Originally Posted By kennect Was doing the Stitch Encounter, at the MK, a couple of weeks ago and leave it to me to ask a dumb question....I stupidly asked a cast member about the previous incarnation of the attraction...His response was that they packed it up and sent it to Disneyland......The only thing worse than his response was the actual Stitch attraction....
Originally Posted By TDLFAN You have encountered your typical CM who is working there for the benefits and nothing else. The Main Gate Pass compells them.
Originally Posted By kennect I don't think this character was even there for the main gate pass...He seemed rather dim...About a ten watt...But even with all things considered the response about my question was just so stupid....No wait a sec, my original question was stupid so I should have expected the response I got....Once he said what he did I simply said "no they didn't"....
Originally Posted By TP2000 So, the CM's reply wasn't meant as a joke, or a sly attempt to pull one over on a customer? He really said it like he believed it himself?
Originally Posted By CMDad Not all that surprising. I have often heard CM's make statements that I can't believe that they made. I once had a WDW bus driver inform the guests that Mickey Mouse was named after Mickey ROoney because he was a friend of Walt's wife ... whose name he also got wrong. What he didn't know is that in the year that Mickey was named, Joe Yule, Jr. had not yet started using the stage name Mickey Rooney.
Originally Posted By jazzfan4 Packed it up and sent it to DL??? Then why is skippy still there? I like Skippy.
Originally Posted By ChiMike Shhh! You'll just confuse 'em. Don't pick on the poor CM, he's got enough nonsense to put up with!
Originally Posted By TDLFAN I remember the good old days when CMs actually *knew* about the product and informed the guests well...
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA Remember when Walt Disney World cast members went through an extensive day of training called 'Traditions'? That was awesome...
Originally Posted By ChiMike Yeah, I take it you didn't partake in the creation of the current program, huh?! There is a simple solution, one that is even more needed out West. Raise the pay, cutdown the turnover, keep shrinking the unions. The unions are at a point already were they are just in the way. But I understand why they are still around with Disney too stubborn to pay the CMs. It doesn't need to be a wage where someone is going to make a career out of it or support an entire household, but it needs to be able to compete with Blockbuster.
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA While the original 'Traditions' program may be looked upon as 'quaint' or 'hokey' -- it certainly did provide a wonderful way to bring these new cast members into the Disney family. If I'm not mistaken today at WDW, it's literally 'sitting in a room watching a movie' for the orientation, and then going to your work location for additional training.
Originally Posted By vbdad55 <While the original 'Traditions' program may be looked upon as 'quaint' or 'hokey' -- it certainly did provide a wonderful way to bring these new cast members into the Disney family. < this program which they appear to have ash canned was the basis for many an MBA program's classes in ' the right way of orientation' into a company. The current crop of MBA's must have went to schools where Traditions didn't get included in the curriculum
Originally Posted By ChiMike >>If I'm not mistaken today at WDW<< As far as I know, you are not. And if turnover wasn't so bad (from the low wages and low hiring standards) they would be able to properly train these folks.
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA In fact, orientation used to start at the Casting building, where potential new hires were asked to watch a 5-6 minutes video about what it means to work at Disney. Including grooming standards et al...
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA Check that above. What I meant to write is that while at the Casting Building, potential new hires were asked to wathch a video to see what the expectations are for working there.
Originally Posted By hopemax My friend recently started working for one of the airlines. When she told me how much training she was getting, I just shook my head. One week, just for "culture/vocabulary" type stuff, one week for the computers, multiple weeks shadowing a current employee. And all for a not much more than minimum wage position. Meanwhile, my Mom works at the MK, and regularly gets "additional training" shifts to train people because the core trainers didn't do an adequate job of making sure the person was trained in the first place.
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 <<I remember the good old days when CMs actually *knew* about the product and informed the guests well...>> Yes ... and you know what? That makes you the kind of guest WDW management no longer wants.
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 <<If I'm not mistaken today at WDW, it's literally 'sitting in a room watching a movie' for the orientation, and then going to your work location for additional training.>> That's basically it, Jim. The 1990s Eisner Mentality that saw the rise of THE CONSULTANTS AND MBAs is to blame. They simply decided to take 40 years of knowledge of how to run the best themed family entertainment ventures on the planet and throw them in the trash because they could be 'lean and mean' and 'trim waste' etc ... the result is there are CMs that likely don't even know who Walt Disney was. But, hey, at least we get CMs handing out Mickey stickers. That's way kewl.
