Extract from Global Scots: Voices from Afair

CHAIRMAN OF DISNEY CONSUMER PRODUCTS, LOS ANGELES
From Whitburn to Walt Disney

FROM WHITBURN TO WALT DISNEY is a considerable distance to have travelled, and from a council house in West Lothian to chairman of a global company even more so. Yet this is precisely the journey made by Andy Mooney. As Chairman of Disney Consumer Products he oversees the worldwide promotion of the Disney brand in a range of merchandise, from toys to interactive games, through outlets including Disney Toys, Buena Vista Games and the Disney Store. It's been a meteoric – but meritocratic – rise for a Whitburn lad.

I meet with him at the EuroDisney offices in France, having been told that whilst happy to be interviewed there are some points he wishes to make which may be hard-hitting. Intrigued, I explain to his staff that as well as learning about him, it's important that we learn from him. I want to hear what he thinks of his native land and what it provided for him, as well as what it failed to do.

The offices are located in a new – albeit rather non-descript – development, adjacent to the EuroDisney Parc on the outskirts of Paris. Being chairman of a global brand company, his time is at a premium, but correspondence and communications with offices in Los Angeles and London eventually find a gap in his tight schedule. He has flown in from LA for a regular series of meetings with corporate staff that appear to be both whirlwind and intense, but we manage to fit in a brief opportunity for a chat. He is smart but casually dressed, and looks fit and well for his 49 years. A Scottish twang is still audible in an otherwise neutral accent. Confident and relaxed, he appears a man who is driven and who does not suffer fools gladly – a manner befitting a lad born in Bangour and brought up in Whitburn, who has risen to the very top in corporate America.

Los Angeles is now home for Andy Mooney, with his wife Vizhier, an immigrant from the Philippines. He enjoys America and its way of life, considering himself American. He and Vizhier have both taken out American citizenship and feel they have found a home they enjoy and feel comfortable in. He recalls that he has only ever worked for North American companies, no matter what side of the Atlantic he has been situated on. He felt at ease in the American corporate climate and when he was given the opportunity to travel to the US it became clear that was where he wanted to be. That said, he will continue to return to Scotland and would be happy to spend regular time back in his native land should the opportunity arise.

His background reads like a social and economic history of his home county of West Lothian – industries that have come and gone and attitudes that afflicted the area figure highly in his story. The sectarian divide that plagues Scotland has clearly left some scars. He considers his perspective on Scotland as from a central belt and working class background. He jokes that he has 'lots of American friends who travel to Scotland for various reasons. They come back and tell me what fun they have had in the Highlands or the Borders, and I laugh because I never went to these places. I spent most of my time in the central belt between Edinburgh and Glasgow'. It's clear, though, that he still retains a genuine affection for the country of his birth and the county of his childhood.

His parents, Paul and Esther, were a religious mixed marriage and accordingly moved from their respective villages of Fauldhouse and Blackburn to a new home in Whitburn. His father worked in the mines, initially in shale when it predominated, and then in coal. He subsequently left the pits and worked in the British Leyland plant that had opened in Bathgate. His mother worked with Levi Jeans at their factory in Whitburn for over 20 years. Today, the pits have gone and the factories have closed. His father has passed away but his mother still resides in the town, and his younger sister, Janette, still lives and works in the area. He keeps in touch with home and family with annual visits, and also arranges for them to visit him. Schooling was at St Joseph.s Primary School, Armadale and then at St Mary.s High School in Bathgate. Being bussed to school and with both parents working, he describes himself as a 'latch key kid'. With only a few Catholic kids in the area he spent a lot of time at home on his own but had a wide circle of friends at school. It was clearly a happy childhood with fond memories, even if some of Scotland's social ills still rankle.

'A good education which has served me well over the years' was the most important thing that Scotland gave him. Intellect is important to him and is a critical factor for him when recruiting. He still believes that the educational system in Scotland is 'one of the better education systems', producing very smart people, even if, unfortunately, many end up leaving. Leaving school as he neared 16, he started as a trainee- accountant with Uniroyal at Newbridge following summer work elsewhere. After a year he moved on to Cameron Iron Works in Livingston for five years. In the mid 1970s he moved south to Leeds with the same company. These companies provided him with time and training to do his ICMA examinations, something which he is clearly grateful for, as he became close to qualified by the age of 22. That move to Leeds was what took him furth of Scotland, and it has been onwards and upwards since then.

Following a stint at Perkins Diesel Engines, he joined Nike Incorporated as UK Division Chief Financial Officer and spent 20 years there; moving into marketing in 1982 and holding numerous senior posts. In 1994 the benefits of working for a global company afforded him the opportunity of becoming Chief Marketing Officer for Nike in the USA. As head of their £3 billion Global Apparel organisation, with responsibility for Nike and Jordan brands, he was credited with introducing new advertising strategies. He joined the Walt Disney Company at the start of 2000, becoming President of Disney Consumer Products and acceding to Chairman in May 2003. His chairmanship is acclaimed as having strengthened the brand and developed stronger relationships with many of the world's largest retailers.

His upbringing has been pivotal in motivating him to succeed, leaving marks as well as driving him on to the top. His contempt of the Scottish focus on religion is mirrored by his disdain for the English emphasis on class. 'In Scotland, when I grew up anyway, your religious background could potentially make a difference in the type of work that you were doing. You didn't have to state your religion on the job application form but you still had to put down what school you attended, so it was known. South of the border, the question is, which university did you go to? Every step of the way in the UK I was in some minority group, either a Catholic up north, or uneducated down south, in terms of not going through a college education.' He recalls a pecking order down south as he remembers a religious divide up north and hence his affinity with the USA: 'because the premises were in Peterborough, it was Oxbridge and then there were even colleges in Oxbridge that had a higher status than others, then there were other universities, and then me. I was the only person that they had as professional staff that hadn't actually gone to university. It seemed to me, therefore, that the States, and the west coast in particular, seemed to be the best place in the world in terms of finding somewhere people could rise to their natural level, independent of their ethnic or social background or their education.'

Though settled in America with only the possibility of limited holidays back in Scotland, he still has a desire to help and advise those back home. Scotland did influence him, and he is happy to try to assist his native land. It's not only in words, but also in deeds, as he is part of Scottish Enterprise's Global Scot network.

Scotland gave Andy much more than an education. Through his parents. influence, but what he also sees as a Scottish characteristic, he had instilled a capacity and belief in hard work. He acknowledges that this is not unique to Scotland, but feels it is typical of the Scots, transcending social classes and being a national trait. The values that were instilled in him were not so much of wealth accumulation, but of self-improvement: 'It was really just doing better that was the driving goal.' His parents, particularly his father, were competitive, and that was passed on to him. He sees that as being peculiar to, if not unique of, the Scots who he describes as 'pretty fearless.' He adds, 'You find that a lot of people who cross the border to go somewhere else are usually quite outspoken compared to their peers of whatever country they are going to. That can be a good thing or a bad thing. I actually think the notion of being fearless and competitive, not combative and warrior like, if packaged properly, can be positive.' That is covered, though, with a caveat that there appears to be an air of acceptance, if not resignation, by many resident Scots, which he thinks could be dramatically improved if leaders emerged to try and give a direction.

Another aspect he recalls, which still impresses him even if it somewhat perplexes him, is the hospitality of the people. He describes Scotland as a 'very welcoming nation. People are friendly, and strangely they are more hospitable to people who come from outside than they are often to each other inside.' It's a virtue that he sees as being an asset for his kinfolk and one to build on in the global world that now exists.

However, there are aspects of Scottish life that he did not enjoy, and if they did not restrict him, certainly rankled with him. He accepts assurances from family and friends that the religious divide and sectarian attitudes, whilst if not crossed and resolved, have improved. Although the totality of his recollections and reminiscences are positive, sectarianism is an aspect of Scotland which has left an unfavourable scar.

His distaste for bigotry is matched by his disdain for prejudice. Whether in church or class limitations, Scotland and the UK fair badly in comparison to his new home. He remembers television soap operas when growing up. He found American ones, such as Dallas, to be aspirational, as opposed to the home-grown products such as Eastenders which seemed to have 'working class folks, more often than not, putting each other down rather than pushing each other up.' It's a trait he believes is damaging. 'As soon as you aspire and you self-improve, you are pulled down by your peers or friends, like a reverse snobbery. There is definitely a degree of a 'kent yer faither' which is unique not just to Scotland, but UK wide.'

He has seen change evolve and hopes ebb and flow over the years for his homeland. That is epitomised for him in his home county which has changed as industries have arrived and departed. 'My experience of it since leaving has been somewhat of a rollercoaster because I was very conscious of how well the economy was doing in the area at the time. You could sense a palpable vibe of whether things were good or not so good. At the time I left, things were very good. Livingston New Town had just been created. The government grants were bringing a lot of industry there. I come back every year and see changes, and places coming and going. The backdrop created a different atmosphere. People had less money, they were less optimistic. Seven or eight years ago companies like Motorola and new technology companies were opening up, and people were buying big houses. The last couple of years it seems to have subsided again. Motorola has now gone.'

He recognises the double-edged sword of Scotland being a place where it.s easy for business to get into and simplest to get out of. For him, that means offering something 'other than the financial incentive that would make the country a more sustainable employer's choice.' His solution is to have 'a sustainable competitive management, either in the form of intellect, products, costs, or whatever it might be.'

When asked what Scotland could do to learn from his experiences and his new home, his position as major corporate player in a global enterprise who has risen from the office floor to the very top shines through. He believes Scotland needs to get focused and then properly market itself. 'I think the country has to decide, then communicate, what it wants to be known as a centre of excellence for – is it medicine? Is it biotechnology? Politically, that has to be done. I have worked in other industries where if you aren.t on a pedestal then the best thing to do in the marketplace is to say .Hey, I've got a range of products, but these are the ones I am going to focus on and make myself stand out in this competitive landscape.' He cites an example from his own recent experience with Walt Disney, which is actively expanding in the video gaming industry. 'Canada – both coasts – have been quick to create not just the financial environment to encourage that, but they have been vocal about saying "Come to Canada", because they are going to be one of the future centres of video gaming, so already there have been fairly robust communities that have gone there. My understanding is that Scotland has done some of the same but you really have to dig deep to find out if that is true.'

He is scathing of the stereotypical 'Brigadoon' image of sheep, tartan, bagpipes and golf. Scotland 'should be presenting itself as a contemporary nation of highly educated people. If I were to brand a country like Scotland today to succeed in the contemporary world I would focus on being one of the leading countries in terms of not only creating a highly educated, highly motivated workforce, but also welcoming with open arms anybody of a kindred spirit from anywhere else in the world.' There he sees the friendliness of the folk as a positive advantage. He senses that things are changing in Scotland. He.s proud of its past as well as trying to assist in its future. 'We have got a history of great architecture and great design, just look at Mackintosh. Look at the history of medicine.' That takes him back to focus and branding. He believes 'Glasgow is developing a buzz and striking out a little more in the contemporary scene' even if 'Edinburgh is still on the historical and cultural side of things. He 'would like to see Scotland become increasingly known as a wellspring of innovation – a place of being hip and contemporary, and capable of producing people and extraordinary products.'

Andy Mooney is evidently genuinely fond of his native land, without the need for misty-eyed romanticism. It has been important in making him who he is, even if that could only be achieved outwith it. That said, it often frustrates him, and he concludes that 'Scotland is a small country in the big world. In the highly competitive world you have got to focus on the things you want to stand out for.'

Interviewed by Kenny MacAskill
March 2005