New SCEE CEO: Reeves replaced by Andrew House

[Crossbar]

Not a day to early in my opinion. Not that I think David Reeves was stupid or anything, but he is a person I find hard to relate to and I think that was the case for a large part of SCEEs customers. His presentations at the game conventions in Europe felt awkward to me. I hope Andrew will do a better job.

Here is what he looks like:

What he will do.

In his new role, House will be responsible for managing the PlayStation business across nearly 100 countries in the Europe/PAL territories, including the company’s PlayStation®2, PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) and PLAYSTATION®3 platforms as well as PlayStation®Network.

“I’m very happy to welcome Andrew back to the PlayStation business and to work closely with him again” said Kazuo Hirai, President and Group CEO, Sony Computer Entertainment.“I’m confident that the skills and expertise Andy has gained over the years working as Sony’s CMO will contribute enormously in leading the PlayStation business in Europe/PAL countries and regions and to bring new initiatives in managing the business in the coming networked era.”

“I’m delighted to return to the PlayStation fold and excited to take on this new challenge,” said Andrew House,“I have strong ties to the interactive entertainment industry and I believe there is huge potential for further growth of our business in the Europe/PAL countries and regions, particularly in the area of networked entertainment. I’m looking forward to working with everyone at SCEE and with other groups in Sony to help achieve this potential.”

Some stuff he has done.

House joined Sony Corporation in 1990, where he worked in corporate communications for Sony Corporation (Japan) for five years. In April 1995, he was assigned to the marketing and communications division of SCEI, contributing to the marketing and promotion of the original PlayStation® computer entertainment system as well as its game titles. In March 1996, House was promoted to Vice President, Marketing of Sony Computer Entertainment America, where he led SCEA’s marketing efforts to establish the North American market for the original PlayStation as well as formulating and executing the market strategies which led to the successful launch of the PlayStation 2 and PSP businesses. House was also instrumental in developing the PlayStation brand into a household name in North America. In addition to his marketing responsibilities, he also led the Third Party Relations and Developer Support divisions from 2000, making sizeable contributions in establishing and maintaining firm relationships with third party game developers and publishers in North America as well as growing content alliances.

Acknowledged for his invaluable contribution to the expansion of the PlayStation business and to the company’s marketing and brand management efforts, House was appointed CMO of Sony Corporation in 2005, with global responsibility for corporate marketing across all of Sony’s businesses with primary emphasis in building value in the Sony brand.

Should be on the same frequency as Stringer. (link)

Mr. House is originally from Wales and is a British citizen.

Education:

House obtained his bachelor of arts in English language and literature from Oxford University, England.

 

[rounin]

Whatever happened to Sony being an engineering company headed by engineers...

 

[Crossbar]

Whatever happened to Sony being an engineering company headed by engineers...

"Whatever happend to the funky race? A generation lost in space,"

Seriously I don´t think David was a typical Sony Engineer, looking at his background:

David graduated from Cambridge University (UK) in Natural Sciences and completed a PhD in Chemical and Astrophysics before beginning his working life at ICI Paints in Operations Research and then going on to complete an MBA in Marketing. This led to a change of career and he moved into FMCG working in tobacco, food and beverages for RJR Nabisco. He spent 18 years overseas in South Africa, Switzerland, USA and Japan where his activities included setting up and developing new markets and businesses for RJR, rolling out F1 Motor Racing sponsorships and managing global brands.

I can´t find any information about Phil Harrisons education, anyone?

Replacing Ken Kutaragi with Kaz Hirai probably had a bigger impact on the engineering bias of the Sony leadership.

[Hirai] ...graduating from the International Christian University in August 1984 with a Bachelor of Arts degree

Whatever it means.

 

[obonicus]

In a slashdot interview linked off Phil Harrison's WP page he seems to suggest he's been in the game industry full-time since 1987. No idea what that means, though.

 

[RobertR1]

There's still tretton left for awesome interviews.

 

[patsu]

Hopefully this means they will consolidate some of their online infrastructures.

Would be interesting to see new Playstation marketing approaches in Europe under Andrew House.

 

[deepbrown]

At last

 

[JPT]

At last

At last Reeves is out or at last House is in?

 

[deepbrown]

At last Reeves is out or at last House is in?

Reeves is out. To be honest, I don't really know what he has done for PlayStation, but when Phil left, Reeve's speeches have been nothing but drivel. I think this House dude sounds good - I mean his name is House.

 

[Farid]

Can't say that this news is surprising, given the internal "discussions" going at the various SCE branches over what to do and how to do it. Some people had to get their way, comply or leave.

While, it's nice, from a standpoint, to have various regional groups having their own particularities (strengths and weaknesses). I think it's better off for SCE, in its current market position, to get a global vision set for many topics. And to do so, you have to change how things were handled at SCEE/SCEA/SCEI.

 

[patsu]

Yeah... I reckon this is one of the "spill-over" changes from the big re-org last month where they promoted Kaz. Wondering what they are up to now with all the $$$ saved from the exercise.

 

[Kittonwy]

Whatever happened to Sony being an engineering company headed by engineers...

Engineers are good at engineering, not necessarily management.

 

[Entropy]

Engineers are good at engineering, not necessarily management.

Then again management that neither understands the products and their development requirements nor how they relate to the needs of the customers, and has problems relating to its workforce is not necessarily a recipy for success either.

 

[obonicus]

Then again management that neither understands the products and their development requirements nor how they relate to the needs of the customers, and has problems relating to its workforce is not necessarily a recipy for success either.

Sure. How does this relate to Sony?

 

[Cheezdoodles]

Not a day to early in my opinion. Not that I think David Reeves was stupid or anything, but he is a person I find hard to relate to and I think that was the case for a large part of SCEEs customers.

Why should consumers relate to the CEO of SCEE?

I dont think your average consumer knows (or cares) who is the CEO of the console manufacturer your buying your crap from..

 

[Crossbar]

Why should consumers relate to the CEO of SCEE?

I dont think your average consumer knows (or cares) who is the CEO of the console manufacturer your buying your crap from..

In principle I agree with you, but they made a shitload of presentations by him available on PSN a year ago or so, obviously that was aimed at the consumers.

Don´t know why they couldn´t find a better person for the presentations. Maybe they thought he was the best person to fill Phil Harrisons place.

 

[patsu]

Hah, where can I find those Reeves videos on the net ? A charismatic CEO may boost a company's public image. Otherwise, most CEOs remain behind the scene.

 

[BadTB25]

Hah, where can I find those Reeves videos on the net ? A charismatic CEO may boost a company's public image. Otherwise, most CEOs remain behind the scene.

Yup...see Steve Jobs.

 

[Crossbar]

Hah, where can I find those Reeves videos on the net ? A charismatic CEO may boost a company's public image. Otherwise, most CEOs remain behind the scene.

The presentations I was thinking about was from the London Playstation Day last may I think. They are no longer available on PSN, but the press conference from the 2008 Game Convention in Leipzig is still available, and it is also a pretty good illustration of my impression of him. I just rewatched it and I was fearing David Reeves was about to self combust while starting off the press conference with a long quote by Goethe.

 

[Entropy]

Sure. How does this relate to Sony?

Well, how did the post I responded to relate to Sony?
It was a remark about a general management problem. A thorny one at that.

However, the current head of Sony is rumoured to have ruffled the feathers/sharply decreased morale of the Sony staff that is directly involved with engineering, showing no appreciation for their prowess and achievements profitable and not. This data is worth what you paid for it - I have no affilitation with Sony in any way. I am, however, affiliated with a person doing post-doctorate research on japanese corporate organisation.

Sony used to be an engineering powerhouse, and attracted employees on those grounds. Engineers are people. They can enjoy their work. They can have visions and dream up Cool Stuff, and occasionally turn these into reality, or even products. They take pride in these creations. Being told that they are no longer allowed this, and that their previous creations were pointless, perhaps even embarrassing since they didn't produce profit for the company is not likely to be taken well.