Earlier today Sony announced that Phil Harrison was resigning from his position with Sony, and everyone was all like “WTF?” And if you haven’t already heard the rumors, there’s word that Harrison might be going to work with Atari. That right there should warrant a “WTFBBQ?”
This evening brings news that’s not quite as Earth-shattering, but noteworthy nonetheless — Sony Computer Entertainment America has announced three new executive appointments. The first is Robert Dyer to Senior Vice President, Publisher Relations; Dyer was formerly President and COO of Crave Entertainment. Next up we have Ian Jackson to Vice President, sales; Jackson steps out of his current role as Managing Director for SCE Canada. And in this corner, we have Sally Buchanan to Vice President, Human resources; she’ll help recruit new talent, retention, and possibly re-word pink slips.
Since none of this has to do with LittleBigPlanet, Home, or Resistance 2, it’s likely I’ve lost 94% of you. For the remainder, please hit the jump for the full press release, along with complimentary coffee and cake.
SONY COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT AMERICA EXPANDS EXECUTIVE TEAM WITH APPOINTMENTS OF THREE INDUSTRY VETERANS TO KEY MANAGEMENT ROLES
Appointments Include Industry Veterans Robert Dyer to Senior Vice-President, Publisher Relations, Ian Jackson to Vice-President, Sales and Sally Buchanan to Vice-President, Human Resources
FOSTER CITY, Calif., February 25, 2008 – Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) today announced the executive appointments of Robert Dyer to Senior Vice President, Publisher Relations, Ian Jackson to Vice President, Sales and Sally Buchanan to Vice President, Human Resources. Buchanan, Dyer and Jackson, who bring nearly 50 years of combined industry experience, will add further depth and experience to an already stellar executive team. These three key positions, which take effect in March and April 2008 and report directly to SCEA President and CEO Jack Tretton, will help further lead the company’s efforts in sales, merchandising, cooperative marketing, recruiting and publisher relations.
“Rob Dyer, Ian Jackson and Sally Buchanan’s proven records of strategic leadership and innovation, combined with their extensive industry experience re-enforce their new roles as a great fit for our organization,” said Jack Tretton, president and CEO, SCEA. “These three appointments augment an already strong executive staff at SCEA and provide the company with additional leadership to focus on key relationships with some of the most important constituencies, our publishing partners, retail community, and internal employees, as we continue to build on the momentum generated in early 2008 by the PlayStation family of products.”
Dyer will be responsible for executing the strategy and vision for SCEA’s industry partnerships with external developers and publishers as well as oversee strategic co-marketing programs. Dyer, who has more than two decades of senior leadership experience in the game and entertainment industry, joins SCEA from Crave Entertainment Group, where he served as President and COO since 2004, and helped to direct the game and publishing company to secure more than $300 million in revenue in 2007. Prior to joining Crave Entertainment Group, Dyer managed all areas of operations as President of Eidos Interactive and Crystal Dynamics, two of the industry’s leading developers and publishers of entertainment software.
With Dyer’s appointment, Riley Russell will move into a more focused position as Chief Legal Officer and Senior Vice President of Corporate Development including the additional responsibility of managing licensee relations for first-party intellectual properties.
Jackson will oversee strategic sales and promotional initiatives across all PlayStation platforms in North America. Bringing extensive sales and marketing experience from some of the largest digital entertainment companies in the industry, Jackson most recently held the role of Managing Director for Sony Computer Entertainment Canada and was responsible for maintaining the company’s leadership position in the Canadian market. Previously, Jackson also held strategic sales and marketing positions at Electronic Arts, Panasonic and Microsoft where he worked closely with retailers, distributors and channel partners to execute product launches and sales activities. To build on the strong management team already in place for SCE Canada, Steve Turvey will replace Jackson as General Manager.
Buchanan, who has been with SCEA since 1994, will oversee the strategic Human Resources initiatives including career planning, leadership development, succession planning and talent acquisition, and retention strategies for SCEA. Prior to joining SCEA, Buchanan held varying roles in Human Resources within the technology and staffing industries.
