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Since being appointed as Carnival’s new CEO, Arnold Donald has already contributed to some significant changes for the world’s largest cruise line–most notably a huge increase in profit. Many cruise industry insiders were skeptical about the hiring of Mr. Donald, who had been on Carnival’s Board of Directors; his background is in mechanical engineering, and he previously ran Monsanto’s Roundup (a weed killer) and Equal’s sweetener businesses. However, he had never worked on a cruise ship or for a cruise line before taking over the Carnival. He began running Carnival immediately following several high-profile Carnival accidents and disasters–such as those involving the Carnival Triumph and Costa Concordia–hurt both Carnival’s reputation and its stock prices.
He declared that once he had fixed the biggest operational problems, he would shift Carnival’s marketing to attract new demographics of cruise ship passengers. To accomplish that aim, he has gutted seven of the nine CEOs of the individual cruise lines under Carnival’s banner (including Holland America and Princess) and replaced the mostly white middle-aged men with a diverse team that includes four women, a black man, and a gay man, to create what he calls “diversity of thinking”:
“I guarantee if you get a diverse group of people aligned around a common objective with a process to work together, they will out-engineer, out-solution a homogeneous team 90 percent of the time and create things none of them alone would have created,” he says.
As a lawyer who sues cruise lines like Carnival, I think the most innovative idea I have seen emerge since Mr. Arnold has been at the helm of Carnival was the launch of the latest Carnival sub-brand–Fathom. Fathom cruise ships are the first socially conscious cruise brand that will focus on cruise ship passengers who want to do more than just shop and ride jet skis in port. It will target clientele that would rather do things to help those in need, such as teach English, work in homeless shelters, or visit children in hospitals. Fathom was also the first U.S.-based cruise line to announce that it will include Cuba on its itinerary when the ship first sets sail in April 2016. Fathom’s new CEO is Tara Russell, who founded Create Common Good, a nonprofit that trains people to work in the foodservice industry.
Whether you like Mr. Arnold’s approach or not, one thing shareholders must approve of is the meteoric rise in Carnival’s stock prices, with a share price that is up 53% after net income rose 15% on sales of nearly $16 billion last year.
INJURY CLAIMS ABOARD A CRUISE SHIP
Regrettably for Carnival, increased sales also lead to increased injuries among passengers. If you have been injured on a Carnival Cruise Ship or one of its sub brands–like Holland America, Costa, Princess, Cunard, Aida, Seabourn, P & O, P7 & O Australia, or Fathom–it is important to consult immediately with an experienced maritime accident attorney to protect your legal rights. The best cruise ship lawyers in America will advise you that very strict statutes of limitations apply to slip and fall, trip and fall, sexual assault, and other types of accidents that occur on cruise ships, especially when passengers are getting on and off the ships on wet and slippery ramps or via tender boats.
Aronfeld Trial Lawyers is a Miami-based cruise injury law firm, with nearly 50 years of combined legal experience, and we have successfully sued cruise lines like Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Norwegian, and Disney. Let our years of experience help you obtain the recovery you are entitled to, which may include money for pain and suffering, lost time at work, medical expenses, travel reimbursement, and more. Call today for a free initial consultation at 1-866-597-4529 or email us at [email protected].
