EA Names New Executives In Big Shuffle

EA has made some big changes to its executive team, shuffling several of its highest executives into new roles or even newly created ones. The announcement from CEO Andrew Wilson outlines the various personnel changes.

Patrick Soderlund will become Chief Design Officer, moving up from his role at Worldwide Studios. Laura Miele will become Chief Studios Officer, leading EA Worldwide Studios. Blake Jorgensen will hold a dual role as both Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer. Other role changes include Chris Bruzzo leading a new internal marketing and analytics organization, and Matt Bilbey will become Executive Vice President of Strategic Growth.

"Change in the gaming industry is accelerating, with more disruption expected in the next 5 years than the last 45," Wilson said. "We must position ourselves for continued transformation and leadership. ... I'm a big believer in having the courage to change, especially in service of our players and our future. To that end, we have aligned on several strategic organizational changes that will sharpen focus on the creative core of EA, drive precision in our operations, and define clear leadership for our growth initiatives."

This all comes in the wake of EA underperforming with Star Wars: Battlefront 2, likely due in part to the bad press and reputation that came with its microtransactions structure. Jorgensen said at the time that microtransactions would be coming back, but they returned in a different form instead. That followed a tepid reception for Mass Effect Andromeda and Anthem being delayed into 2019. It seems the company has had some trouble finding its footing lately, which makes Wilson's comments about changing with the times that much more apt.