MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
Here are the highlights from the recent industry hires and moves, as published in MCV/DEVELOP’s March issue.
The Sumo Group has improved its internal training and its ties to academia with two additions to the team. First, Jenny Muhlwa joins as learning & development manager. Muhlwa brings over a decade of experience in staff development from brands such as Wilko and Unipart.
Dr Jake Habgood, meanwhile, joins as director of education partnerships, who is rejoining Sumo after 10 years at Sheffield Hallam University, where he taught on its Games Software Development degrees and founded Steel Minions game studio.
Indie publisher Merge has added two new members to their team in Knutsford. Isaac Haslehurst joins the team as a QA tester, having previously worked with Manchester’s Prospect Games developing varied titles.
Jamie Collinge meanwhile has joined the team as assistant producer. Collinge previously worked with International Hobo as a digital artist.
IGN’s Joe Skrebels has been promoted, and is new the global executive editor of news, and will be leading the charge on IGN’s news output globally. Skrebels was previously the UK deputy editor, having joined the team as news editor in 2016.
That’s not the only promotion at IGN-parent Ziff Davis however, Daniel Kilby is now VP, global creative solutions & operations at the company. Having joined as marketing coordinator in 2009.
Team17 have a new head of studio in the form of Chris Coates, Coates has over 22 years of industry experience, joining from Ubisoft Reflections and Ubisoft Leamington where he was studio design manager. Coates previously worked in senior positions at Codemasters and EA Vancouver. He said: “Team17 has been an iconic developer and publisher in the UK games industry for three decades, and I’m proud to join now and help it to continued success over years to come.”
Improbable has made two new staff changes. Dan Griliopoulos is now senior staff writer, having worked as lead content editor since he joined in 2017. Griliopoulos has written on a number of titles, including Pandora: First Contact and Warhammer 40,000: Gladius – Relics of War. “In my new role at Improbable Game Studios, I’m looking forward to exploring the new kinds of narratives and stories you can put into these innovative worlds,” he said.
Additionally, Dan Odell has joined as chief financial officer. Odell joins from Disney Parks, where he spent three years as VP, global product management. He said: “The chance to apply my experience to a growing company in one of the fastest-growing entertainment markets, multiplayer gaming, is a great opportunity. I’ve been blown away by the talent and the ambition at Improbable, and I’m looking forward to contributing to its growth into an end-to-end solution for multiplayer game development.”
The remote-working Roll7 has a new studio manager in Kyra Chan. Chan has six years of experience working in the Creative Industries, having previously worked at Fusebox Games and Failbetter Games.
Will Attwood has joined the Ubisoft UK Marketing Team in the newly created role of esports marketing manager. Attwood joins from ESL, where he held various roles within the esports organisation, leading the UK and Ireland’s national league, the Premiership, as well as Product Manager for the EU Masters among other projects.
Caroline Lacey has joined the entertainment and sports agency Creative Artists Agency (CAA) as executive in CAA Search, the agency’s Executive Search and Human Capital Advisory division. Lacey previously spent four years at executive search firm Odgers Berndtson, developing clients within the global gaming practice.
Hutch has announced three new hires, as the studio expands its community team. First, Chris Hohbein joins as head of community & social. Hohbein has over a decade of experience in community and social media management, having worked for studios such as Natural Motion, Lionhead and Jagex, on titles such as CSR2, Fable and Runescape.
Hutch’s second new hire is Katie Rossiter, who joins the team as community manager. Rossiter began her career working in marketing and later on front-end web design for clients including The Guardian, Radio Times, Qatar Airways and Emirates.
Finally, Ian Webster has joined the team as senior community manager. Webster previously worked at Codemasters across their roster of action and racing titles, including Formula One. Following that he was responsible for heading up Forza community initiatives in the EMEA region for Turn 10 Studios.
