Paramount Global replaces CEO Bob Bakish with a troika of executives

Paramount Global replaces CEO Bob Bakish with a troika of executives

Paramount Global announced on Monday that Bob Bakish is stepping down as CEO of the film, television, and multimedia company. Bakish will be replaced by a troika of executives who will form a new “Office of the CEO.” The group includes George Cheeks, the CEO of CBS; Chris McCarthy, CEO of Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Media Networks; and Brian Robbins, the CEO of Paramount Pictures. The company stated that Cheeks, McCarthy, and Robbins will work closely with CFO Naveen Chopra and the board of directors.

One of the main challenges the new CEO trio will face is a reported $11 billion offer from private-equity firm Apollo Global to acquire the studio. Paramount, known for producing films and television programs and running the streaming service Paramount+, has also been rumored to consider a merger with Skydance, David Ellison’s media company that has collaborated on Paramount releases.

While co-CEOs are rare but not unheard of in the corporate world, troikas of CEOs are even less common and present unique organizational issues. In the case of two members of a troika, they can outvote the third instead of compromising, which might happen with co-CEOs.

However, a study published in the Harvard Business Review found that among 87 co-CEO led companies, dual leadership coincided with better-than-average stock performance, with around 60% of these companies outperforming.

Paramount also released its earnings for the quarter ending on March 31. The company reported a net loss attributable to Paramount of $554 million, or 87 cents per share, which is a reduction from the $1.1 billion net loss, or $1.74 per share, in the same period last year. Despite the loss, Paramount’s revenue increased by 5.8% to $7.66 billion from $7.27 billion in the prior year period.

The company’s earnings in the latest quarter, adjusted for one-time gains and costs, amounted to 62 cents per share, exceeding the expectations of 35 cents per share in a FactSet poll.

To symbolize the challenges ahead, Paramount closed out the conference call with the theme to “Mission: Impossible.”

TIS Staff

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