A screen shows the logo and trading information for GameStop on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on March 29, 2022.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
GameStop announced Thursday that its chief financial officer, Mike Recupero, is leaving the company and that it will be downsizing across departments to transform the video game retailer and fuel growth.
CEO Matt Furlong announced the changes in a memo to employees seen by CNBC. Diana Jajeh, the company’s Chief Accounting Officer, will become CFO.
In the memo, Furlong said the company needs to take bold steps as it invests in its digital future.
“This means eliminating superfluous costs and working with a strong ownership mentality,” he said. “Everyone in the organization needs to become even more practical and take on a higher level of responsibility for results.”
The company’s shares fell more than 6% in extended trading after gaining more than 15% during the regular session.
Here’s the full memo:
All,
Change will be a constant as we continue to develop our trading business and launch new products through our blockchain group. Having invested heavily in people, technology, inventory and supply chain infrastructure over the past 18 months, our focus is on achieving sustained profitability. That means eliminating superfluous costs and working with a strong ownership mentality. Everyone in the organization needs to become even more practical and take a higher level of responsibility for results.
With that in mind, I’m in touch today to share three organizational updates:
1. Having hired more than 600 people in 2021 and the first half of 2022, we have a better understanding of our transformation needs. This has enabled us to fill the right size staff across multiple company departments. Today we’re making a number of reductions to keep things simple and nimble with the right talents.
2. We will make significant investments in our store managers and sales representatives who play a critical role in meeting the needs of our customers. In many ways, these people are the heart of GameStop. We will announce details of this investment in the coming weeks.
3. Mike Recupero, who has served as our Chief Financial Officer since last June, is leaving the company. Diana Jajeh, who was our Chief Accounting Officer and has strong institutional knowledge of the business, has been appointed Chief Financial Officer.
These changes will allow us to operate profitably as we implement our strategy of tracking revenue growth in our commerce business and launching new products that empower customers in the Digital Asset and Web3 Gaming industries. I have confidence in the team we have going forward and thank you again for your continued dedication and focus.
Regards,
Frosted
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