Executive Leadership and Governance (MSc Management)

Assessment Brief

DISNEY LEADERSHIP AND RISK MANAGEMENT REPORT

You are a management consultant undertaking a series of projects for the Board of Directors of the Walt Disney Company. Walt Disney Company regularly reviews the effectiveness of the Board as part of their Corporate Governance Strategy.

The Board have asked you to complete two pieces of work focussing on Executive Leadership and Governance. The two tasks are set out below.

PART A (Also Formative) – Board Review Report for new and existing Board Members (40 MARKS)

You are required to produce a report which will cover a key section in the Annual Board Review. Two new board members have recently joined as non-executive directors who are to sit on the main board as well as joining the remuneration committee. Your report should contain the following sections:

1) Organisational Culture and the Role of the Board (12 marks)

o A brief evaluation of the leadership style and organisational culture at Disney
o The main duties of the board – what we are responsible for, and who we are responsible to
o Annual report – what we report on and why

2) Corporate Governance (10 marks)

o The Corporate Governance framework for Disney
o A critical evaluation of the remuneration committee’s role at Disney

3) Regulatory Landscape and Management of Risk (18 marks)

o Evaluate the Board’s responsibility for risk management
o Analyse and evaluate the regulatory landscape for Disney and the impact regulators have on Disney’s success
o Analyse and evaluate the risks faced by Disney
o Recommend and explain appropriate responses to the top 3 risks faced by Disney and explain the role of the Board in managing these risks

PART B- Leadership Report – 60 MARKS

You are required to undertake a review of Leadership at Disney and to provide a report to the CEO on the strengths and weaknesses of Disney’s Leadership using the techniques and concepts you have covered in the module. Your report should cover the following:
 Introduction (4 marks)
 Task 1 -Leadership and Management (14 marks)
o Identify and critically analyse the Leadership and Management style within Disney using relevant models.
o Compare Disney’s Leadership Style with that of its competitors, highlighting any issues for Disney’s future development.
o Evaluate Disney’s ability to handle significant business challenges
o Support your arguments with academic literature and references to other similar real companies.
 Task 2 – Leadership for Performance (10 marks)
o Create a Balanced Scorecard for Disney with a range of Strategic Objectives and Key Performance Indicators
o Explain how “Leadership for Performance” approaches can be used to help achieve the objectives identified above
o Support your arguments with academic literature and references to other similar real companies.
 Task 3 – Financial Leadership (12 Marks)
o Disney launched the Disney+ streaming service in 2019. Identify the key sources of financial and non-financial information that the Board should have considered in making the decision to launch this new product, evaluate the relative importance and reliability of these sources of information.
o Disney made a loss of over $2.8bn in 2020, compared to a profit of over $11bn in 2019. Identify and discuss the main factors that led to this dramatic change in fortunes and compare Disney’s performance with that of its competitors
o Support your arguments with academic literature and references to other similar real companies.
 Task 4 – Ethical Leadership (12 marks)
o Critically evaluate past Ethical Decision Making at Disney focussing on one of the following areas.
 The use of supplier sweatshops
 The treatment of Disney workers
 Environmental issues
o Identify the most significant ethical issues that Disney now faces, and recommend how these can be managed effectively
o Support your arguments with academic literature and references to other similar real companies.

Presentation and Structure (8 Marks)

 Clear structure and layout
 Writing style: professional and concise
 Appropriate Harvard referencing: range and credibility of the sources use and correct application of Harvard referencing style throughout report and appendices

Total Word count for Section A and Section B: 5000. This includes headings and sub-headings, text based tables, in-text citations. It does not include the cover sheet, the appendix, numerical tables, reference list, in text diagrams, contents page, list of figures.