While I can certainly understand the thought process and absolutely get where the negative sentiment is coming from, I kind of feel bad for the guy; as fans, we should not be instantly condemning this gentleman, or setting him up for failure by booing him into office simply because he has never dispatched a coaster or swept up a hot dog wrapper in his life.
I'm going to play Devil's advocate here. And I am going to give James the benefit of the doubt for now. Just because someone worked at a theme park or knows how to operate a Sno Cone machine, does not qualify him to be better equipped to pull a massive company out of the toilet business-wise. For those of you who have theme park experience like myself: think back to most of your co-workers and how they were on a daily basis. Would you want them running your finances or making decisions that would affect your future? God knows, my finances are a disaster and I have a very pristine reputation for making very poor decisions in my own life, regarding Theme Park Adventure and beyond. Yet, I knew The Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean like the back of my hand. I worked the Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes for 11 weeks straight one summer (and hated every second of it), I worked Bear Band, did occasional Main Street Electrical Parade guest control (back in the day before it was acceptable to yell and be shockingly bullish with guests) and was on the opening Splash Mountain guest control team. When I later worked for MGM-Mirage, I took tons of management courses and received all sorts of accolades.
Yet, I suck immaculate when it comes to my own business decisions or finances. I am not good at being shrewd or aggressive when it comes to the business end of TPA usually. In short, I wouldn't want me as a CEO, regardless of my past experience with theme parks and like companies.
Not every ice cream scooper will grow up to be a Tony Baxter. Nor would a Tony Baxter necessarily be the right person to run The Walt Disney Company (sorry Tony - love you!). CEOs are interesting creatures. They are generally workaholics and they sleep with one eye open, always buzzing about the next project, the next deal and how to constantly make advances financially and business-wise for the companies they run.
Steven Spielberg is arguably one of the most beloved and respected filmmakers of all time. Yet, would he necessarily be the best guy (or gal) to run Six Flags? Just because he's been involved in films and theme park attractions doesn't mean he is a genius behind a desk. Behind a camera, yes. Behind a desk... who knows?
Now, absolutely, some great CEOs come up through the ranks. The greatest CEO I have ever worked for hands-down is Ms. Renee West, who was the CEO of Excalibur when I worked and lived in Las Vegas. Her business ethic and true love of what she did on a daily basis was contagious - and it spread through the company's 4,000+ employees like wildfire. Under Renee's direction, Excalibur never was stronger and so many amazing changes took place, it is undeniable (new pool area, new carpeting for the first time ever throughout the resort, the remodel of 2,000+ rooms, Dick's Last Resort integration, employee enrichment programs and more). What's even more undeniable is the huge sucking sound left in her wake, because she was promoted last year to be at the helm of Mandalay Bay due to the way she performed at Excalibur for several years. And before all of that, Renee worked in management at State Line - the Primm resorts. Who would have thought that a State Line employee - a female at that - would rise to become one of Las Vegas' most powerful and well-liked CEOs? It's remarkable and just doesn't happen.
On the flip side of that, I argue the case of one Terry E. Van Gorder, the once-upon-a-time head honcho of Knott's Berry Farm. The guy went from theme park to theme park, making both good and bad decisions, but almost everyone felt that in the end, he was a mess on wheels. He was the guy that removed Bear-y Tales for Kingdom of the Dinosaurs - which was a short-term very successful move for Knott's, but in the end, left the park without its own characters and the world without one of its greatest and most beloved dark rides ever. He was hell to deal with regarding Halloween Haunt and never allowed (except on very rare occasion) the hard-working individuals behind the event to ever be given any credit. He told Theme Park Adventure once very directly that if we ever named Haunt monsters in our articles that they would immediately be "severely reprimanded and/or terminated from Knott's Berry Farm". I met him personally once; he was pigging out on a chicken leg with grease and gristle in his beard, not stopping his devouring while talking to me. I came away from the conversation with his rambling burned into my memory - "They don't let me speak to the media much; I'm just the idiot that runs the place. I usually don't have anything intelligent to say."
Imagine if I'd written a piece for the LA Times using that quote? That was the guy running Knott's Berry Farm in the '80s and beyond, folks.
Fast-forward to Michael Eisner and Paul Pressler. Need I go into detail about that dynamic duo? Eisner's legacy is one of genius beginning and utterly disastrous finale at Disney. Paul Pressler was a great businessman when it came to successfully growing The Disney Store - but when put in charge of theme parks, etc... we ended up with California Adventure 1.0.
To fan the flames of argument further, let us remember with great gusto Frank Wells. The guy had no theme park background; he ran a record company very successfully. Yet, Wells is remembered and respected for really being the visionary at the helm of Disney in the early '80s, bringing the company back from certain doom as part of the Eisner/Wells/Katzenberg team. Frank understood the value of "E"-Ticket attractions such as Indiana Jones and Tower of Terror. He wasn't afraid to make huge investments in the parks and their attractions. When he was killed, much more died that Frank Wells that horrible day. The company floundered and suffered for the most part for years after under Eisner finally was forced out by Roy Disney and a myriad of fans and investors who'd had enough of the Eisner regime.
Switch tracks.
Ross Perot - not a politician, but a hugely successful CEO and businessman. The guy ran to be President of the United States. Twice. And you know what? People voted for him. I did the first time around. My thinking - career politicians absolutely suck. They lie through their teeth, they are part of the ongoing wasteful, bullying and downright deceitful machine that rules this country. I'm not a hippie, nor do I subscribe to every conspiracy theory put before me. But I am intelligent enough to see the big picture - that the government we have now is full of cover-up, suppression of the poor, the black, the brown, the gay and the free-thinking that this country was founded on. This government lets big business thrive, its own people starve in the streets, entire cities and groups of people to be flooded out and destroyed, bankrupt banks to kick good Americans out of their homes as they too struggle in this economy, oil to flow into our oceans, and so on. The rant and list is much longer than this - but the editorial isn't about Black Ops or big business conspiracy. It's about CEO-types. Ross Perot wasn't a career politician, yet people liked him and voted for him. They/we saw that politicians don't necessarily make the best Presidential candidates. Perot was a very successful CEO/businessman, and perhaps his momentum came from people believing that perhaps a smart and successful businessman could and would do better running this country than a life-long politician, risen through the ranks with backroom agreements and special interests putting them at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. We'll never know, because of course, this government would never let that happen.
And that's the theme and idea I present to you all in this matter of James Reid-Anderson and Six Flags. No, he's never served a churro or stamped someone's hand for re-entry. But he does have a proven and successful track record at Dade Behring, and Siemens Healthcare and beyond. Perhaps he does have what it takes to bring Six Flags back from the grave. I say, don't shoot before you see what he can do. Let's not set this guy up for immediate failure without giving him a chance. Bring him on podcasts such as The Season Pass. Give him exposure - positive exposure in major newspapers and trade magazines. Instead of instantly branding him the poster child for "Clueless, Inexperienced CEOs", let's give the guy the benefit of the doubt and see what he's made of.
And it's not like everyone else in the Six Flags company suddenly becomes mute or their say/ideas/knowledge/history vanish. If James is a great leader, he will recognize his team and truly listen to them, accept their input and lead this company back to where it needs to be. I think it's possible. And I think we should all slow down a bit, hit the trim brakes on casting judgment and watch what this new CEO does over the first few months. Hell, I'd say over the first six months, at least. It took Six Flags a long time to sink to where its at now - it's not going to be an overnight fix. And I expect there to be missteps along the way - no one is perfect. But if he tries new things, even if some of them are not great or downright suck - the important thing is to remember that at least a new leader is trying new tactics.
Now, if all decisions are horrid, if the park prices skyrocket and we're made to pay $1 not just for every locker but each time we go potty or take a picture with a character, if the souvenir stands get traded out for timeshare vultures and the parks see no expansion or additions... I'll be the first one to shoot. And without a doubt, the line to take a shot will be very lengthy behind me.
To James Reid-Anderson, I say good luck and sincerely wish him the best of success. I grew up with Magic Mountain and love the place. I'd love to see the company thrive, its employees benefit and for them to become the company they should have been all along. There are rough waters ahead, but things should get easier if this has been the right decision.
Only time will tell. And the clock is ticking now, James.
- Rick West
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