Candidates attending London’s Disneyland Paris recruitment event last month will be allocated their own Disney recruiter, even if they are unavailable for the jobs this season.

The London event followed several other Europe-wide recruitment campaigns in Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Germany and a virtual assessment day for Portugal. Just over 40 candidates turned out in London on 24 June, having previously registered on the Disneyland Paris website (www.disneylandparis-casting. com).

There were 52 vacancies for guest-facing roles still to fill for this year’s summer season in the resort’s hotels, restaurants, attractions and shops. Rather than an emphasis on previous experience or qualifications, director of employment and remuneration at Disneyland Paris, Jean-Noël Thiollier, told Recruiter candidates more than anything need to be personable.

“We are more interested in people who want to make sure the visitors’ experience is going as smoothly as possible. People should enjoy what they’re doing,” he said. “They should display people skills and an ability to speak languages, although not necessarily fluently.”

Thiollier had already interviewed some of the applicants. “Although we just ask for conversational French, some candidates displayed an outstanding ability,” he exclaimed.

He admitted some would not be able to take up the summer jobs on offer, either because their exam results were not yet known or they were unavailable. “These candidates will be allocated their own Disney recruiter and put in a talent pool of no more than 300 per recruiter,”Thiollier explained.

The dedicated recruiter will keep in touch with them regularly, asking them when they would be available for work and giving them four weeks’ notice before a job starts. They also offer them other services, for example, helping them with their CV, preparing for interviews and writing introductory letters — and for other companies, not just Disneyland Paris.

Is this not counterproductive? “We want to be consistent — show them the right brand experience. If they eventually decide Disney is not for them, then they can refer a friend, knowing that they’ve been well looked after,” Thiollier proudly responded.

The vacancies are always advertised through state employment services, such as Jobcentre Plus in the UK and Manpower in Spain. Last year, Disneyland Paris took on a record 9,000 cast members, as the employees are known. There will be about 6,000 positions in total for the whole year. “When we need to recruit extra people, we go through recruitment agencies. We have an agreement with Catererglobal. com, which advertises hospitality jobs on its job board,” said Thiollier.

And to audition for a job as one of the Disney characters, Disneyland Paris holds separate interviews arran - ged by the Entertainment Team. There are certain standards, such as specific heights for characters, and cast members should display entertainment abilities, such as singing and dancing.