Activision Blizzard Shareholders Call On Bobby Kotick, Board Members To Resign

Yesterday, The Wall Street Journal published an extended study detailing grounds that Activision CEO Bobby Kotick was alert for years of the company’s agelong past of intersexual misconduct. The study besides points to Kotick withholding accusation astir these events from the committee of directors and surfaces maltreatment allegations levied astatine Kotick himself. You tin work the afloat communicative here, but the revelations sparked an industry-wide outcry that resulted successful implicit 100 Activision Blizzard employees staging an impromptu walkout yesterday demanding Kotick’s resignation. It present appears that a radical of shareholders is echoing the aforesaid sentiment. 

The Washington Post published a communicative revealing that respective shareholders, led by the Strategic Organizing Center (SOC) Investment Group, person penned a associated missive to Activision’s committee of directors requesting Kotick to measurement down. The missive besides asks for the resignation of 2 of the board’s longest-tenured members, Brian Kelly and Robert Morgado. Kelly, who joined the institution successful 1995, serves arsenic president of the board. Morgado has been with Activision since 1997 and acts arsenic pb autarkic director. 

These shareholders person requested Kotick, Kelly, and Morgado resign by December 31. If they bash not, the radical vows not to ballot for the reelection of existent committee members during adjacent June’s yearly shareholder’s meeting. The SOC tells the Post that existent Activision enactment has repeatedly failed to foster a harmless moving situation for each employees and that the institution needs “a reset fastener connected the board.” Among their replacements, the radical wishes to name astatine slightest 1 non-executive Activision Blizzard worker and wants a much divers committee overall.

Several concern groups person signed the missive and, arsenic a whole, relationship for $4.8 cardinal owned shares of Activision's astir $779 million full outstanding shares.  SOC Investment Group is simply a steadfast that works with union-sponsored pension funds and, successful its ain words, "holds corporations and their enactment accountable for irresponsible and unethical firm behaviour and excessive enforcement pay". The SOC has previously opposed Kotick's important income, which is 1 of the highest among U.S. executives. 

It’s worthy noting that Activision’s committee of directors issued a connection yesterday successful effect to the WSJ’s report, saying it “remains assured that Bobby Kotick appropriately addressed workplace issues brought to his attention.” Kotick himself sent a transcribed video message to Activision Blizzard employees calling the WSJ's study "inaccurate and misleading."

[Source: The Washington Post]