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Akhil Madan
Divya Dhingra Ravi Shanker Sharma
Nitesh Sah
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Weve made a leap from an idea centered
business to a people centered business.
I nstead of developing ideas, we develop
people. I nstead of investing in ideas, we
invest in people
-Randy Nelson,Dean,Pixar University ,in 2006.

An American computer animation film studio based
in Emeryville, California.
best known for its CGI-animated feature films
Develops and markets high end 3-D computer
graphics technology
Best known productions are Toy Story, A Bugs
Life, Toy Story 2, Finding Nemo, The Incredibles.


The talented Pixar team has delivered
outstanding animation coupled with
compelling stories and enduring
characters that have captivated
audiences of all ages worldwide and
redefined the genre by setting a new
standard of excellence.

Strategic Priorities
of Pixar

Delivering High Quality, compelling creative
content to customers
Application of new technology
Global Expansion
Driving long term shareholder value
MILESTONES THROUGHOUT THE
YEARS
1979
Originally founded as the Graphics Group of the Computer Division of Lucasfilm Ltd
1986
Was Purchased by Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple Computers for US $10 million
Began as high end hardware company with core product Pixar Image Computer
(PIC)
Late 1980s
Helped Disneys animation division, Walt Disney Feature Animation, in developing
the CAPS (Computer Assisted Post production Software system)
1991
Financial constraint forced Pixar to lay off many people
Made a US $26 million deal with Disney for the development, production and
distribution of three movies of which Toy Story was a huge success
1995
Released Toy Story, was a huge success earning US $192 million in the US and a total of US $362 million
worldwide
Raised US $140 million through IPO in November,1995
1996
Exited it commission business to focus entirely on movie
1997
Made another deal with Disney for making five original animated movie
2000
Disagreements rose between Pixar and Disney
2004
Disney and Pixar parted ways
Analysts attributed this to clash of egos between the two
2006
January 24,2006, Disney announced that it was acquiring Pixar
The PIXAR PROCESS
Pixars culture-the early years
Pixar was a tightly knit
group

Employees were non-conventional

Companys philosophy was to hire people
who are better than they are

No Hero work culture
Catmull and smith were strong supporter and helping hand to
their employees

Employees were determined and had clear vision

Committed to do things out of box

They were loyal and committed to the company

Smith and catmull were motivator and helping hand to their
employees



Path-breaking work culture at Pixar

Initiated a work culture contrasting to then,
helped in engaging creative minds & geniuses.
At a time when most of Film studios employed
temporarily, Pixar hired people permanently.
Got people on board without any contract,
offered stock options.
Thus affiliating people professionally as well as
emotionally with the Company.

People as Pivots
Another transformational policy of Pixar, laid
importance on people, rather than only on ideas.
They believed in simple policy of wrong people,
can ruin good ideas whereas right people can
correct wrong ideas.
The cohesive feeling in employees, and non
intervening & accommodating management made
things easier for creative people.
Innovation Habit & Necessity
Pixar always stressed the importance of
innovation in their work.
This drove employees to go even an extra
mile to get it.
Practice of self assessment by people after
every movie.
Candor of people helped know shortcomings
in present projects as well as dos & donts in
future projects.
Hiring people with progressive skillsets
Employees were chosen carefully who were in
sync with the innovative work culture at Pixar.
Pixar also realized the potential of people on
growth curve.
Unhesitant to hire people from varied
background.
Managers felt no threats from subordinates
performing better.


Beating Employee fatigue
Pixar understood the importance of refreshed
people.
They regularly gave people chance for leisure
and get rejuvenated for future projects.
Had awesome workplace, with sports
facilities, gym & yoga center.
Regular medical guidance at Company helped
people stay medically fit.

Team First, Individual Second
Pixar appreciated the hard work of entire team
rather than only star performers.
Entire team was rewarded suitably for success.
They placed artistic & technical team at parity.
People of all the teams had equal
opportunities for growth.
This culture of equality helped them in
maintaining the collaborative style of Pixar.


Well communicated Organization
Pixar had 3 distinct groups technology
development, creative development and
production.
Top management insisted on constant
communication between them.
This gelling of groups helped immensely in
creative inputs from people of various groups.
Helped taking approvals and initiatives faster.
Effective strategies of Pixar
Used short films as pilot projects, allowing people
to experiment.
Recognized art as a team sport, people helped
each other without imposing their ideas.
All such people centric & creatively conducive
environment made Pixar, an organization with
lowest attrition.
The Habitat
Physical environment with a curved
metal roof which resembled airplane
hangar
Common Area with many coffee
shops, employee mail boxes , foosball
and pool tables
High chance of encounters and talk
to various people
Customization of workplaces and
cubicles to the tastes of the employees
Office Dressing very casual and no
ties
Timings designed to foster the
creative impulses of employees
PIXAR UNIVERSITY
Started in 1997,headed by Nelson
Offered 110 courses
Program of lectures, work-shops,
courses and events
Courses in diverse skills such as
improvisation, storytelling, karate,
juggling and belly dancing

Primary objective to build morale,
spirit and communication among
employees
Risk and Weird Ideas
Face Failure
Maintain a constant flow of ideas
and experiences
Promote direct personal contact
and informal communication
Feed creative culture and move
from individual starting skill sets
to teams

Pixar ,self contained organisation without links to external
perspectives could encourage homogenous values and an
insular view of the world. This in turn had the potential to
discourage the criticism or controversy that was often
useful in information technology and creative practices.
Retaining the same team could lead to stagnation of
thought and ideas. If the movies failed at the box office
Pixar could be blamed for relying on the same group of
people
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Toy Story went out to be
the highest grossing
domestic movie earning a
total of US $362 million
Acquisition and
Effect on Culture
Steering committee - Catmull, Lasseter, Jobs,
Iger, Cook and Tom Staggs
Objective to maintain and spread Pixars
culture.
Pixars HR policies would remain in tact
Disney micromanages every detail and would
strangle the golden goose
Some People Who Have Shaped
Pixars Culture.....
Alvy Ray Smith

Unconventional lifestyle
Sincerity towards work
Loved by people at Pixar
Served and Nurtured
pixars unique culture
Left an unforgettable
influence on the culture of
the company
Edwin E Catmull

Co-founder of Pixar
Dreamt to become an
animator
Instead he focussed on CS
programs due to limitations
in drawing skills
Went to work for Lucasfilm
Developer of the
RenderMan rendering
System
Guarded unique culture of
Pixar
John A. Lasseter

Chief Creative Officer at
Disney and Pixar Studios
Main influence behind
pixars unique culture
Current Walt Disney-Kid
At Heart
Highly lovable personality
Traits
Involved in Steering
Committee with view of
protecting and spreading
Pixar culture at Disney
Steve Jobs


Largest individual
shareholder at Disney
Less knowledge about
animations
The pixars culture
flourished in his absence
Involved in Steering
Committee with view of
protecting and spreading
Pixar culture at Disney


Robert Iger

Disneys Chief Executive
Officer
Pledged to protect and
embrace pixars culture
Involved in Steering
Committee with view of
protecting and spreading
Pixar culture at Disney, like
Catmull and Jobs

Contrasting work cultures Disneys old media
conservatism and Pixar's innovative free wheeling
culture.
Major changes in Pixar should have a sensitive
acknowledgement, period of coping and a careful
adaptation of past.
Challenge for Pixar to adjust under new owner and
sustain its box office record
Pixar should look for cultural adaptation rather than
preservation
Onus on Disney to keep Pixar happy and profit by
the acquisition
Jobs interest in Pixar has a big role to weigh down
Disneys bureaucracy
Pixars culture of innovation and collaboration has
its roots in historical Disney culture which
emphasises on cultivating individual talent.

Relation
This acquisition would be testing times for
both the firms as they have to adapt according
to each other. Proper blend of Pixars
innovativeness and Disneys experience can get
many blockbuster hits.


Thank You
THANK YOU

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