Predict Company Performance

In August ‘24, the media behemoth’s streaming business reported $47 million in operating income, compared to the prior year’s loss of $512 million.

CEO Bob Iger put the success of streaming platforms up to superior creative. Our data suggests strategic hires in software development were the key driver.

By the time of the earnings announcement, hiring for software and web developers at Disney was up ~8x from the top of 2023, while job openings for artists and designers had fallen over 35% in the same period.

Compared to hiring trends at struggling streamer peers Paramount and WarnerBrosDiscovery —where software jobs had been slashed in the prior two years—Disney’s investment in computer engineering proved a winning strategy.

Predicting the success of the next live action remake of The Lion King is a shot in the dark, but seeing which streaming platform is poised for product dominance is possible with jobs data.