Activision Blizzard recognized the problem of attracting personnel. In the context of litigation and increased pressure, it is difficult for a company to retain old and hire new qualified employees. If the difficulties drag on, it will hit the whole business hard.This was reported by Axios with reference to the recently published Activision Blizzard report for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Firstly, the company noted that it is heavily dependent on three key franchises. In 2021, 82% of Activision Blizzard’s revenue came from Call of Duty, Candy Crush and Warcraft. The share of no other game or series has reached even 10%.
Secondly, prolonged litigation and increased media attention may negatively affect the company’s ability to attract and retain employees in the future. Also, these problems have already led to the shutdown and slowdown of workflows.
“We are witnessing a shortage of labor, increasing competition for talent and increasing staff turnover. We are experiencing more and more difficulties in attracting and retaining qualified specialists,” the report says.
As Activision Blizzard notes, if these problems are not resolved, they will negatively affect the entire company’s business.
At the same time, the publisher still managed to increase its staff by 300 people over the past year. Activision Blizzard now employs 9,800 employees. But the company could not find another woman on the board of directors, as required by California law. Difficulties in finding a suitable candidate are due, among other things, to negotiations with Microsoft, which began in November.
The problem of attracting specialists is not the only one that Activision Blizzard has faced recently. According to The Washington Post, the company was sued by the family of an employee who committed suicide during a corporate party.
Relatives of the deceased claim that one of her superiors harassed the girl. At the same time, he later allegedly lied to the police, hiding the fact of a sexual relationship between them. Activision Blizzard, for its part, refused to provide the investigation with the laptop and phone of this employee.
This lawsuit is the result of a lengthy investigation by the California Department of Fair Employment and Placement (DFEH), which sued Activision Blizzard last July. The main charges related to numerous cases of harassment and discrimination in the workplace.