Speaking to a graduating class at Berkeley University in California, EA CEO John Riccitiello that getting anywhere in business means taking big risks and rolling with them. Pretty standard stuff, but coming from the guy who almost single-handedly turned around the flagging fortunes of a global corporation, it probably means something significant.
“Failing well matters because it is ultimately how you define your reputation and, I think, how you will see yourself,” Riccitiello said.
“Four years ago I held a meeting and told employees that we were in a do or die situation. We were failing. We could invest and re-tool for radical change, or we could accept the shrinking share of a shrinking pie and eventually die.
“The internet was about to do to the game industry what it had done to music, movies and newspapers,” he continued. “We were facing a world going through unbelievable change with the rise of smartphones, social networks, and more recently the iPad, each of which has turned out to be a platform where gaming is the number one application.”
“I wish I could tell you it’s all paid off. Yes we’ve had a few wins, but there’s much more to do. We’re proud that our game quality is up, our cost is down, and our profits are up. That the investments and the notion that we could build a business beyond simply packaged goods is working.
“And we’re happy that Wall Street is starting to respond. But I’m not standing in front of shareholders in a flight suit claiming mission accomplished.
“So while the lesson isn’t over, we’ve learned a lot.”
Back in 2004, EA was caught up in a very public controversy about its treatment of employees, after spouses published complaints of the company’s excessive working hours, and a class action lawsuit was filed. The publisher’s then somewhat sequel-reliant title catalogue was also criticised.
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