Staying Connected at Sony Music

Since Sony Music got its start in New York in 1929, it’s become a global household name, mentioned in the same conversations as iconic artists, songs, and events in music history.

Today, the company operates in more than sixty countries and has continued to build on its global legacy and responsibility, and many of those efforts are highlighted in their 2023 Global Impact Report.

The report highlights the company’s impact on the employee experience; diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI); artists; songwriter’s health; and more. Since 2022, the company has already seen how its “ongoing commitment to equity, transparency, and entrepreneurship is carrying us closer to a more fulfilling workplace experience and community-focused industry with an active role played by our company,” said Chairman Rob Stringer in a letter introducing the report.

Those efforts have been aided by company leaders like Patricia Sedano, senior vice president of global finance. She oversees dynamic and diverse teams in New York, Miami, Portland, India and Mexico, a responsibility to requires her to amplify unique voices while unifying them with a global strategy. To do that, she’s a very hands-on leader who endeavors to help her employees understand that she is part of their team.

Here are some of the global strides the company highlights in its report:

Expanding Benefits and Resources

The company has identified additional ways to extend benefits offerings to its global workforce. Some of that work includes implementing life insurance policies in countries like Brazil, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Indonesia, New Zealand, Nigeria, and Poland. Sony has also enhanced medical coverage in Australia and Thailand; expanded well-being reimbursements in the US and Canada; implemented flexible time off in the US; implemented financial counseling for US employees and their loves ones; and more.

Launching MILES

In 2022, the company launched a strategic framework underscoring its DEI efforts: Mobility, Impact, Leadership, Equity, and Safety (MILES). Since then, the company has used the framework to implement several new programs. One is dedicated to help advance the careers of high-performing individuals from diverse backgrounds by giving them the tools, training, and guidance they need to be leaders. Another, called the Impact Fellows Program, provides diverse young professionals with the chance to learn about the music industry. Other programs have aimed to accelerate diverse professional’s leadership journeys in marketing, ensuring equitable pay across the company, and enhancing Sony Music facilities.

Supporting Artists and Songwriters

Sony has provided its global roster of talent with access to counseling services in more than seventy languages—at no cost. It is also rolled out a new enhancement that offers free, confidential support for talent who need help finding doctors, managing bills, troubleshooting issues, and more.

Additionally, the company has seen global adoption rate increases for its Real Time Artist Tools, which offers music creators and others payment capabilities, updates on consumption of their content, and audience engagement data.

Continuing Impactful Philanthropy

The company has made progress on many of its global philanthropy programs and campaigns. It’s partnered with disability-focused organization Achalay Foundation, based in Madrid, to develop workshops in digital marketing, streaming, and A&R training for people with disabilities. It also provided support to those affected by flood in Pakistan, supported Ukraine relief efforts, and committed $2 million to the United Nations’ refugee agency to provide humanitarian aid to affected populations in Ukraine and surrounding countries. Sony’s penchant for social responsibility is something that is evident in not just its ongoing philanthropic initiatives but also the outlook of its leaders.