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Chief Counsel

Senior Vice President, Communications and Public Affairs

As Senior Vice President, Communications and Public Affairs, Alannah Hall-Smith oversees the domestic and international communications strategy across Disney Parks, Experiences and Products. In this capacity, she leads a team that develops and implements strategic programs that drive the segment’s business objectives through a variety of channels including corporate communications, public relations, executive engagement, employee communications, community relations, government relations, corporate citizenship and business-to-business communications.

Prior to her role at Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, Alannah served as Vice President, Corporate Communications, Asia Pacific and Japan, and was responsible for the corporate communications activities related to the company’s business operations and strategic initiatives across that region.

Alannah lived in Hong Kong for nearly 20 years, and joined The Walt Disney Company there in 2005 as Vice President, Corporate Communications. In 2015, she relocated to Shanghai to focus on Disney’s operations in that market.

Prior to joining Disney, Alannah held senior agency roles with Edelman and Fleishman Hillard, and has an extensive communications background working with multinational clients across the Asia Pacific region.

Alannah is native to Australia and has a Bachelor of Commerce from Griffith University. Alannah was also a Founding Board Member of Women Media Networks, a not-for-profit organization that provides members with professional support, leadership development and networking opportunities.

President, Segment Development and Enrichment

George A. Kalogridis is President of Segment Development and Enrichment for Disney Parks, Experiences and Products.

In this new position, George is responsible for the development of strategic and operational business initiatives while developing and scaling best practices at Disney sites worldwide. He will also lead the Disney Institute and National Geographic Live businesses, leverage his nearly 50 years of experience to serve as a strategic advisor to Disney destination operators, and champion segment initiatives in Diversity and Inclusion.

In September of 1971, at age 17, George began his Disney Parks career as a busboy at Disney’s Contemporary Resort, helping to open Walt Disney World. His unique depth of experience will now be put to use in a highly visible second role: helping welcome the world to Orlando as the official Global Ambassador for Walt Disney World Resort’s 50^th Anniversary Celebration.

George previously served for six years as president of Walt Disney World, leading a cast of more than 75,000. He is also a past president of Disneyland Resort.

From 2006 until his appointment to Disneyland Resort, George served as chief operating officer for Disneyland Resort Paris and was responsible for leading the daily operations of the Resort’s two theme parks, seven hotels and the Disney Village. During his tenure in Paris, George oversaw the highly successful 15^thanniversary celebration of the resort. He also played an instrumental role in reorganizing operations to help improve both Guest and Cast satisfaction at the Paris site.

Prior to his role in Paris, George served as senior vice president of Resort Operations for the Disneyland Resort, where he played a significant role in the first expansion of the resort – the opening of Disney California Adventure and Downtown Disney. In addition, he was responsible for the daily operations across the resort.

In earlier leadership roles, George served as vice president of Travel Operations at Walt Disney World in Orlando, where he implemented a new Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system that continues to shape how millions of Guests book their travel to Walt Disney World. George also served as vice president of the Epcot theme park, where, in addition to overseeing park operations, he led the Millennium Celebration for The Walt Disney Company.

A graduate of the University of Central Florida, George has long been active in the Central Florida community, serving on the boards of a number of area nonprofits.

Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Kevin Lansberry is Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products. In his role, Kevin is responsible for the financial planning and fiscal management of domestic and international theme parks and resorts, Disney Cruise Line, Disney Vacation Club, Adventures by Disney, Walt Disney Imagineering, Revenue Management and Analytics, Global Business Development and Consumer Products.

In his 32 years with the company, Kevin has held a wide breadth of roles domestically at Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resorts in Finance, Business Development, Alliances and Operations.

In 2007, Kevin accepted an operational role as Vice President, Downtown Disney in Orlando, Florida. His responsibilities later expanded to incorporate Transportation Operations as well as Sports and Golf Operations. Later, he moved into the position of Vice President, Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

In 2010, he was named Senior Vice President, Worldwide Travel Operations, where he led the Worldwide Call Centers and Consumer Direct Sales Operations for all parks and resorts locations. Kevin served as Senior Vice President, Revenue Management and Analytics for the parks and resorts segment, then SVP/CFO Domestic Business in 2013, adding the international businesses in 2015.

Kevin assumed the position of Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts in May 2017, which was expanded in March of 2018 to also include Consumer Products.

Kevin holds a Bachelor of Science in Finance from Ball State University and a Master of Business Administration from the Crummer School of Business at Rollins College.

Executive Vice President, Digital and Chief Technology Officer

In his role as Executive Vice President, Digital and Chief Technology Officer for Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, Tilak leads a large and diverse team of technology professionals across the U.S., Asia, and Europe.  His team is a fully integrated partner in executing growth and innovation strategies for all businesses in the segment, including theme parks, resort hotels, Disney Signature Experiences (Disney Cruise Line, Disney Vacation Club, Adventures by Disney, Aulani, A Disney Spa & Resort and Golden Oak), food and beverage, consumer products, retail, gaming, publishing and Walt Disney Imagineering.

Tilak’s commercial and consumer focus, as well as his hands-on technical expertise in digital and physical convergence, ecommerce, data science, AI/machine learning, cloud, lean practices, infrastructure operations and information security, provide the foundation for defining and delivering the segment’s end-to-end technology capabilities and roadmap. Tilak and his team deliver relentless innovations and strategic solutions in guest and consumer experiences and products, cast and crew experiences and productivity, strategic business growth and competitive advantages.

Throughout his career, Tilak has consistently led transformative, business-critical, global initiatives well beyond traditional technology functions. He has held progressively expanded leadership roles, while building strong, successful partnerships with senior- and board-level executives across a very diverse set of industries and business cultures, including financial services, hospitality, retail, energy and technology.

As a versatile leader, Tilak has successfully created and led innovative startup teams as well as large, enterprise technology organizations. Prior to joining the company, Tilak served as Senior Vice President, Digital Technologies and Enterprise Growth at American Express, where he oversaw the digitization of the card business and the technical enablement of the business expansion into new growth adjacencies and demographics. He has also held senior, global digital and technology leadership positions at FedEx Office and Dell Online after starting his career as a technical consultant at AT&T Bell Labs.

Tilak holds a master’s degree in computer science from the University of Oregon.

President, Disneyland Resort

As president of Disneyland Resort, Ken Potrock leads a workforce of 32,000 cast members and is responsible for all facets of the business, including oversight of two theme parks – Disneyland and Disney California Adventure, three resort hotels and the Downtown Disney District.

Ken is a 25-year veteran of The Walt Disney Company and its Parks, Experiences and Products segment. Most recently he served as president of Consumer Products Commercialization, the company’s global effort to bring beloved characters, brands and stories to consumers via merchandise, games and publishing through the Disney store, shopDisney and across licensing and retail partners.

For most of his Disney career, Ken has led high brand affinity businesses where consumer loyalty and insights were instrumental to growth and expansion, including Disney Vacation Club, the company’s innovative and fast-growing vacation ownership program, Disney Cruise Line, Golden Oak, a luxury residential community in Walt Disney World Resort, and Adventures by Disney, the company's award-winning guided group travel business.

In 2015, Ken led the dramatic expansion and reimagining of Disney Springs, Walt Disney World's iconic retail, dining, and entertainment district. Previously, he was senior vice president of Disney Sports Enterprises, where he led the rebranding of the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Florida. He began his Disney career in 1995 as vice president, Marketing for Disney Cruise Line, where he helped define and launch the company’s bold entry into the cruise industry.

Before relocating to Southern California with his wife and two sons, Ken served as chairman of both the Orlando Economic Partnership and Florida Citrus Sports. He has served on the boards of Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, the Heart of Florida United Way and the American Heart Association. In 2018, Ken was honored as a “Father of the Year” by the American Diabetes Association and received the Dorian Boyland Community Service Award from the Central Florida Urban League.

Ken earned his undergraduate degree in marketing from Washington University in St. Louis and his MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Follow Ken on Instagram at @kenpotrock. 

President, Disney Signature Experiences

Thomas Mazloum is President of Disney Signature Experiences, leading several key growth businesses for the Disney Parks, Experiences and Products segment and inspiring teams around the world to deliver the company’s unparalleled family vacations. Based in Celebration, Florida, he oversees Disney Cruise Line, Disney Vacation Club, Adventures by Disney, National Geographic Expeditions, Golden Oak and Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa.

Before being named to his current role in May 2020, Mazloum served as senior vice president of operations at Walt Disney World Resort, overseeing 30 Disney resort hotels as well as premium services, security and transportation operations at the world’s premier vacation destination.

At Disney Cruise Line, Thomas is responsible for the entire award-winning operation, including the Disney Magic, Disney Wonder, Disney Dream and Disney Fantasy cruise ships, as well as Castaway Cay (Disney’s private island in the Bahamas) and Disney’s Port Canaveral cruise terminal. He also oversees the much-anticipated expansion of Disney’s cruise fleet, with three new ships on the horizon, all of them showcasing the immersive family entertainment, enchanting storytelling and service for which Disney is well known.

Thomas also leads the team at Disney Vacation Club, the company’s popular vacation-ownership program. The club offers a portfolio of 15 themed resorts, from its newest property, Disney’s Riviera Resort, to Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa in Hawaii, to properties across Walt Disney World Resort, at Disneyland Resort and in Vero Beach, Florida and Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. His other responsibilities include Adventures by Disney and National Geographic Expeditions, the company’s guided group travel businesses, as well as Golden Oak, the company’s luxury whole-ownership community of custom homes at Walt Disney World Resort.

Thomas began his Disney career in 1998 as a hotel director for Disney Cruise Line and was instrumental in launching the Disney Wonder, the second ship in the Disney fleet.  He later served as general manager of Food & Beverage and Special Events at Epcot. Before returning to Disney in 2017, Thomas served as the chief operating officer of Crystal Cruise Line, leading efforts to define “The Crystal Experience,” a concept that would set the bar for luxury vacations, with a focus on nurturing a positive employee culture.

Born in Austria, Thomas earned his degree in hotel management and administration in Innsbruck. A lifelong learner, he has also received several business certifications from such institutions as Cornell University, the Hotel School of Lausanne and the Hotel School of Salzburg.

President, Walt Disney Imagineering – Creative and New Experience Development

As president, Walt Disney Imagineering – Creative and New Experience Development, Bob Weis leads a multidisciplinary team tasked with exploring, developing and bringing to market groundbreaking ideas that enhance and expand Disney’s global portfolio of products and experiences. He also provides creative visioning for Walt Disney Imagineering (WDI), the creative engine behind experiences found in Disney theme parks, resort hotels and cruise ships.

As the creative and design lead for some of Disney’s largest and most successful parks, Bob has decades of experience leading projects around the world. Before becoming president of Imagineering, Bob was the overall creative executive for Shanghai Disney Resort. Prior to that, Bob completed a five-year transformation and expansion of Disney California Adventure Park. His previous projects include creative leadership over the original concept for Disney’s Hollywood Studios, The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror™ attraction, conceptual design for Tokyo DisneySea, and work on the first international Disney theme park, Tokyo Disneyland.

Bob has been honored with multiple awards from the Themed Entertainment Association, along with awards for the development of Shanghai Disney Resort, including the China Construction Engineering Luban Prize, and The American Institute of Architects Technology in Architectural Practice Award for the successful implementation of Building Information Modeling (BIM).

In addition, Bob serves on the Walt Disney Family Museum’s Advisory Committee, and the Board of Trustees for the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI), a diverse and multifaceted cultural and educational component of the Smithsonian Institution.

Outside of the company, Bob’s creative experience includes collaboration with the Smithsonian and other museum projects, and his feature film and documentary projects have been shown on Lifetime and American public television. He holds a degree in architecture from Cal Poly Pomona.

President, Walt Disney World Resort

Jeff Vahle serves as president of Walt Disney World Resort. A 30-year veteran of the Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, Jeff has been inspiring teams around the world to deliver the company’s unrivaled brand of family vacations. Jeff oversees a workforce of more than 77,000 Cast Members at four theme parks and 30 resort hotels all located at the world’s premier vacation destination.

In addition to his duties at Walt Disney World Resort, Jeff oversees Facilities & Operations Services for Disney theme parks worldwide. These teams are responsible for engineering, maintenance, construction, utilities, manufacturing, sourcing and procurement, safety and health, and asset management programs.

Jeff began his Disney career in 1990 and is a respected senior executive who is committed to driving creativity and innovation, exceeding guest expectations and delivering long-term business growth. While at Disney, he held a series of high-profile leadership roles in operations, engineering, technology and global support services.

Jeff most recently served as president of Disney Signature Experiences, leading several key growth businesses including Disney Cruise Line, Disney Vacation Club, Adventures by Disney, Golden Oak and Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa.

At Disney Cruise Line, Jeff was responsible for the award-winning business, including four ships, as well as Castaway Cay (Disney’s private island in the Bahamas) and Disney’s Port Canaveral cruise terminal. Jeff also led Disney Vacation Club, the company’s popular vacation-ownership program. His other responsibilities included Adventures by Disney, the company’s guided group travel business, and Golden Oak, the company’s luxury whole-ownership community of custom homes at Walt Disney World Resort.

Jeff is actively involved in the Central Florida community, currently serving as chairman of the board of directors for Give Kids the World and as a member of the Rollins College Board of Trustees. He previously served on the Central Florida Salvation Army board of directors. Jeff earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Auburn University and a master’s degree in business administration from Rollins College.

Follow Jeff on Instagram at @jeffvahle.

President, Consumer Products, Games and Publishing

As president of Consumer Products, Games and Publishing (CPGP), Stephanie Young oversees The Walt Disney Company’s global efforts to bring its iconic characters and beloved stories to life through immersive products and experiences enjoyed by millions of fans, families, and Guests each day. Under her leadership, this business is responsible for creating and delivering products across a variety of channels – including Disney store, shopDisney, Disney Parks and our retail and e-commerce partners – as well as managing the world’s largest licensing organization spanning numerous categories. Stephanie also leads the Company’s games and interactive experiences businesses, as well as Disney Publishing Worldwide, one of the world’s largest publishers of children’s books and magazines.

Previously, Stephanie served as President & Managing Director of Hong Kong Disneyland Resort, where she helped deliver both business growth and a strong inclusive culture through every facet of the organization. Before that, Stephanie served as Senior Vice President, Head of Operations for the Disneyland Resort, where she led the integration of all aspects of the guest experience across multiple lines of business, including attractions, entertainment, merchandise, food & beverage and more.

In her three-decade tenure with the Company, Stephanie has focused on enabling world-class guest experiences through operational excellence, while driving commercial strategies that produce strong financial results. She has garnered vast experience in optimizing global supply chains and the development and execution of merchandise-related initiatives, including pricing, inventory management, sourcing, and other strategies to enhance profitability. Throughout her career, Stephanie has also led the technology strategies and operations for Walt Disney Parks & Resorts, including spearheading the breakthrough technology, My Disney Experience, as well as leading the financial planning processes for multiple businesses and sites across the segment.

Stephanie first joined Disney as an Auditor and Senior Finance Analyst for the Walt Disney World Resort. Prior to her Disney career, she worked for a major accounting firm as a certified public accountant in Boston.

A strong advocate of giving back to the community, Stephanie has served on numerous non-profit, charitable and industry groups, including the Florida Retail Federation. Stephanie holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in accounting and financial services from Baylor University.