People news 18 June 2015
The latest people news from the egaming industry in the last seven days (12 June to 18 June 2015)
BetVictor boss maps out new strategy
CEO Andreas Meinrad tells eGR the firm is ready to “embrace change” as he begins to implement his strategic plans
BetVictor chief executive Andreas Meinrad has told eGaming Review he intends to lead the operator to the “next level” with his plans for a major shake-up at the Gibraltar-based firm, including recruiting eight new senior staff.
In his first interview since being appointed as Michael Carlton’s long-term successor in February, Meinrad said he had joined a business with “very strong foundations” and had identified a number of ways in which to improve the fortunes of the business.
And he revealed the firm had recently tasked executive recruitment firm Odgers Berndtson to fill a raft of new senior positions, with vacancies including CFO, chief commercial officer, director of casino and poker and head of acquisition.
“Having taken time to get to know the existing management structure and understand the talents and skill-sets available, we have identified areas where we need individuals with different skills and abilities,” Meinrad said.
Sky Bet targets Italy in multi-million pound expansion drive
Sky Betting and Gaming will embark on a multi-million pound expansion drive with the opening of new offices in Sheffield and Rome as well as proposals to relocate 20 people from its gaming team to Guernsey.
The Sheffield office will open in the coming weeks with the firm hiring 40 new employees to focus on technology and product with roles including product management, technical architects, business analyst, engineers, scrum masters and testers.
The new South Yorkshire location will be backed with a £10m investment over the next five years with much of its product development work allied to its international expansion plans, initially focusing on the Italian market.
Seven days in people news:
Betit Group loses CEO and COO to start-up venture
Betit Group will see its CEO and COO depart today as the pair embark on their own gaming start-up venture.
Chief exec Joakim Stockman joined Betit in April 2013 as the operator’s first CEO, having been handpicked by founders Optimizer Invest, while COO Henric Andersson has been at the firm since September of the same year.
The pair will leave Betit, which operates the fast-growing Thrills.com and Super Lenny brands, today and expects to launch a new online casino venture in the second half of 2016.
Betfair merges UK and international MD roles
Betfair has merged two of its most senior positions after promoting UK & Ireland MD Aine Cuddihy to the new role of managing director for the operator’s non-US business.
The position combines Dublin-based Cuddihy’s current UK & Ireland responsibilities with those carried out by the managing director of the international business, which until now had been held by Jeronimo Folgueira.
While Betfair refused to comment on the story, it is understood the move was designed to bring the UK and international teams closer together, with a number of departments also handed responsibility across the two divisions.
Great Britain’s Gambling Commission names new CEO
Great Britain’s Gambling Commission has named Ofgem senior partner Sarah Harrison as its new chief executive, ending a near nine-month search to find a successor to the outgoing Jenny Williams.
In a statement released last week, the Gambling Commission said Harrison would join the regulator on 7 September before assuming full CEO responsibilities on 1 October with Williams set to remain in her role for the next few months in order to ensure a smooth transition.
“I am very pleased to be appointed chief executive of the Gambling Commission, and look forward to the challenges of keeping gambling fair and safe and regulating an industry which is changing rapidly with technology,” Harrison said.
Italian regulator Rodano abandons IGT move
Italian regulator Francesco Rodano has abandoned plans to join gaming giant IGT and will instead see out the remainder of his contract with the Italian government,
Last month eGR revealed gaming director Rodano was set to leave Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli (AAMS) after being offered a role as senior director of market strategies and development at IGT’s London offices.
However, Rodano will now remain in his current position until the end of his fixed-term contract, which runs for at least another 12 months.
BoyleSports plots 2016 Asia launch
BoyleSports has set its sights on the Asian market and is in the process of assembling a leadership team to oversee its entry early next year, its commercial director Brendan Hughes has told eGaming Review.
Speaking to eGR, Hughes said the firm could use its operational hub in Manila as a base for its Asia team and had already held “fruitful discussions” with a number of potential hires.
“One rationale of establishing a base in Manila back in 2013 was to give us a natural launch pad for a future Asian-facing product launch,” Hughes said.
Evolution appoints Martin Carlesund as Malta CEO
Evolution Gaming has appointed Martin Carlesund as CEO of Evolution Malta, with group chief executive Jens von Bahr stepping back from day-to-day operations to focus on building “long-term shareholder value”.
Carlesund, who was most recently CEO of gaming affiliate HighLight Media and previously served as chief executive of search engines Eniro Sweden and Finland, has joined the recently listed firm with immediate effect and assumed the Malta-based responsibilities previously carried out by von Bahr
“I’m very impressed by Evolution’s past success and could not resist the chance to contribute to the company’s continued development,” Carlesund said.