A few days after laying off roughly 1,900 people, Microsoft has chosen a new Blizzard President. Most of these layoffs did impact the Activision Blizzard division, including former President and Microsoft employee Mike Ybarra. Johanna Faries has been named the new President of Activision-Blizzard.
While her first day on the job won’t officially be until February 5th, she’s already reaching out to connect with employees. The company did share a copy of her internal email sent to employees in a blog post.
I am committed to doing everything I can to help Blizzard thrive, with care and consideration for you and for our games, each unique and special in their own right. I’m optimistic about our ability to serve our current and future player communities, and to further amplify the shared passion for greatness, polish, and creative mastery that is a hallmark of Blizzard’s approach to game-making.
Next week, I will be in Irvine and I am eager to connect with as many of you as possible. I will be scheduling informal (and totally optional) meet-and-greets, where I want to hear more from people across the organization. Those of you who cannot make it to those gatherings or aren’t located in Irvine, please feel free to email me. We are also planning a town hall meeting to be held in the near future.
It sounds like Johanna has a deep connection with people and the legacy of Activition-Blizzard and its titles. The last 18 months have been a bumpy ride for the team. Hopefully, Johanna can bring some stability and enthusiasm to move the company forward for gamers and those inside the walls who love making them.
