Disney's European theme park adventure: a clash of cultures

When companies internationalize, the dimension of individual national cultures needs to be considered in conjunction with corporate culture. Theme parks deliberately set out to portray the cultures and fantasies of other times and places, thereby compounding the issues affecting corporate and national cultures. Explores the tensions that the corporate culture of Walt Disney Corporation imposes on its French subsidiary, Euro Disney SCA, to determine if the resultant conflict has contributed to its poorer‐than‐expected performance. Using the three‐level construct of culture proposed by Schein an examination of the corporate culture of Disney will be made with particular reference to its programme of internationalization and the ultimate “clash” of its corporate culture with French national culture. The strength of Disney's corporate culture has led to conflict, and blinded the organization to the differences in the surrounding local culture.