Susan Arnold, first woman to head The Walt Disney Company

Susan Arnold has been appointed Chairman of the Board of The Walt Disney Company, becoming the first woman to lead the company in its 98-year history.

Arnold He will take office on December 31, replacing Robert A. Iger, who in February 2020 was appointed Executive Chairman and Director of Disney’s Creative Projects after more than 15 years as CEO.

“Susan is an incredibly esteemed executive and it is impossible to quantify how her rich experience, unwavering integrity and expert judgment have contributed to the company since she joined the Board in 2007.″, Iger said in a statement distributed by Disney.

Arnold has been with Disney for 14 years and since 2018 has served as the Independent Senior Director of the Board. “Susan is the perfect choice as Chairman of the Board and I am confident that under her guidance and leadership the company is well positioned to continue on its path of success.”Added Iger.

For his part, Arnold wanted to highlight the “extraordinary leadership”Of Iger for the past 15 years and praised“its clear strategic vision to offer high-quality branded products, adopt cutting-edge technology and expand internationally”.

“In assuming this new role as Chairman of the Board, I look forward to continuing to serve the long-term interests of Disney shareholders and working closely with Chief Executive Officer Bob Chapek as he works to continue to build on the century-long legacy of creative excellence and company innovation“, he pointed Arnold.

Before entering Disney, Susan E. Arnold She was an Executive of the equity investment firm The Carlyle Group and was President of the Procter & Gamble Global Business Unit from 2007 to 2009, Director of McDonald’s Corp. from 2008 to 2016 and Director of NBTY Inc. from 2013 to 2017.

Arnold will have the tough task of replacing a historic de Disney, since Iger has been one of the most important business figures of the company.

During Iger’s tenure, Disney acquired Pixar (2006), Marvel (2009), Lucasfilm (2012) and 21st Century Fox (2019); inaugurated in 2016 the first Disney theme park in mainland China -the Shanghai Disney Resort- and films such as “Avengers: Endgame” (“Avengers: Endgame”, 2019), “Frozen” (2013) or “Black Panther” were launched. (2018).

Iger has converted to Disney “into an industry leader through its creative content offerings across multiple platforms”, Especially with the launch of the Disney + platforms in 2019 and ESPN + in 2018, the statement highlights.