People news 29 September 2016
The latest people news from the egaming industry in the last seven days (23 September to 29 September 2016)
Hills appoints Rank’s Ciara Nic Liam as new gaming head
Rank’s head of casino and games moves to William Hill under director of gaming James Curwen
William Hill has strengthened its gaming team following the appointment of The Rank Group’s Ciara Nic Liam as its new head of gaming, EGR has learned.
Nic Liam, who was head of casino and games at Rank, began her new role last week having worked out a three-month notice period and will report directly into William Hill director of gaming James Curwen.
“Ciara has a strong track record in the sector and her operational skills and experience will further strengthen our team as we continue to expand and improve our gaming offer,” Curwen told EGR.
Nic Liam replaces former head of gaming Nir Hakarmeli, who left earlier this year to become director of gaming operations at rival firm Gala Coral.
Sky Bet hires Deutsche Telekom director as Germany MD
Sky Betting & Gaming (SB&G) has appointed Deutsche Telekom’s VP of gambling & lotteries, Jochen Weiner, as managing director of its new Sky Bet Deutschland business.
Weiner, who has more than 10 years’ egaming experience, will be responsible for assessing how SB&G can enter the largely unregulated German market and will report directly into the operator’s CEO Richard Flint.
He joins SB&G from German telecommunications giant Deutsche Telekom, where he served as managing director of its now defunct online sportsbook tipp3.de and oversaw the company’s gambling activities in Europe.
Seven days in people news:
Svenska Spel beefs-up for regulated market with senior hires
Swedish monopoly Svenska Spel has appointed two new board directors to help spearhead a “digital transformation” of the company ahead of the re-regulation of the Swedish egaming market.
CEO of TUI Travel Group Nordic region, Eivor Andersson, and CFO of Swedish private health care company Praktikertjänst AB, Carina Olson, were both elected to the board at an extraordinary general meeting held on Tuesday.
According to Svenska Spel, Andersson has a strong background in retail business and digital transformation, while Olson comes with financial and M&A experience.
Tombola to boost UK workforce by more than a quarter
Online bingo operator tombola has announced plans to increase its Sunderland-based headcount by 26% as part of a strategy to double its turnover and workforce within five years.
The recruitment drive, which forms part of its â20:20′ growth strategy, will see tombola add an additional 80 staffers, the majority of which will be based in its new Wearside HQ office.
Approximately three-quarters of the new roles will be in software development, while the remaining 25% will consist of animators, graphic designers and product managers.
Tatts Group rings the changes as senior duo depart
Tatts Group has appointed Tabcorp’s former international MD, Brendan Parnell, as COO of its wagering division as part of two senior personnel changes at the operator.
The Australian firm has hired Parnell to replace its outgoing wagering COO Barrie Fletton, who will leave the operator in November following a 24-year career at Tatts.
The new COO previously worked for rival betting business Tabcorp, where he worked for nearly 10 years as chief operating officer, media and international, and later as head of its international team.
EveryMatrix has appointed Lottoland’s former VP B2B Glen Bullen as sales manager with its casino business as the firm looks to grow the distribution of its CasinoEngine platform.
Bullen has worked in the egaming industry since 1999 and has held a commercial roles at ECM, Cyberarts, Odobo and most recently Lottoland.
“We are happy to welcome Glen as our Casino sales manager,” Ebbe Groes, chief executive officer of EveryMatrix,” said.
“His top management skills and wealth of experience in working with the world’s leading operators come as major benefits for our company in attracting large gaming operators and well-established partners in the industry,” he added.
Swedish fintech company Zimpler has announced the appointment of Svenska Spel‘s former senior analyst Henrik Lindberg as the company’s new CTO.
Lindberg’s time at the state-owned gaming operator was focused on unhealthy gaming patterns, a role he assumed following Svenska Spel’s acquisition of Playscan
“With his experience from Svenska Spel and Playscan, Henrik brings a unique knowledge when it comes to analysing betting patterns, behaviour and its consequences,” Kristoï¬er Ekman Sinclair, Zimpler’s CEO, said.
“As CTO, he will play a key role in the development of our service, and thus his knowledge will be available for the entire online gaming market,” he continued.