News: Disney Announces New Park Presidents and Josh D'Amaro As Chairman of Parks

We’ve seen a lot of Disney World president Josh D’Amaro over the past few weeks as he’s sent us some friendly messaging during the Disney World closure.

©Disney

Now, Josh D’Amaro is no longer leading Disney World. In a press release today, Disney announced its new leadership team, including D’Amaro moving into the position of Chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products — the role previously held by the current CEO of the Walt Disney Company, Bob Chapek.

The new position will take D’Amaro from overseeing the operations of Walt Disney World resort to overseeing the entirety of Disney’s travel and leisure businesses including all six international theme parks, Disney Cruise Line, Disney Vacation Club, and Adventures by Disney. He will also head all of Disney’s global consumer product operations including their licensing business, children’s print publisher, the Disney Store, and shopDisney.

@joshdamaro on Instagram

The Chairman position reports directly to the CEO, and Chapek commented on his happiness with D’Amaro filling his old role. Of the leadership shift, Chapek said, “I am certain he will take Disney’s Parks, Experiences and Products segment – home to some of our company’s most iconic and beloved businesses – to exciting new heights in the years to come.”

D’Amaro made a statement on his new position explaining, “I look forward to following [Chapek’s] record of driving innovation, value, and growth as we deliver unforgettable experiences for our guests. It is an incredible honor to lead our team of talented and dedicated cast members around the globe, who go above-and-beyond every single day. Even during this challenging time, their enthusiasm for what we do is unwavering, and my goal is to bring our cast members back to work as soon as possible so they can continue to create that magic.”

©Josh D’Amaro

D’Amaro isn’t the only one to receive a new position either. In fact, the new leadership team includes several new faces. Rebecca Campbell, previously the President of Disneyland, is moving into the position of Chairman for Direct-to-Consumer and International. She will oversee the company’s streaming businesses (Disney+, ESPN+, Hulu, and Hotstar) as well as Disney’s International Channels, Fox Networks International, and Star India.

Replacing the two executives are Jeff Vahle, formerly the President of Disney Signature Experiences, as the new President of Walt Disney World and Ken Potrock, formerly the President of Consumer Products, as the new President of Disneyland.

Rebecca Campbell ©Disney

Other new appointments on the leadership team include Kareem Daniel (former President of Walt Disney Imagineering Operations/Product Creation/Publishing/Games) replacing Potrock as the President of Consumer Products, Games and Publishing and Thomas Mazloum (former Senior Vice President of Resort and Transportation Operations at Disney World) replacing Vahle as the President of Disney Signature Experiences.

Sleeping Beauty Castle

We will be keeping a close eye out for statements from the new executive team and will report in on any developments as the team settles into their new roles.

Click here to learn more about the changes to the Disney leadership team this year.

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