A group of Activision Blizzard shareholders is calling for CEO Bobby Kotick to resign as reports surfaced on November 16 that he was aware of sexual misconduct allegations for years.
Activision has been entangled in a web of controversy for months now, resulting in lawsuits relating to sexual harassment and employees reportedly tied to the reports being let go.
Following a Wall Street Journal report alleging that Bobby Kotick was aware of sexual misconduct happening in the company for years, the CEO refuted the claims as “inaccurate and misleading.”
That didn’t stop 100 or so employees from holding a walk-out later in the day and now, a group with a total of 4.8 million shares from calling for Kotick’s resignation.
Shareholders demand Kotick step down
According to The Washington Post, Strategic Organizing Center (SOC) Investment Group wrote a letter to the board of directors calling for Kotick to resign.
Additionally, they want the board’s two longest-serving directors Brian Kelly and Robert Morgado to retire before 2022, or they would not be voting for the reelection of current directors.
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Speaking to The Post, SOC executive director Dieter Waizenegger said it was “clear that the current leadership repeatedly failed to uphold a safe workplace” and pushed for a “reset button on the board.”
I'm seeing a lot of big reactions to this story, but some important context:– This group, SOC, owns 4.8 million shares, or just 0.6% of Activision Blizzard– SOC has been criticizing Kotick for a long time. This isn't a turnaround or shift in view from them https://t.co/Snuvaoqj5P
— Jason Schreier (@jasonschreier) November 17, 2021
It should be noted, however, as pointed out by journalist Jason Schreier, that SOC owns only 0.6% of Activision Blizzard and the group has been critical of Kotick for some time.
We’ll have to wait and see what ends up unfolding at Activision Blizzard as the fallout from recent reports continues.
