Michael Eisner

EXCLUSIVE
  • Chairman & CEO, The Walt Disney Company (1984-2005)
  • Iconic Business Leader, Entertainment Innovator, and Entrepreneur
  • Founder & CEO, The Tornante Company
  • Author of Business Bestsellers

Michael Eisner teaches audiences how to develop corporate creativity and strategically invest in innovation, based on his experiences as CEO of Disney and as Founder of The Tornante Company, a fund to invest in and develop companies in the media and entertainment sector. Both Fortune 500 CEO and entrepreneur, Mr. Eisner knows that even large global companies can innovate and adapt to new markets, new economies and new technologies. Through his remarks, Eisner not only inspires corporate innovation, he gives parameters for successful execution such as brand building, establishing strategic partnerships, and employee work teams.

Under the leadership of Michael Eisner, Walt Disney Company revenues grew from $1.7B to more than $170B by focusing on the power of ideas, pursuing the innovative vision, and taking creative risks. As a leader in the media industry for four decades, Mr. Eisner has overseen organizations recognized for their inventiveness and innovation, experienced an explosion of technological advances that have impacted his business and led his companies through the advent of the next big ideas. In his presentations on leadership, he shares his insights on what it takes to run a company that must always grow and change.

 


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Past Hosts Include:
  • University of Nevada Las Vegas
  • National Association of Home Builders
  • National Association of Realtors
  • Nu Skin International
  • Hispanic Trends Magazine
  • FSA
  • SAP
  • PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
  • Kutztown University
  • International Dairy-Deli-Bakery Association
Rave Reviews About Michael Eisner
Mr. Eisner was a hit at the Realtors Conference & Expo! In fact, based on feedback after the session, he is one of the best we’ve had in many years. The audience especially liked his perspectives on ‘creativity in a box.’ They also loved that he customized his speech with the Seize the Day theme.

News Commentary - Former Disney CEO Michael Eisner on NFTs and Topps' digital strategy | CNBC Squawk Box [5:02] - Get Sharable Link
Talks & Conversations with Michael Eisner
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The Creative Economy

Which companies will thrive in the coming years? Those that value thinking outside the box above all else. MICHAEL EISNER's career has revolved around managing businesses in which more than 80 percent of their products must be new every year. He shows audiences how an intangible asset like creativit ...

Which companies will thrive in the coming years? Those that value thinking outside the box above all else. MICHAEL EISNER's career has revolved around managing businesses in which more than 80 percent of their products must be new every year. He shows audiences how an intangible asset like creativity can make a dramatic impact on any company’s bottom line. In this insightful and compelling speech, Eisner discusses the importance of generating fresh ideas while enhancing and protecting your brand

Leadership: Succeeding by Failing and Other Paradoxes

As a leader in the media industry for nearly four decades, MICHAEL EISNER has overseen organizations recognized for their inventiveness and innovation, experienced an explosion of technological advances that have impacted his business, and led his companies through the advent of the next big ideas. ...

As a leader in the media industry for nearly four decades, MICHAEL EISNER has overseen organizations recognized for their inventiveness and innovation, experienced an explosion of technological advances that have impacted his business, and led his companies through the advent of the next big ideas. In his presentations on leadership, Eisner shares his insights on what it takes to run a company that must always grow and change.

Working Together: Why Great Partnerships Succeed

Every great institution needs a partnership to really achieve greatness. In Working Together, MICHAEL EISNER, former Disney CEO and entertainment biz veteran, takes an inside look at some of the most successful business partnerships and what makes them tick. In business there are always unique indiv ...

Every great institution needs a partnership to really achieve greatness. In Working Together, MICHAEL EISNER, former Disney CEO and entertainment biz veteran, takes an inside look at some of the most successful business partnerships and what makes them tick. In business there are always unique individual achievers but pull down the veil, and you’ll often find someone alongside them. Eisner does just that, using his own successful collaboration with Frank Wells at Disney as a launching point for examining other famously successful and rewarding partnerships. Working Together offers a wealth of behind-the-scenes stories and insights from in depth interviews with these partners: tried-and-true wisdom as well as the unexpected, and plenty about what works in business and what doesn’t work.

From Gutenberg to Zuckerberg: Leveraging Technology to Get Your Message Heard

Ever since Johannes Gutenberg invented his printing press in 1450, there has been an accelerating proliferation of communication platforms – from books to newspapers to magazines to movies to radio to television to the internet. And, with the development of each new platform, the conventional wisdom ...

Ever since Johannes Gutenberg invented his printing press in 1450, there has been an accelerating proliferation of communication platforms – from books to newspapers to magazines to movies to radio to television to the internet. And, with the development of each new platform, the conventional wisdom has invariably determined that all prior media outlets have become obsolete. MICHAEL EISNER exposes how unwise the conventional wisdom tends to be, and offers insights on how to leverage all media technologies – old, new, and yet to come – in order to effectively get your message heard.

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Speaker News

Former Disney CEO Michael Eisner shares his Premier League plan

Former Disney CEO MICHAEL EISNER will “do what I had done my whole career” by taking over Portsmouth F.C. and helping the team reach new athletic and economic success, as he told The New York Times. Already a smashing success, Eisner’s work with Portsmouth F.C. is a lesson in building from the bottom-up to create long-term, sustainable organizations. In his live engagements, Eisner discusses the mindset necessary to help legacy brands stay at the forefront of culture.

Watch Michael Eisner in conversation with the Drucker Business Forum >>

Watch Michael Eisner on CNBC Squawk Box >>

 

Former Disney CEO Michael Eisner receives rave reviews for his live events

Former CEO and Chairman of Walt Disney (1984-05) and CEO and Founder of The Tornante Company, MICHAEL EISNER teaches audiences how to develop corporate creativity and strategically invest in innovation, receiving consistent trave reviews: 

  • National Association of Realtors: "Mr. Eisner was a hit! In fact, based on feedback after the session, he is one of the best we’ve had in many years. The audience especially liked his perspectives on ‘creativity in a box.’"
  • PwC: "We enjoyed his presentation -- as did our clients -- they gave him a resounding standing ovation!"
  • Hispanic Trends Magazine: "Michael Eisner was funny, sharp, entertaining, and easy to deal with. We were very pleased."

Watch Michael Eisner in conversation with the Drucker Business Forum >>

Watch Michael Eisner on CNBC Squawk Box >>

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Books by Michael Eisner
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Press & Media
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Biography

For five decades, Michael Eisner has been a leader in the American entertainment industry. He began his career at ABC, where he helped take the network from number three to number one in primetime, daytime and children’s television with such landmark shows as Happy Days, Barney Miller, Laverne and Shirley, Schoolhouse Rock, Rich Man, Poor Man, and Roots. In 1976, he became president of Paramount Pictures, turning out hit films such as Raiders of the Lost Ark, Saturday Night Fever, Grease, Terms of Endearment, Ordinary People, Airplane and Beverly Hills Cop. This string of critically acclaimed and blockbuster films led the studio to become number one in box office and profitability in both theatrical movies and network television production. In 1984, Eisner assumed the position of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company and, in the ensuing 21 years, transformed it from a film and theme park company with $1.8B in enterprise value into a global media empire now valued at over $180B. 

In 2005, Eisner founded The Tornante Company, a privately held media & entertainment holding company. Tornante purchased and subsequently sold Topps, Inc. Today, Tornante owns Portsmouth Football Club in England, with men’s and women’s clubs, and has a large and growing television division including ownership of animated series BoJack Horseman, Tuca & Bertie, and Undone. He and his wife, Jane, founded The Eisner Foundation in 1996, which, in 2015, became the only U.S. funder investing exclusively in intergenerational solutions.