The Transformational CIO: Leadership and Innovation Strategies for IT Executives in a Rapidly Changing World

A Magical Decision

When Walt Disney Parks and Resorts asked Roger Berry to become its next CIO, the post reported to the division's CFO. Roger told the Disney folks that he would consider their offer—but only if the CIO reported directly to the division's president.

Disney agreed to Roger's request. The decision turned out to be a great one for both Roger and the division. Soon after Roger's arrival, the division unveiled a new strategy for building better, deeper, and more profitable relationships with its guests. The new strategy was called “Magic Your Way,” and it represented a truly dramatic leap forward.

But the new strategy had a serious flaw—the existing IT infrastructure could not support it. Here's how Roger recalls the moment he realized that he was in deep water:

I remember the first big meeting on Magic Your Way. I came in and sat down with the president and the CFO. They were going through what they wanted to do, and they'd done some preliminary work before I arrived about the cost. I listened to all of it, and I realized there wasn't anything about infrastructure and technology in the plan.

So I raised my hand . . . I was new there . . . I said, “Time out.” I said, “Do you realize that what you're trying to do is put an elephant on a Tonka toy? It's not going to work. Your infrastructure can't carry that kind of load.”

Immediately—it was the first real test for me—I said, “You're going to have to change your whole model around how you're going to fund this thing. ...