In the final days of 2024, Daps Magic is taking a look at the top five stories of the year from the realm of Disney and positive stuff. This has included the opening of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure at both Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resorts, the approval of DisneylandForward for the Disneyland Resort, and the return of success at the box office and content creation for The Walt Disney Company. These stories were chosen based on their impact of the story on the past, present, and future of The Walt Disney Company, how it impacted the Disney community, and how it impacted the world beyond Disney. The #2 story for 2024 is James Gorman joining the Disney Board of Directors and being named Chair of the Succession Planning Committee.
Succession at Disney
The question of succession for the role of Chief Executive Officer at The Walt Disney Company has been the topic of conversation and concern for many years. After the botched process with now-former Disney CEO Bob Chapek in 2020 that led to the return of Bob Iger, the focus on succession is sharper and more intense than ever before. As was learned during the short-lived run of Bob Chapek in the role, the CEO can make or break the success of the company very quickly. When Bob Iger retires from the role in 2026, Disney wants to make sure it doesn’t repeat the mistakes of the past and instead sets up the House of Mouse for a successful future.
When Bob Iger returned to the role of CEO in November of 2022, he had two main tasks. The first was to get The Walt Disney Company back on a healthy and successful path to the future. The second was to find his successor and set them up to be successful. As was noted yesterday by Daps Magic, the company now seems to be on the right track with quality content being released and profitable and streaming services also now profitable.
With the company running more or less smoothly, the big focus is turning to succession. This year, The Walt Disney Company took a couple of big steps toward answering that question. James Gorman, who recently oversaw the same process at Morgan Stanley where he once was the CEO. Earlier this year after joining the Board of Directors, Gorman was named chairman of the Succession Planning Committee. This was followed by the recent announcement that Gorman would be the next Chairman of the Board of The Walt Disney Company.
When announced as the next Chairman of the Board, Gorman made it clear that succession will be a top priority for the board when he begins the role on January 1, 2025. “A critical priority before us is to appoint a new CEO, which we now expect to announce in early 2026. This timing reflects the progress the Succession Planning Committee and the Board are making, and will allow ample time for a successful transition before the conclusion of Bob Iger’s contract in December 2026,” Gorman said.
The announcement of James Gorman as Chairman of the Board marks a strong pivot toward the future of The Walt Disney Company. Gorman did not come up through the ranks of Disney. He also has not been a member of the Board of Directors for as long as former Chairman Mark G. Parker, who had been on the board for nine years. This brings a new approach to successful that has both its strengths and weaknesses. The decision to appoint Gorman as Chairman will determine the future of Disney for years to come.
There are pros and cons to bringing in someone like James Gordon into this leadership role that will determine where The Walt Disney Company goes next and who will be leading that next chapter. On the pro side, he has successfully done this before at Morgan Stanley so he has experience that he can bring to the table. His track record in the business world is also quite good. On the flip side, he doesn’t have the depth of Disney culture that makes up the “Disney difference.” This could be a good thing or it could be a bad. Only time will tell. Without this deeper connection with Disney, it might allow him to see things with a perspective that isn’t clouded by relationships and interactions through the years. This could also be a negative thing as well.
At the end of the day, the question of succession for the role of Disney’s CEO will be one that will be asked throughout 2025 before being chosen and announced by early 2026. There will be lots of opinions regarding who should take on this role and why. However, it will be up to James Gorman and the Board of Directors to determine who is best fitted to follow Bob Iger to become the next CEO. The appointment of James Gorman as the Chairman in 2024 will be looked back on as brilliant or something else.
The question of succession and the appointment of James Gorman as Chairman of the Board at Disney is just one of the top 5 stories that Daps Magic is highlighting this year as part of its “Top 5 of 2024” series. Be sure to come back in the coming days to check out the final two. Subscribe to our newsletter and follow on social media so as not to miss any of the others.
