The product chief at the newly dubbed Skydance is ready to get the ball rolling — and encouraging employees to do the same — on the heels of Paramount Skydance’s merger with Warner Bros. Discovery.
“The leaders who will have the greatest impact here are the ones with a bias for action under ambiguity. They let the best idea win, full stop,” Dane Glasgow, chief product officer at Skydance, told staffers Tuesday in a memo that was obtained by Business Insider.
Glasgow told the Paramount and WBD teams that he recognized the months leading up to the merger had been “challenging” and that he appreciated their “resilience” and “steadfast commitment.”
“I’m very excited about what we are going to build — an organization where technical craft matters, where the best ideas win and where we can move at a pace that matches our ambition,” he said.
Glasgow also nodded to CEO David Ellison’s remarks about the merger, saying technology was “reshaping how stories are created, distributed and experienced” and that the team would help keep the company “on the cutting edge of that work.”
Paramount Skydance’s $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery was completed on Tuesday, creating a new media behemoth called Skydance.
Skydance’s properties now include Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros. Studios, HBO, CBS, CNN, and more, as well as valuable intellectual properties such as DC Comics and Harry Potter.
Read the full memo Glasgow sent Skydance employees below:
Team, I want to take a moment to welcome you all to the new Product & Tech team at Skydance! For more than a century, Paramount and Warner Bros. have operated as two legendary companies that have built new worlds, delighted audiences, and shared stories that have redefined our industry. As we expand our horizons, I want to make sure we all take this moment to celebrate the work we’ve done to reach such a historic moment. As a team, we’re bringing together some of the best product, technology, operations and production service professionals in the business. We will build and deliver next generation products and services that leverage our combined expertise to bring richer entertainment experiences and capabilities to our team’s key customers: creatives, consumers, advertisers, content and distribution partners, and employees. I also recognize that the last few months have been challenging, especially as many of you have been on the forefront of our companies’ ongoing transformations. I deeply appreciate your resilience and your steadfast commitment to delivering for our stakeholders every single day. And I specifically want to thank Avi Saxena, Dave Duvall, James Crossland and Tyler Whitworth for their leadership on the WBD side — I look forward to continuing to work with you all and bringing our teams even closer together. As we get started, I also wanted to share my initial views as they relate to leadership, culture and ways of working: 1. On culture: We’re bringing together two organizations that each have a lot to be proud of, and a lot to learn from one another. Let’s go into this assuming best intent with genuine curiosity about how each other works. We will listen and ask each other questions, sharing information and flagging areas of disagreement or misalignment openly and constructively. 2. On how we work: We will always start with a hypothesis and move quickly to build prototypes and internal builds to test our assumptions. We will be early testers of our own products and ensure that our fast and iterative process results in high-quality experiences for our customers. We’ll continuously provide feedback and encourage our people to stay curious as we explore new ways of doing things. And we’ll hold two things in tension at once: patience with each other as we blend two cultures, and a sense of urgency to correct processes that only serve to slow us down. 3. On leadership: The leaders who will have the greatest impact here are the ones with a bias for action under ambiguity. They let the best idea win, full stop. They’re transparent in both directions: honest with their teams about what’s happening, and quick to surface concerns upward before they become bigger problems. They keep the customer at the center of every decision they make. They are willing to roll up their sleeves and demonstrate both their technical prowess and managerial expertise. And they own the outcome and hold a high standard for what we deliver and how we deliver it. As David mentioned earlier today, technology is reshaping how stories are created, distributed and experienced, and this team will play an important role in keeping Skydance on the cutting edge of that work. We each have established roadmaps coming into the fourth quarter, and I am excited to keep our momentum going. As we share organizational updates with you in the coming weeks and months, I ask that you stay focused on your current priorities and responsibilities. As decisions are made, we will share them deliberately and thoughtfully as we build a world-class, high-performing organization and culture. If you have questions, please visit the Skydance Integration Hub, which will serve as a go-to source for updates, FAQs, and other information as we progress through this transition. A replay of today’s Town Hall will also be available there. In the coming weeks, I will spend time across our locations listening and learning from many of you. We’ll find opportunities for our team to create and collaborate — not just among ourselves, but with our partners across the organization, including DTC, Studios, Finance, Advertising Sales and many others. I’m very excited about what we are going to build — an organization where technical craft matters, where the best ideas win and where we can move at a pace that matches our ambition. Thank you for the work that got us here, and for everything we’ll achieve as we continue to power our climb together – let’s go! Cheers! Dane
