions and so on. The positive engagements ensure the success of the organization. Disney’s strong brands help it to attract consumers to its products over all lifestyles. It has an option of leveraging the strong brand image in order to enter into new businesses. There is intense competition that could result in price pressures. This could negatively affect the margins of the company. Company’s internal strengths and weaknesses All companies have activities with which they perform more than usual. The strengths of a company are the positive components that have made the company better than the other in one way or the other. The Disneyland Company has its share of strengths, which include: Broad product portfolio: the company has a huge portfolio, which is the best strength of the company. Their products range from cartoons, character imagination, and a collection of new adaptations of old classics (Baize, p. 5). The company also has countless characters that star in their feature films. They have original characters that are wide and suit every member of the family. Diversification: Disneyland is a diverse company that has moved past all its cartoon-oriented roots. The company is still involved in the creation of original films as before, but it has long stopped being the film production company or the animation studio. The company has moved from being a media-oriented company. It has shifted to the broad category of the entertainment-oriented company. It has discovered a unique market place for their products and an opportunity to implement their already impressive portfolio into the parks attractions (Baize, p. 5). The company has also launched and purchased media outlets through which their promotions and productions air. The company owns a wide range of broadcasting television networks and radios for online, terrestrial and satellite hosts. Incredible customer service: the company boasts of many products and it has the right to do so. Every individual has some information about the Disney products. Any business professional will be quick to mention the quality customer service experienced in the company (Baize, p. 5). Their level of customer service ensures that the customers come back for more. Customers tell stories of the satisfaction they have had with the company. Acquisition of Pixar animation studios: the company acquired the studios in 2006. The studios have had collaboration with the company on many occasions to create award-winning films. Weaknesses Successful companies like Disney also have weaknesses. They have characteristics and attributes that are not all positive. The weaknesses are those negative components that make the company worse in one way or the other. The weaknesses of the Disneyland Company include; Constant need for successful, creative material: the company has the ability and capability to produce very creative material. Their competitors also know this. The weakness here is the constant need for the material. There is the need to produce one successful film after the other, which can be very overwhelming (Baize, p. 6). A flop or a negative review can be terrifying especially because the company prides itself in perfection. Increasing costs of operation: the company incurs high costs and expenses in the production of the films and products. It is expensive to build theme parks and also create a successful film. Inflation and diminishing profits can dim the company’s expectations in terms of profits (Baize, p. 6). The high costs are a great weakness for the company, and they struggle to overcome it. Another weakness is negative opinion for the Hong Kong Disneyland resort. The Chinese love big things and they saw the resort as being so small for their liking. Lack of developmental property is also a weakness since the company is expanding at a very high rate. It therefore, requires vast miles of land to put up their resorts and parks. There is a shortage of property in many countries, which could pose a challenge in the acquisition. This is a company that survives through its innovation and lack of developmental land can be a serious issue (Baize, p. 6). Opportunities and threats Opportunities Internal factors enable the organization to improve its weaknesses and utilize the strengths identified. The factors are controllable and provide a chance for the organization to make changes that are positive. The factors can be environmental, legal, governmental and economic. The opportunities of the Disneyland Company include: Increasing impact in the music industry: the company has made an effort to hire selected actors who have dual talent. The incorporated talents could be dancing and singing. The company also hires stars that have multifaceted abilities. The music industry is thus ready for the Disneyland Company to take a plunge (Baize, p. 8). This is one of their best opportunities. Expansion of the untapped geographical areas: one of the weaknesses of the company is the lack of developmental land. Hong Kong has untapped land that is away from the population mainstream (Baize, p. 8). Disney can make use of the lands and plant attraction sites and parks for tourism. The idea would be a great opportunity for the company because they will be expanding into exciting and new areas of the country. Reuse of past portfolio: the company should make use of its vast and diverse portfolio, which is its major strength. The company can make use and take advantage of the portfolio. The use and utilization of the past characters can be a great asset to the company. The reuse of the past portfolio will help increase revenue with fewer expenses that are associated with it (Baize, p. 8). Threats These are external factors that are negative to the business climate. However, they can provide opportunities for the company to make positive improvements. This will only be possible if they utilize the situations. The threats of the company include: Rapid pace of changing media and technology: the rapid changes being experienced leave the company struggling to stay on top (Baize, p. 9). The technological departments are always under pressure to keep the company competitive. Competition: there are several companies that produce products similar to Disney’s. The competition is however healthy and should be utilized and handled correctly. The competition will provide a chance for the Disneyland Company to provide quality and better service to its consumers. Unionized work force: this is a threat because the company cannot control its own employees. A unionized work force is always a threat to any organization because the company does not always know what their employees can do (Baize, p. 10). It is for this reason that most organizations hate dealing with it. Disney is viewed as the best place to work in but union organizers are always a threat. Corporate level strategy pursued by the company The strategy pursued by the company includes maintenance of a stable policy on processing trade. The policy will maintain the high levels of service meaning that trade will be beneficial for the involved countries. The management will also establish a sound mechanism that will help facilitate effective trade across all cultural settings. Encouragement of the Hong Kong enterprises to upgrade and restructure will be done. This is done to ensure that the systems accommodate all cultural orientations and that products will consider the culture of its consumers. The restructure and upgrade will improve the management and market development. Recognition of market segments will help the Disneyland Company to produce and create products suitable for all cultures and lifestyles. This fits well in the SWOT analysis because the company will know their strengths and weaknesses once the market is segmented into smaller sizes. The segments present an opportunity to explore and understand the demands of the consumers. The management has tried to combine the Chinese culture with the American theme park. The entertainment activities are not a duplication of the rest. They are customized to include the diverse needs and preferences of consumers in the country. The management strives to maintain a good relationship with the government. The Disneyland is developed both by the government of Hong Kong and the Walt Disney Company. The company has enjoyed the benefits of being connected to the government. This means that maintenance of a good relationship will enable them make better products and enjoy the success of the production (Zhu & Xu, 2010, p. 51). The airports, hotels and networks are then rebuilt to fit the desires of the Disneyland consumers. The benefits of the company enable them take up any opportunities available since they have the required resources to do so. The management also strives to provide high quality products and services. This ensures that visitors stay long in the park. This helps in the creation of many business opportunities. This fits effectively in the SWOT analysis of the organization since it gives them a chance to take advantage of the opportunities. Various advertisements used helps in the promotion of their products. They use media and celebrations to market their products. Consideration of issues raised in the case write-up The issues raised in the case study include culture considerations and the ability of the company to recognize their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. The diversified business segments of the Disneyland Company has enabled it get a competitive advantage in the market. The management team has embarked on several successful growth initiatives. They have ensured that they establish new entertainment products and distribute them across multiple platforms. The distribution is done across both the domestic and international markets. Different culture orientations present different challenges and should be handled carefully if a company is to achieve success. The company should create high quality content aimed at reaching more consumers. Through this, an emotional connection is built which makes it possible to respond to the challenges that come with the ever-changing customer demands. The diversity makes Disney successful and prominent across the globe. Recommendations The company should avoid cultural disasters by practicing a more geocentric approach of management. It is the biggest media operating company and hence they need to decentralize their operations. By so doing, they will receive high employee contribution. They should also incorporate human resource management in the strategy so that they can gain effectiveness and efficiency from its employees. The company should plant entertainment options that are cheaper in a smaller market as well as in emerging economies. Hong Kong has a higher than the normal population and the company has done a good job in placing attraction sites where the masses are. The company should however, segment the market and place the parks and resorts in places that best suit the residents of that area. Their mission statement should also include the customer since the customer is the main focus of any business. It should include the fact that they produce products for all regardless of age, religion, background and so on. References Baize, J, The Walt Disney Company: A strategic Business Analysis, http://www.jordanbaize.com/jb/Jordan_Baize_-_Portfolio_files/WD%20Case%20Study.pdf Zhu, L & Xu, D, (2010), Marketing Strategic Change in Expansion of Disneyland: Cases Study of Disneyland’s Overseas Expansion in Shanghai, Jonkoping International Business School. Read More