Three SCi Execs Quit Under Pressure

SCi CEO Jane Cavanagh has quit the company, alongside managing directors Bill Ennis and Rob Murphy, following investor disquiet over failed takeover talks, the delay of the next Tomb Raider game and the subsequent warning of losses in the 2008 financial year. Cavanagh, one of the few female CEOs in the games business, will be replaced by current chief financial officer Phil Rogers, who joined the company in March 2007. The three departures are all effective immediately. SCi, owners of Eidos Interactive, recently announced the delay of four new titles, including Tomb Raider: Underworld, until the next financial year. This resulted in the company warning that it will post a loss for the 2008 financial year and that it may need to raise extra working capital to plug the gap until the games’ release. These problems exacerbated investor complaints over the company’s decision to end takeover talks with all potential suitors, due to a lower than desired valuation for the company. The actions of Cavanagh and her executives have already had a positive effect on the company’s share price – with stock experiencing its biggest gain in more than eleven years. "Over the course of last week, the board has been listening to the shareholders, and it was clear to me change was necessary at SCi. On the backdrop of a positive games market, SCi needed a change in direction," quotes Bloomberg of chairman Tim Ryan. "This company has got to restore faith and trust, [it] has to earn it through under-promising and over-delivering." Ryan also indicated that the SCi will continue to “pursue every opportunity” to find a new buyer.