Bob Chapek Elected to Disney Board

by Ray Keating

News/Analysis

DisneyBizJournal.com

April 15, 2020

The Walt Disney Company Board of Directors announced on April 15 that CEO Bob Chapek was elected to the Board.

In a statement, Susan Arnold, independent Lead Director of the Disney Board, and Robert A. Iger, Executive Chairman and Chairman of the Board, said, “Bob Chapek has demonstrated remarkable leadership in the face of unprecedented challenges that were unimaginable when he became CEO just seven weeks ago, and we’ve watched him navigate this very complex situation with decisiveness and compassion. We are pleased to add Bob to the Board, as we stated we would when he was named CEO.”

It’s typical for the CEO to be elected to a company’s board, and the timing on this also lines up with issuing a vote of confidence for Chapek after stories noting that Bob Iger has re-engaged in running the company during this time of unprecedented crisis.

As I wrote earlier this week regarding the Iger developments:

[T]his is about effective control of the company. That means no official announcements from the company about changing titles, etc. Instead, this is tapping Iger’s experience in running Disney as the company faces unprecedented challenges. This is about Iger stepping up to play the key role in helping Disney and Chapek navigate stormy waters, and guiding how the company emerges on the other end.

This also is about letting investors and the market know that Iger’s steady hand is on the wheel.

These development make sense from a business perspective. But if you’re looking for an official announcement from Disney, that’s highly unlikely. Instead, what you might get is a statement from the company saying that the board has complete confidence in Chapek as CEO, and it appreciates the important leadership being provided by Executive Chairman Bob Iger in these uncertain times.

Indeed, being elected to the Disney board serves as a nice, timely vote of confidence for Bob Chapek.

Ray Keating is the editor, publisher and economist for DisneyBizJournal.com, and author of The Disney Planner 2020: The TO DO List Solution (now available at a deep discount) and the Pastor Stephen Grant novels. He can be contacted at  raykeating@keatingreports.com.