EA 'streamlines operations' by laying off workers
As the gaming company searches for a new CEO, it's reducing team sizes and letting go of employees to "evolve into a more efficient organization."
It seems like Electronic Arts is still reeling from its recent leadership shakeup. The gaming company today confirmed that it is laying off an undisclosed number of employees.
"EA is sharpening its focus to provide games for new platforms and mobile. In some cases, this involves reducing team sizes as we evolve into a more efficient organization. These are difficult decisions to let go of good people who have made important contributions to EA, and whenever possible we retrain or relocate employees to new roles," a company spokesperson told CNET. "Streamlining our operations will help ensure EA is bringing the best next-generation games to players around the world."
The company isn't revealing which teams are being impacted and how many employees are being laid off. However, according to Joystiq, rumor has it that the layoffs are targeting EA's Mobile Montreal team and that 60 to 70 permanent employees and 100 contract workers were let go. Kotaku is reporting that those numbers might be even higher, with between 250 and 300 employees laid off.
EA has experienced a rough last couple of months. The company's CEO, John Riccitiello, resigned from his position last month. However, EA Executive Chairman Larry Probst, who took over as interim CEO while the company searches for a replacement, hinted that the company's leadership wanted Riccitiello to leave.
"We have mutually agreed that this is the right time for a leadership transition," Probst said at the time of Riccitiello's resignation.
For his part, Riccitiello wrote a departure letter to the company assuming culpability for EA's financial woes.
"My decision to leave EA is really all about my accountability for the shortcomings in our financial results this year," Riccitiello wrote in his letter, according to Joystiq. "It currently looks like we will come in at the low end of, or slightly below, the financial guidance we issued to the Street, and we have fallen short of the internal operating plan we set one year ago. And for that, I am 100 percent accountable."
It appears that not only has the leadership been unhappy at EA, but some consumers haven't been too thrilled with the company either. Earlier this week, EA was voted the "worst company in America" for the second year in a row by the Consumerist's Worst Company awards. EA beat out Comcast, Bank of America, and Ticketmaster, garnering 77.5 percent of the vote.