Keywords Studios PLC (AIM:KWS, FRA:KS3, OTC:KYYWF) has announced the appointment of Bertrand Bodson as the company’s new chief executive officer, effective December 1.
Bodson joins from Novartis where he is chief digital officer and is a member of the executive committee.
His CV includes senior positions, including chief digital and chief marketing officer at Argos where he led the transition to focus on online retail and, separately, the company’s integration into the Sainsbury's store network.
"We are delighted to have attracted a candidate of Bertrand's calibre to lead Keywords through the next phase of its development in the video games and adjacent content industries,” said chairman Ross Graham. "Bertrand brings an ideal skillset to leading our ambitious, international business given the breadth of his experience in shaping and executing growth strategies and engendering strong cultures at some of the world's leading businesses.”
Bodson, meanwhile, added: “I am excited to join Keywords as a proven market-leader with a clear opportunity to continue to grow its services, reach and scale, and to capitalise on its integrated full service offering, in a global yet fragmented market.
"Building on its successful organic and acquisitive growth track record, its inclusive culture, customer focus and unique platform, I'm looking forward to leading the group's ambitious team to deliver an ever more compelling proposition for this buoyant market, and beyond."
Broker Peel Hunt said: "Bertrand joins from Novartis where he was chief digital officer since 2018, leading the company's digital transformation efforts and playing a key role in developing of its corporate culture for 100,000 colleagues. Before that he was chief digital and chief marketing officer at Sainsbury's Argos. Given the potential vision for KWS and its 9,000 employees is to digitally transform the operations of video game content creation through outsourcing to achieve better scale, quality, and throughput, we see Bertrand as a good choice."
At Shore Capital, analysts said: "Joint interim CEOs Jon Hauck and Sonia Sedler have done a good job, in our view, of supporting the Keywords business during this transition period. We expect that they will continue to drive the wider strategy forward post the appointment of Mr Bodson when they return to their CFO and COO roles respectively. We welcome Mr Bodson and look forward to hearing his plans for the group in due course."
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