Charlie Rose asked John Lassiter why animators and story tellers should come and work at Pixar. Keep in mind this was just after they released Toy Story and way before the saved Disney.

His Response:
1) Pixar is a place where people can get creative satisfaction. We give artists a project that they can be proud of the rest of their career.
2) We give them creative ownership. Let them figure out how to do things, not tell them.
3) We have a lot of fun.

I think this is a beautiful answer and a great standard for the experience we create for visiting designers.