The Walt Disney Company: Competitive Advantages

Social-cultural factors.

The Walt Disney Company aims to provide comfort, motivation and different opportunities to children and families with the help of volunteerism, investment in youth and children’s hospitals & wish granting. It is highly believed that Social Responsibility is a long term investment that pays off with the strength of company operations, competitiveness in the market, enhanced risk management, attracting talented employees and maintaining the reputation.

For more than 35 years time period, crew members and employees in several campuses have made a great contribution to their communities with their thousands of hours of service that are spent to have a positive impact annually. Volunteers among cast members have been engaged in projects that aim to unite humanity around the world and kindly services t o people who have several needs. In order to build capacity in organizations Disney volunteers are sorted according to their unique professional skills. Disney Volunteers program provides an opportunity that allows employees to turn their service hours into a financial support to several charities.

For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) has been supported by Disney for more than 25 years. Mentorship and Financial support are provided to teams through robotics competition that are conducted among regions and World Championship once a year. Disney in collaboration with Star Wars and Lucasfilm raised a fund to emphasize more on youth development. Disney aims to help to close the technology gender gap and engineering. The company also supports program called Snap The Gap that focuses on creating several opportunities for female members of society and helps them to have a self-confidence and some skills. Moreover, there is also a program called Girls Who Code which allows the high-school student to learn computer science.

With regards to highlights of Children’s Hospitals & Wish Granting, $100 million were dedicated to children who were seriously ill, 750 hospitals around the world are supported and 140 thousand wishes are fulfilled with Make a Wish program for more than 40 years. The Walt Disney Company aims to create an amazing experience and personal moments that focuses on delivering inspiration to the children who are ill.

Environmental factors.

With regards to environmental factors of The Walt Disney Company aims to deliver the neutral environmental legacy and to protect the environment for the future generation while developing and operating their business. In October 3, 2019 conservation fund of The Walt Disney awarded about $6 million grants to eighty nonprofit organizations which aim to save the wildlife, inspire humanity and to protect the planet. In 1995 the Disney Conservation Fund (DCF) was created and since its creation the company has provided about $86 millions of total amount as a grant in order to protect the nature with the help of several different communities. Moreover, in 2017, greenhouse gas emissions were reduced by 41% and diverted about 49% of incineration and waste from landfills. In 2019, the Company eliminated single use plastic items such as straws and stirrers in every single branch of the company, the amount of reduction reached 177 million straws and 13 million stirrers every year.

The Walt Disney Company’s steps towards environment sustainability starts from 1900s. The CEO of the company, Walt said that the protection of the planet is not just the business of several people in the company but it is a matter that should concern every single human being. Several sectors that the Company works in to contribute environmental stewardship are shown below:

• Renewable Electricity
• Conserving Fuel
• Sustainable Design
• Reducing Waste
• Using Water Responsibly
• Green Production
• Protecting Nature
• Commuter Assistance

With regards to Renewable Electricity, the Company brought new 270–acre, 50 megawatt solar facility to the Walt Disney World in 2019 and Reedy Creek Improvement District and Origis Energy USA collaborated with Walt Disney in the constructions of solar facilities. Current facility is aimed to generate sustainable energy power from the sun to operate several theme parks in Orlando every year. Bus fleets at Walt Disney World use more than 50% of renewable diesel fuel while operating and electric generators are always on set while film and television productions. The Grand Campus in California received Platinum certification in energy and environmental design. Solar facilities in the building provides 12% of energy that building demands. Hotels and cruise ships that are owned by Disney are starting to refillable in-room items and reduction of plastics in guest rooms reached 80%.

The Walt Disney Company recognizes that water is the precious resource and in six years time period they have saved more than 300 million gallons of water. Since 2009, co-operation of Walt Disney World and Environmental Steward helped to obtain recycle and reuse methods and educational materials for cast on environmental best practices have been provided. Several commuting options and different ways to reduce traffic, develop life and work balance, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and several options of regional regulations are provided by Commuter Assistance.