Activision Blizzard has quietly hired a former member of the Trump administration to be its new chief administrative officer.
Update: Added comment from Activision Blizzard spokesperson.
Activision Blizzard has quietly hired a former member of the Trump administration to be its new chief administrative officer. The news comes as the company public announced the appointment of a new CFO.
As reported by Kotaku, the Call of Duty publisher has brought in Brian Bulatao, who was previously under Secretary of State for Management at the U.S. Department of State -- where he worked directly under Secretary of State and ardent Trump ally, Mike Pompeo.
Bulatao recently came under scrutiny when the House Democrats launched a probe into Trump's firing of the State Department's independent watchdog, Inspector General Steve Linick. During that investigation, Linick testified that Bulatao "tried to bully" him on a number occasions while he looked into a possible misuse of government resources by Pompeo and probed the Trump administration's sale of arms to Saudi Arabia.
Activision Blizzard chief exec Bobby Kotick told staff about the hire in an email seen by Kotaku, and described Bulatao as a "rare talent" while highlighting his military career and only briefly touching upon his "government experience."
“Brian is a rare talent, and the perfect fit for Activision Blizzard; his unparalleled combination of business, military, and government experience makes him ideally suited to accelerate our organizational transformation and deliver on great opportunities for future growth," wrote Kotick.
Bulatao has specifically been hired to oversee the Call of Duty Endowment, a non-profit foundation co-founded by Kotick that helps former service members in the United States and UK transition to civilian careers. He will also take charge of "key administrative functions" across departments including Activision Blizzard, People, IT, Workplace Information, and Physical Security.
"Brian’s unparalleled success in the business world and distinguished career as an Infantry Captain in the U.S. Army make him an excellent addition to our leadership team, to lead our organization toward future growth," an Activision Blizzard rep told Gamasutra. "We believe in honoring the legacy and extraordinary sacrifices of veterans, and we recognize and appreciate the expertise and rigor they bring to everything they do."
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