BURBANK, Calif. – John Spelich has joined The Walt Disney Company Corporate Communications office as vice president, it was announced today by Zenia Mucha, senior vice president, Corporate Communications.
Spelich, to be based at Disney’s Burbank headquarters, will be responsible for a variety of corporate communications issues and initiatives, including financial reporting, legislative and regulatory issues, branding and executive communications. He also will work closely with Disney’s businesses, including its parks and resorts, media networks, consumer products and studio entertainment units on communications issues.
“John’s extensive experience in corporate communications, financial communications, public affairs and law are superb qualifications as we face the increasingly complex job of dealing with various segments of the public–each with its own vested interests–governmental agencies, and other stakeholders,” Mucha said. “Those attributes, combined with his experience as a news person, will prove invaluable in today’s business environment.”
Spelich, who joins Disney from the San Diego City Schools, has more than 20 years of experience in communications. Previously, he was with Gateway, Inc. in San Diego, first as director, Corporate Communications and then director, Investor Communications. In these positions, Spelich was responsible for coordinating strategic development and tactical delivery of corporate messages to key constituencies globally.
From 1988 to 1999, Spelich served in a variety of positions of increasing responsibility with the Ford Motor Company in Dearborn, Mich., including director, Global News and Information, where he was responsible for the overall coordination of corporate external communications efforts, including those for Chairman William Clay Ford, Jr. and then-President Jacques Nasser. Spelich also served in a number of positions in the Public Affairs department where he was responsible for communications efforts in growth markets in Asia and Eastern Europe, as well as Japan. In this department, Spelich also oversaw numerous product launches and communications efforts for product repositioning. He led the strategic development of communications efforts for the 1997 introduction of the company’s best-selling vehicle. He also served as an attorney in Ford’s Product Litigation activity.
Spelich began his career as a newspaper reporter, writing for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and later the Detroit Free Press. He earned a bachelor’s degree in 1982 from the University of Michigan and a J.D. in 1993 from Detroit College of Law at Michigan State University, from which he graduated Summa Cum Laude.