100 Acre Personality Quiz

27 July 2006

Brought to you by the letter "M"

So at Disney we have monthly reviews - they are called Dashboards. They consist of several things: Revenue, Presenteeism, Hyperquality and Qualitative Leader Ratings. Some of these words may not be familiar to you so I will break it down.

Revenue is the amount of money you book, with deposit, per hour. There is a set goal that each community must book per hour in order to "make revenue".

Presenteeism is the amount of time you have been out sick or late - just like any other job.

Hyperquality is a review of your calls. Each agent gets three hyperqualities a month and there are certain attributes you must hit in order to get 100% and they fluctuate according to the type of call that it is (dining, modifications, shops and bookings). Some calls have as many as 13 and some calls have as few as 6.

Qualitative Leader Rating is a subjective score that your leader gives you based on your behavior and performance through out the month. Things such as initiative, professionalism, organization, time management and teamwork.

This final one is the one I want to talk about tonight. Ipull my dashboard every day at the beginning of my shift... but Monday (my Friday) was a different story. When I pulled it up on Monday I saw that my revenue is 135% making my score an E (exceeds expectations), my hyperquality total score is a C (clearly outstanding), my presenteeism is a pass but my Qualitative Leader Rating is only an M! My overall Dashboard grade is an E but still - an M?

Now Disney grading is interesting in that C is what you want to get. It goes from C to E to M to B to U. These are calculated by a numbering system and I know from previous experience that Disney's version of being middle of the road (an M) is what other organizations consider to be outstanding - hence the reason as to why we are the leaders in guest service.

This floored me since I have gone out of my way to be there for all of my team members - while in training and on the floor (I am a recent rehire which I am sure I will explain one day but for right now, let's stay focused). We were (re)hired on the 20th of May - our Traditions Day (again, another story for another time) and were immediately put into our training classes. Now, during this training class I spent most of the time assisting the trainers. Since I couldn't test out of it due to lack of available trainers, my trainers would place those in class who needed specialized instruction next to me so I could do just that. This kept the class on schedule and those special few up to pace. Once we hit the floor we are amazingly on the same team. We even received a new leader who came from the IP department (Itinerary Planning - they deal with all the recreation but not rooms and packages) so he was new as well. I have spent the better part of eight weeks helping these people, including my leader, with questions and assistance in any way possible.

We were having a "race around the castles" with the other Worldphile teams and each team needed to build a ballon for our race. Joe, my leader, sent out an email asking for volunteers to build this balloon since he is not crafty. I gave it a few days and when I found out that no one responded I volunteered (we won honorable mention). During this race we got extra points for 100% on our hyperqualities, call work and booking packages with dining and/or air. To get these points you filled out a fire cracker with the appropriate information and placed it in a bucket. I noticed one day that all the firecrackers had my name on it so I sent out an email to my team reminding them to place their firecrackers in the bucket... to which most of my team responded with something along the lines of "what's that?". If I have a team member within shouting distance of me - they are going to ask a question, irregardless of whether or not I am on the phone with a guest... and I always answer them without sacrificing my attention to my guest. I also received the first guest compliment of the team - my first day back on the floor to boot!!

Now, when I pulled my dashboard, which I do everyday to see how I am and where I am at, I noticed that my final score was available even though the month doesn't end until Saturday (fiscal month that is). So I pull it open and see that I have the afore mentioned E, C and pass.. and the M. I was very upset. To me it was insulting. Here I am doing everything possible and he gives me an M. Would you like to know the answer I received initially - "Don't worry so much, it isn't the end of the world".

Today I had an opportunity to sit with him and discuss the foul grade he gave me. His reasoning is that since we have only known each other for a month, he wanted to be fair across the board - everyone got an M!! I am not everyone, to say the least. I know that sounds horrible but when your entire team of 22 people looks up to you and comes to you for assistance and you have done all that I have for the team - I don't think I simply met his expectations.

Now, I need to know if I am out of line in this way of thinking. According to those whose opinions I hold very dear (fellow cast members along with family and friends) I am not but I am curious what others think... was I wrong in thinking that I would get an E or better?

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

"Don't worry so much"? What kind of an answer is that?

You should know by now that anyone who really knows you (which does not include this guy) will tell you that you always go above and beyond! The fact that your team always comes to you doesn't surprise me at all, as you are always the first person I want to talk to about all things Disney - even before you were back working there! I can't help with his "M" grading, but hopefully you remember how great everyone else thinks you are!

~M

Betty McArthur said...

You know, with some people there is just no pleasing them. That's when you have to know yourself, and know that you are doing a great job. I had a boss one, who was just mean. I could never please him... if he needed a fax, it was never done fast enough (even though he knew our fax machine was not reliable). If I had to go to the restroom, I had to announce it to everyone (how embarrassing). It was just stuff like that all the time. I was never praised for anything I did right, but if I made a mistake (an honest to goodness mistake) he never let me hear the end of it. Finally when I found another job and turned in my notice, he wanted to talk... "Betty, why are you doing this to me?" He was clueless as to why I wanted to leave. I told him that I didn't need someone to hold my hand and tell me I'm a good girl with every step I took, but that a little praise now and again would have gone a long way. I felt like I wasn't needed or a part of the team. He was shocked! He said, "I only push you because I want you to do better. If my dog pees on the floor, I'm going to rub his nose in it, so he doesn't do it again. It's the same thing, I just want you to learn from your mistakes." I told him I understood that, but that I wasn't a dog that needed my nose rubbed into my pee. So, maybe your boss is one of those "I only want you to do better" kinds of bosses... and doesn't realize that you do take your job very seriously and that this does hurt your feelings. I'd go with the flow, but certainly keep the doors wide open, for communication between the two of you. I've known you for a long time, and I know how you are... you are a team player (who helped me pass algebra????). Big hug to you :)

Peppermint Mocha Mama said...

Thanks guys. I appreciate it that so much. I know I do tend to get an bit of an elitist attitude but I can swear genetics on that one - my daddy is a member of Mensa and said that we aren't perfect people but hey, we are as close as you can get... LOL.

I decided to give him until next month so he has his history to build off of and if it happens again - oh yeah, Vonda (the leader of leaders) here I come.

Peppermint Mocha Mama said...

Quick update - I ran into Vonda (Supervisor of Leaders - and my friend) last night. She asked how things were going. I told her that apparently my thought and Joe's thought were not insync. I explained my position and how he gave me a "M" for a rating.

She scrunched up her face and said that wasn't right. I also had one of my trainers come up and say that she saw what he did and that it was just wrong. She was more insulted than I was about it.

I now have about three people in the upper levels looking into this since they were either keeping up with how things were going or stepped into the situation... hopefully it will be fixed before the fiscal month is up - meaning Saturday! I'll keep you posted.