OT: Cynthia Harriss leaving DL


Cynthia Harriss is leaving, with Matt Ouimet taking her place. (Matt had been the EVP for New Business Initiatives for the Resorts and Parks division as well as President of the Disney Cruise Line.)

Hopefully her *vision* for park entertainment will leave with her.
 
That may be a little rude. I, having met her, felt she was always gracious to everyone and had her hands tied by Pressler and those above. I truly belive her, when she says she is leaving for the sake of her family. The BTM tradgedy was probably the last straw. Her warmth may be missed. I just hope Matt Oimett (Wee-Met) has the wherwithall to get Disneyland some new attractions soon. He Comes from DCL, fyi.
Jeff

Her is the full email that went to CM's today:
Dear Fellow Cast Members:

Over the past few years, we?ve done some incredible things together
with the Disneyland Resort expansion, and we are on the threshold of
our most exciting milestone, Disneyland?s 50th Anniversary.

The next three years will be teeming with energy and enthusiasm,
requiring the undivided commitment and attention of our team. With
that in mind, it?s the right time for someone else to dedicate their
time and efforts to leading the Resort to this historic celebration.

After an extraordinary 11 years with The Walt Disney Company -- six of
them at the Happiest Place on Earth ? I have made the decision to leave
the Company. The times we live in today remind us that every day
counts and I recognize that there is a small window of time to put my
family and loved ones first. For me, that time is now.

It has been an honor and privilege to work at the Disneyland Resort and
I?m proud of being a part of this team. Dear to me are the memories of
our Cast Member family and the smiling faces of our Guests. Your love,
care and compassion for this magical place, each other and our Guests
is the legacy I?ll hold in my heart.

Matt Ouimet is a superb leader and someone I respect tremendously. He
is the perfect person to carry Walt?s values and traditions forward
during the exciting time ahead.

Warmly,

Cynthia
 
I meant no ill will towards Ms. Harriss; perhaps my comment was less than gentlemanlike but, if anything, it was out of a desire to see DL return to a better state of being than it currently is. Hopefully, Mr. Ouimet will be given a different set of criteria to work with than Ms. Harriss was given with regards to what constitutes their efficiency in their position as President of DL.

It is a constant struggle that upper management faces these days: that of balancing the customer's expectation of the park vs. the expectation to generate an ever larger return to investors. I listed carefully to Jay Rasulo, Jim Hunt, Bob Iger, and Tom Staggs' comments from the WDW media event on October 8 and sincerely hope their comments regarding creating a *better* and more unique Disney experience to guests of the Parks will come to fruition. (Some in this group might be happy to know one of the first questions following Jay's scripted presentation dealt with whether or not park maintenance will be increased!)

My apologies to those who thought the first comment rude.
 

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