A Warm Question: Shapiro/Snyder or Jim Reid Anderson

[Rollercoaster Rider]

You decide. Both companies have made smart additions (Glow In the Park Parade, Iron Rattler) and dumb additions (Coaster Cuts, IgNight) so you have to take the good with the bad. Basically who would you say is the better CEO of Six Flags?

 

 

I would probably choose Jim Reid Anderson cause his additions sometimes make a little more sense than Shapiro's additions (SFGAm getting a 2nd Mouse coaster and almost a 2nd Stand Up Coaster. SFGAdv getting a 2nd indoor coaster) and he tends to realize what parks are missing/in need of (SFGAdv and SFMM getting long needed Drop Towers, Rattler getting rebuilt, SFGAdv getting flats, SFGAm getting major league coasters, SFAm getting a much needed family coaster and retheming Southwest Territory into Mardi Gras, SF Mexico getting expansions long overdue, Etc.) and of course his hilarious CEO videos.

Edited May 17, 2014 by Rollercoaster Rider

[DirkFunk]

Well, it's a battle of guys who didn't know anything about the theme park industry when they entered into it. A lot of people will give Anderson the nod because his business performance could be deemed better - Shapiro's job was to try and prevent the company from auguring in and going bankrupt. Anderson's job is to manage a chain that had its debt wiped out not through brilliant maneuvers, but by courts. So.

 

If I have to pick one versus the other, the guy that was interested in doing more things with the parks that I saw as being outwardly beneficial to me, the end user, the piddly nobody buying a ticket to enter, was Shapiro. Dan Snyder might be a terrible person invested in siphoning every dollar away from the fans of a football team named with a racial slur, but Shapiro's attitude with the parks was to try and improve their infrastructure in such a way that they were more attractive places to visit. Since he left, corporate went to the old ways of cutting the operational budget to increase the total revenue. That isn't so nice.

[Rollercoaster Rider]

Nobody Else?

[robbalvey]

Nobody Else?

You gave almost ZERO information about each person. Perhaps if your first post was more than two sentences explaining what this was all about, you'd get a better response. Don't go blaming everyone else for not responding when it's the original posters responsibility to make a post compelling enough for others to respond to. I mean, you didn't even mention the words "Six Flags" in your initial post! Don't just assume your readers have a clue what you're talking about. Why don't you re-write your post and try again?

 

That being said, I truly believe that Shapiro had more of a "vision" for the parks. Was it the right vision? I'm not sure. Did he perhaps not have enough time to implement that vision? Perhaps. But he certainly had would appeared to be higher priorities on guest satisfaction, customer service, friendly employees, and a variety of different types of attractions.

 

His "themes" might not have made as much sense (Terminator, Evel Knievel, etc) but at least it was a start of going in the right direction with trying to have a bit of story-telling instead of just plopping down a random ride.

 

Shapiro seemed to be interested in "quality" and Anderson just seems to want the bottom line. Both have it's pros and cons, but as a person who prefers "theme" parks to "amusement" parks, I resonated with Shapiro's vision more.

 

--Robb

 

ps. Also, I actually REALLY liked IgNight and CoasterCuts was never in any of the parks.

Edited May 16, 2014 by robbalvey

[liftsifter]

Besides the fact that the OP doesn't seem to know what a bad addition vs smart addition is... I liked both management teams, but at the same time I wish both did a few things better.

 

SHAPIRO TEAM

Pros:

- Positive changes around the chain which brought about cleaner, safer and more friendly parks.

- PAINT (no need to say anymore on this point)

- Capacity was brought to an acceptable standard for once.

 

Cons:

- Lack of a solid plan to bring down the debt.

- Poor attraction planning. (How would Buccaneer Battle tide over SFGAm when guests consistently ask for a thrill coaster...)

- Shifted the focus to families, a market which is hard to penetrate and is also hard to hold onto.

 

REID-ANDERSON TEAM

EDIT: I think the re-focus on regional theme parks was a major moment for the company under this leadership, as well.

Pros:

- Clear plan for the company with goals and milestones set for investors (of whom I am one).

- 'News in Every Park' strategy is proven to work and works here.

- Understanding the importance of the thrill seeker and the family (ie. Superman: Ultimate Flight 2012 and Splashtastic 2013)

 

Cons:

- Low employee morale. I don't see employees as happy as they used to be.

- No focus whatsoever on capacity (ie. adding 700pph coasters)

- Lack of brand building. Six Flags is just a name, there's no power behind it.

 

Just my opinion- as an investor and as a guest, I like Jim's management and leadership skills.