Mark Pincus, the founder and chairman of the board of directors of Zynga Inc (NASDAQ:ZNGA) decided to give up all its operational responsibilities and vacated his role as chief product officer of the online gaming company.
“Ship is better with one captain”
During an earlier interview with re/code, Pincus said that he discussed his decision to step down from his position as chief product officer with CEO Don Mattrick. According to him, he kept his operational duties for a while because he “wanted to put his hands on the products and make sure the company continued to pursue its social mission.”
He added, “Don and some of the existing team and new people really embraced that and, so, ultimately a ship is better with one captain putting a hand on the wheel.”
Zynga, an industry leader
In an e-mail to employees, Mattrick said Pincus build Zynga Inc (NASDAQ:ZNGA) into an entertainment leader since its establishment in 2007. According to him, he managed to turn Zynga’s brands such as FarmVille, Words With Friends and Zynga Poker into household names and became part of the daily habits of millions of consumers.
“It is truly a privilege to lead Zynga and I was honored when Mark asked me to join the company as CEO and guide its next chapter of growth. Mark’s mission to connect the world through games and his unwavering passion for social was a big reason why I joined Zynga Inc (NASDAQ:ZNGA). Over the last 10 months, I have found his partnership to be intellectually rewarding, and I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to continue building out his vision,” wrote Mattrick.
Mattrick and Pincus in his capacity as chairman of the board of Zynga Inc (NASDAQ:ZNGA) will continue to work together to achieve their objective to deliver $1 games to become the scale industry leader in more categories than any competitor.
Other executive appointment/departure
Mattrick also announced the appointment of Alex Garden as president of Zynga Studios. Garden has 25 years of gaming experience, consumer entertainment experiences across free-to-play and console gaming architecture. He previously handled leadership roles including general manager of Xbox Live and Xbox Music at Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT). Garden will directly report to Mattrick effective May 5th.
He also announced that Zynga Inc (NASDAQ:ZNGA)’s Executive Vice President of Games, Steve Chiang will be leaving the company.
Check out Zynga’s Earnings: Here
