Man looks into a film-making camera

Paramount Global accelerates productivity in Slack to deliver global content to billions

‘At Paramount, we leverage technology that enables us to build a more inclusive, flexible, connected and productive workforce, and Slack is central to these efforts.’

Lakshman NathanEVP, Chief Information Officer, Paramount

Paramount Global, the household-name media company, is receiving the Unlocking Productivity Award for using Slack to fuel efficiencies across the business – accelerating work with automations, making internal knowledge sharing more accessible and harnessing the power of Slack Connect to engage hundreds of external partners.

Delivering premium content to fans across platforms the world over, Paramount connects billions of people through studios, networks, streaming services, live events, merchandise and more. Internally, teams use Slack as their productivity platform, communicating across departments, teams and time zones in more than 18,000 Slack channels.

Paramount has Slack deployed in the majority of its subsidiaries, with almost 65% of its users active in Slack every week. And 75% of employees actively take advantage of at least one of 391 applications to reduce context switching and stay locked into the myriad technologies that they use to execute day-to-day tasks.

‘Slack was the first tech tool that was rolled out companywide following our 2019 merger. It doesn’t matter what part of the company someone works in, they know they can reach them in Slack. It’s the centre of our collaboration, community, projects, internal communication and culture.’

Sheetal SahaDirector, Product Management Collaboration, Paramount

Across teams, Paramount uses Workflow Builder, Slack’s no-code tool for automating routine tasks, to spend less time coordinating and more time on deep work. So far, 237 customised workflows span a range of functionalities, each delivering high-value impact for everyday users.

A cornerstone of Paramount’s approach to using integrations is its AI app, ‘My Assistant’. The bot, which is intended to introduce employees to no-code solutions, is trained to answer company questions, increase Slack adoption and help employees to find the answers that they need across tech, finance and HR. Efficient in ten different languages, the app simplifies the complexity of where to get help, connecting enterprise-wide tools so that anyone at Paramount can file tickets, ask questions and retrieve notifications for important approvals and reminders.

‘Slack and its plug-and-play integrations have made our employee experience better by masking the complexity of where to go to have conversations, get approvals and find answers.’

Apsara SivamurthyVice President, End User Technologies and Experience, Paramount

Paramount also relies on workflows externally. For instance, the CBS newsroom uses Slack channels and workflows to execute on breaking news topics, distil the most relevant, real-time information and ensure that the right story is quickly dispersed to various affiliate stations. A producer kicks off a workflow in a channel to request the camera and lighting gear needed for a location shoot, and teams and gear are automatically assigned to on-site crews.

Paramount leverages more than 1,400 Slack Connect channels to extend the success of Slack to 430 external organisations that include valued partners, vendors and clients. By moving conversations out of siloed email threads and into the same place where they’re already working, teams can quickly respond to prospective customers, strengthen teamwork and enable dynamic communication to build high-quality relationships. Clarity of ownership across channels drives faster collaboration, empowering stakeholders to deliver efficient work without compromising security.

In addition, the company recently enabled Slack clips to stay aligned and save time without the hassle of meetings, and it relies on huddles to bring the feeling of working side by side to colleagues around the world. It’s also experimenting with Slack canvas to onboard and empower new hires.

Looking ahead, the Paramount tech team is excited to double down on building advanced workflows within Slack to enable greater internal engagement and easier knowledge sharing – driving productivity and connection at every possible touchpoint.