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If governments were run like Disney World, it would be awesome
Leon Hartwell
September 05, 2011

They say it all started with a Mouse. Walt Disney World Resorts (Disney World) in Florida is not just an amazing experience for kids; adults too cannot help but marvel at all the things it has to offer. That got me thinking, what would governments look like if they were run like Disney World? Some would nonetheless argue that the two are incomparable, as governments have more intricate issues to deal with. Even so, Disney World-s way of conducting business has something to offer for many governments around the globe.

Government bureaucracies would be wonderful places to visit as they would make planning and crisis management top priorities. How many times do we have to stand in line at a government department only to be told that we cannot be helped? Some government departments often go into complete shutdown during lunch time, whether there are many unsatisfied clients waiting to be assisted or not. When I recently visited a government department, the civil servant who was supposed to help me was annoyed because I was allegedly interrupting her clothing business. In contrast to this, everything is incredibly well organised at Disney World. Lines are carefully monitored and when they become too long, managers dispatch more rides (like an extra boat) or an actor dressed as Captain Jack Sparrow to entertain the crowds.

If governments operated like Disney World, civil servants would gladly assist us - their clients - and they would be well paid for their good customer service. Employees at Disney World greet you with a smile and go out of their way to help you. Disney World employs approximately 59,000 "cast members" who perform as many as 3,000 different jobs, ranging from bus drivers to technology experts. Furthermore, Disney World spends annually more than $1.8 billion on its employees and it is considered to be one of the best employers in the world. On average, this amounts to $30,508 per employee, but with a wide ranging salary scale depending on the job. Nonetheless, this is more money than what was set aside by Zimbabwe-s Finance Ministry ($1,4 billion) at the end of 2010 for approximately 236,000 civil servants on the government payroll.

Additionally, civil servants would be professional, employment would be based on merit rather than political affiliation, and there would be no ghost workers. Disney World would not perform well if it employed cast members based on patronage. Furthermore, governments often lose their best civil servants to the private sector (or foreign countries) because of its lack of market competitiveness. Given that Disney World has a large pool of individuals interested in being employed by the company, it can recruit the cream of the crop. In 1994, almost 56,000 people applied for jobs at Disney World, while only 8,750 were successful. Professionalism depends largely on institutional ethics but it is also reflected by the quality of people that are employed by the company or government. Earlier this year, a leaked World Bank report found that 75,000 of Zimbabwe-s civil servants were unqualified for their jobs while thousands more were said to be ghost workers.

Following the Disney World model, governments could build a grand network of infrastructure and maintain it. Beyond the multitudes of rides that Disney World-s visitors enjoy, one is also struck by the wonder of the perfect condition of its roads and railways. Roads inside the parks are steam cleaned every day! In fact, the park employs around 5,000 people to do maintenance and engineering, 750 horticulturalists and 600 painters. I was really impressed with the efficiency and effectiveness of Disney World-s infrastructure (which includes rides, monorails, ferryboats, bus services and water taxis) spread out over 22,000 acres of land. Disney World spends $100 million annually on maintenance alone. Needless to say, it has a constant supply of water and electricity. Since it opened its doors, Disney World has only shut down 3 times and only once due to a power failure at one of the parks.

If government leaders had Walt Disney-s vision and the leadership skills of his successors, they could create wealth out of poverty. Some countries possess vast resources, which are too often mismanaged by governments of the day. The result is poverty on top of poverty. Disney World was built on a piece of land which was largely alligator infested swamp. It took real leadership and vision to develop the largest and most visited recreational resort in the world. A recent study revealed that Disney World and its related businesses in Florida generate $18,2 billion a year in economic activity (Zimbabwe-s GDP last year was about $7,5 billion).

Governments that are run like Disney World would offer us choices, lots of it. Politicians the world over provide us with a limited policy menu. Leaders need more creativity and they should be more aggressive in its implementation. Disney World is all about meeting the expectations of its visitors and more. Take for example the food that their visitors are able to choose from: 350 chefs are employed by Disney World serving 6,000 different types of food!

Finally, tourism would boom once service delivery is great, infrastructure is well managed, and government has created an environment where people are entertained. Disney World has over 25,000 hotel rooms available and the resort receives more than 47 million visitors annually. To put this into perspective, despite the beauty and the marvels of this country, Zimbabwe received only 2,24 million tourist arrivals in 2010. One could also add that the Disney World police (yes, it has its own police service and a fire brigade) does not have a reputation for political brutality, which is an obvious deterrent for potential tourists.

Thus, when I said that governments would be awesome if they were run like Disney World, I meant that government leaders should plan ahead, they should be visionary, focus on service delivery and address people-s diverse needs. It is in a government-s power to create an environment where business and society can flourish. More importantly, following Walt Disney-s Mouse, even though developmental visions cannot be fully completed during the lifespan of individual leaders, it is important to leave a foundational legacy that successive generations can build upon.

*Leon Hartwell is an independent political analyst based in Harare

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