Paramount head of global inclusion and Nickelodeon public affairs executive vice president Marva Smalls will step away from her current roles at the end of this year to work with the Office of the CEO, the media giant’s board and David Ellison’s Skydance Media announced in preparation for the closing of the two companies’ $8 billion merger in the first half of 2025.
In her current roles, Smalls is responsible for implementing strategic initiatives and fostering partnerships that promote and advance diversity, inclusion and belonging at the company with both internal and external stakeholders. She also oversees corporate responsibility initiatives and relationships with external advocates and regulators for Nickelodeon.
She previously served as Viacom’s global head of inclusion strategy, where she developed diversity and inclusion initiatives and advisory councils, established the company’s Employee Resource Groups globally and expanded key partnerships in international markets. Smalls was also Nickelodeon’s chief of staff, where she partnered with the network’s president to manage day-to-day operations.
“I want to thank you for your individual and collective partnership in driving a Paramount organization that’s diverse, equitable and inclusive, and one that empowers its youngest audience, kids, to be catalysts for change,” Smalls wrote in a Tuesday memo to staff. “I am tremendously proud of the efforts that we have undertaken to drive a culture of belonging and one where we do not have to check our individuality at the door. And I am equally proud of how we have helped sow the seeds of respect for different cultures and lived experiences with future generations.”
“It has been the honor of a lifetime to have traveled with you these past 30 years on our shared journey to giving voice to the marginalized, to empowering those who have been excluded, to affirming our audiences in all their diversity, and to fostering an inclusive and collaborative culture throughout Paramount,” she continued. “And importantly, it has been a distinct privilege to partner with Shari and the board, our senior leaders and management teams in always having inclusion as a core part of driving our business forward.”
Smalls said she would work with Paramount co-CEOs Brian Robbins, Chris McCarthy and George Cheeks over the next two months to come up with a transition plan to cover her current roles.
“We want to acknowledge the tremendous impact Marva has had in her current role at Paramount and thank her for her many contributions,” the co-CEOs said in a joint statement. “After assuming the additional role as head of global inclusion, Marva worked to deliver a vision that put our company on a path toward walking the talk on inclusion. A strong partner to our board of directors and senior leadership teams, she championed the principle of everyday inclusion, which is the fabric of our business and what we strive to do every day.”
Prior to joining Viacom in 1993, Smalls worked as chief of staff to U.S. Congressman Robin Tallon (D-SC) and served in South Carolina Governor Richard Riley’s administration. She was the first African American chief of staff for a white, Southern member of Congress. She is also a founding member of the Black Economic Alliance and serves on numerous boards, including the American Theatre Wing, the International African American Museum, the James Beard Foundation, the Heisman Trophy Trust and Synovus Bank/South Carolina.
