PDA

View Full Version : Disney VP Jon Storbeck announces retirement



AVP
11-05-2015, 12:40 PM
Jon Storbeck, the current vice president for Downtown Disney and the Disneyland Resort Hotels, announced his retirement in an e-mail sent to his Disney colleagues today. He will leave Disney in January, ending a 32-year career with the company.

Storbeck started working at Disneyland in 1983, and spent his Disney career based in Anaheim. According to his LinkedIn profile, Storbeck was the vice president of Disneyland Park from 2005-2014. Last spring, he was named vice president of Downtown Disney and Resort Hotels, and Disney California Adventure vice president Mary Niven moved across the esplanade into the Disneyland role. While the shift was technically a lateral transfer, many considered the move to be a sign that Storbeck had fallen out of favor with more senior executives.

In his letter, Storbeck said he was retiring to "spend time with his family," a phrase that is often a euphemism for "forced to resign." Whether Storbeck really is leaving to spend more time with his wife and four children (per his official Disney bio (http://publicaffairs.disneyland.com/leadership/jon-storbeck/)), or is leaving for other reasons, today's news came as a shock to some of his coworkers.

Disney had no comment today on Storbeck's resignation, and there has been no word about who will replace him in the role.

Niwel
11-05-2015, 12:59 PM
I've met him - he's a really nice guy. This is truly a shock.

tea4two
11-05-2015, 02:44 PM
We've met him, too, and he does seem like a nice person. But he doesn't seem to be the go-getter that Mary Niven is. We've met her in the parks, too, and she was much more interested in our experience that day.

olegc
11-05-2015, 02:59 PM
Same here - met him at the beginning of the 2nd 24hour party and thanked him for the Windows on Main Street series. We had a brief conversation but yes, not a ton of visible energy. And we all know perception creates reality in peoples minds.

So many layers and back-and-forth between Anaheim and Orlando these days its a wonder how many things keep going.

Sleeping Beauty's mom
11-10-2015, 07:01 PM
He was the tour guide for the Windows on Main Street. I think that was my biggest highlight ever at Disneyland. I hope he enjoys retirement, good to spend time with family - you never know when things will change.