June 2025’s Movers and Shakers: New nDreams CEO, Outfit7 gets new COO, Activision hires emerging franchises GM, and more

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To keep you up to date with the latest movers and shakers in the mobile games industry, we’ve put together a regular roundup of the latest hires, promotions and, in some cases, exits.

If you’ve recently joined a company or bagged a big promotion, or you’re an employer that’s just made a hire, drop us an email at news@pocketgamer.biz.

New CEOs at Turborilla and nDreams

Kwalee’s former VP of mobile games, John Wright, has made the move to Turborilla, taking on the role of CEO. He has stepped up as founder and now-former CEO Tobias Andersson has stepped back, instead focusing on board member duties.

Wright, leveraging his 15 years of games industry experience and his experience leading hundreds of global staff, will now seek to take Turborilla into its “next chapter”.

“I’m genuinely thrilled,” Wright told us at PocketGamer.biz.

“The company is fantastic, the team is strong and there’s an impressive legacy behind it. Being able to step into the CEO role while working remotely gives me the balance I need to stay fully present for my kids. It’s the ideal setup to stay deeply motivated, both as a leader and as a parent.”

nDreams also has a new CEO, Tomas Gillo, who has spent the better part of a decade at the company, most recently as chief development officer. He is taking over from Patrick O’Luanaigh, set to step down after 19 years with the VR games developer.

O’Luanaigh is planning to keep a “close eye”, however, moving into a non-executive chairman role where he will continue to work with nDreams’ executive team and parent company Aonic.

“Tom knows the company and teams better than anyone, and most importantly knows VR and MR game development inside out, and I have no doubt that he’ll do a fantastic job along with the incredible exec team that we have built,” O’Luanaigh posted on LinkedIn.

Chief positions at Stash and Outfit7

Archie Stonehill has been promoted to chief growth officer at Stash, responsible for long-term vision and company growth.

Having joined the company in 2023 as head of product, this promotion better reflects his roles in strategy, sales and product, though it doesn’t mean a major change in duties: Stonehill has already been scoping out and prioritising new features and products, and helping to align the whole of Stash with a clear vision of the evolving DTC landscape for games.

“I’m happy to share that I’m starting a new position as Chief Growth Officer at Stash,” he posted on LinkedIn.

“This isn’t a change of my role, just my title, and better reflect the broad range of activities I spend my time on at Stash. All of what I do across strategy, product, and sales is oriented towards helping Stash, and our customers, grow.”

After eight years at Outfit7, Jernej Česen has landed his third promotion and taken on the role of COO. Having joined as VP of data and analytics in June 2017, Česen was appointed general manager in 2019 and senior VP of distribution and BI and finance just three months later.

His latest promotion marks the start of a new position with the same team.

“New adventure and same gang. A new position as COO at Outfit7,” he posted on LinkedIn.

New adventures at Nvizzio and Activision

Mariela Tzvetanova has joined Nvizzio Creations as director of business development after 12 years at Imperia Online. The move comes as Nvizzio continues to grow its games portfolio across PC, console and mobile.

Tzvetanova’s role will include focusing on publishing opportunities and forging strategic partnerships and long-term co-development deals.

“Having spent over a decade leading growth, publishing and M&A initiatives across Europe and globally with Imperia Online and Stillfront Group, I am passionate about helping studios reach their next stage of scale,” she commented.

“What drew me to Nvizzio is the blend of creative excellence and operational maturity. From day one, I was inspired by the company’s relentless commitment to quality and its ability to deliver ambitious, high-impact titles with some of the most innovative partners in the industry – from Electronic Arts and Hasbro to Atari and Tilting Point.”

Since leaving Hothead Games in 2024, Alexander Jancso has been gaining new experiences working closely with small indie game projects, expanding his knowledge on bringing games to life with fewer resources but plenty of creativity.

Now he’s back with a major player, newly hired as product manager of emerging franchises at Activision Blizzard.

“I’ll be leading the development of emerging franchises’ products, shaping the team’s business and marketing strategy along the way. It’s an exciting role that brings together everything I’ve been building toward, working on some of my favourite games with a team and scale that inspires me,” Jancso posted on LinkedIn.

“I’m humbled by the opportunity and incredibly excited to learn alongside some of the industry’s most talented professionals.”

Movers at Roblox, Disney, Modma Games and more

Roblox has appointed Dr. Elizabeth Milovidov as head of parental advocacy, joining from the LEGO Group and bringing experience in advising parents, governments and organisations on online safety.

Alejandro Marin Vidal has been hired by the Walt Disney Company as director of strategy and insights for the Disney Games Group.

Krafton veteran Bryce Baer has taken on a new role at Microsoft as director of marketing for Xbox.

Praveen Dubey is the new CEO and creative director of Modma Games in Barcelona, Spain.

Digital tabletop games maker Infinite Realms has appointed Charlotte Cook as chief commercial officer (fractional).

Chafik Naceri is founder and CEO of Tapugo, a new mobile games studio focusing on puzzle games and hybrids between action and strategy.

Crazy Labs has hired Yarden Peled as senior data analyst. He’ll be moving to Finland to help out with puzzle games like Coffee Mania and Bus Frenzy.

Quvy has a new CEO in Jonathan Zweig, while also maintaining CEO status at Buildbox.ai.

Fidan Rustamli has joined DIGIAGE as regional gaming ecosystem expert. Her role will include strengthening the company’s presence in Azerbaijan by building strategic partnerships and supporting emerging talent.