Ins and Outs – January 2019’s industry hires roundup

Here are the highlights from the recent industry hires and moves, as published in MCV’s February issue.

. GamesRadar has made a couple of appointments, with former GamesTM deputy editor Josh West hired as the publication’s new features editor where he plans to “deliver a smooth blend of long-form features and scorching hot takes.” Rob Dwiar has also joined as staff writer for both GamesRadar and PC Gamer.

. Sumo Digital has hired Richard Iggo as its new director of marketing. Most recently senior director of marketing at Telltale, he has over two decades of experience in games.

. Ruby Rumjen, former Bandai Namco PR manager, has joined Warner Bros. She said: “I’m super excited to join WB Games as their international PR manager! And what a great time to join, as I now have the opportunity to work on two games I am most looking forward to playing: Mortal Kombat 11 and Harry Potter Wizards Unite.”

. Exertis has appointed Howard Ingleby as programme director for the UK and Ireland.
He’ll be in charge of “managing change and delivery of key strategic and infrastructure projects.”

. Relic Entertainment has a new COO: Heidi Eaves, who previously spent 11 years at EA as senior development director, among other senior roles. In her new post, Eaves said she wanted to focus “on people, quality, development and culture.”

. There’s been a few changes at IGN, with Yael Prough promoted from SVP and chief revenue officer to general manager and EVP, based in the publication’s San Francisco office. Prough joined IGN in 2009. On this side of the pond, Joe Skrebels was promoted to deputy editor of IGN in the UK, having previously been news editor for almost three years, while Dale Driver was also promoted to senior video producer and studio manager, having previously been video producer for over three years.

. Daniel Krupa, Gav Murphy and Rory Powers have left IGN to launch their own YouTube channel, RKG, which will be offering livestreams, podcasts and a “new long-form Let’s Play series” called Retry, a spiritual successor to their previous work on IGN’s channel Prepare To Try. They’ve also lauched a Patreon to support their new adventures.

. IGDA Scotland board member Jaime Cross has been appointed audio lead at Monstrum developer Team Junkfish, joining from Blazing Griffin. He already worked at Team Junkfish from 2011 to 2017, as audio lead and director of public relations.

. Former PlayStation Access channel manager Hollie Bennett has joined CD Projekt Red as UK head of communications. She said: “I am incredibly excited to join the CD Projekt Red team. My role will see me working with UK media, content creators, influencers and our community plus the incredible team at Bandai Namco Entertainment UK to help showcase our incredible library of games including our upcoming title Cyberpunk 2077.”

. MCV is off to a great start under our new owners at Biz Media with the hire of Alex Boucher as business development manager. Boucher is an MCV and Develop veteran, having managed the games portfolio at Intent Media up until 2015. Boucher remains managing director of his own Analog Ltd. He said: “I’m really excited to be working for MCV again, and can’t wait to share what we have planned for 2019. It’s an exciting time for the games industry right now and MCV will definitely be there to inform and collaborate with its audience.”

. Former community manager at Focus James Bartholomeou has joined ICO Partners. He commented: “I’m excited to be joining ICO Partners as a junior PR, working with UK and Scandinavian audiences. PR will be a new challenge, and I’m really looking forwards to seeing what the next few years bring.”

. Roblox has hired Laura Higgins as its director of digital civility. Bringing over 20 years of experience, she will lead the new Digital Civility Initiative at Roblox, giving “children, teens, parents and caregivers the tools to create a safe environment for building strong life skills while also ensuring a fun, productive experience for everyone.”

. Clive Moody has been promoted from senior executive producer to SVP of product development at Codemasters. Former VP of product development Mick Hocking has left
the company.

. Erez Goren, Hi-Rez founder and CEO, has stepped down after 15 years leading the company. He’s succeeded by Stewart Chisam, former VP of operations.

. Ubisoft has a new PR executive, Calum Ridgewell, who’s working across a range of titles, such as Tom Clancy’s The Division 2, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, The Crew 2, Ghost Recon Wildlands and Anno 1800.