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OMGPOP's Wilson Kriegel the latest senior staffer to leave Zynga

The exodus continues

OMGPOP's Wilson Kriegel the latest senior staffer to leave Zynga
Ever since Zynga posted a $22.8 million loss in its Q2 2012 financials, the company has been haemorrhaging senior staff.

The latest to leave is Wilson Kriegel, Zynga Mobile's head of advertising, monetisation and business development.

Kriegel joined the company in March 2012, when Zynga acquired developer OMGPOP for $180 million in cash.

At the time, he was serving as chief revenue officer for the VC-funded New York studio, and was responsible for the marketing and monetisation of its breakout hit, Draw Something.

Draw Something slip

It was the sharp fall in Draw Something's active userbase in the weeks that followed the acquisition, however, that resulted in analysts describing the buyout as something of a 'dud'.

The company's woes increased when EA began legal action against Zynga just months later, claiming the studio had copied its Facebook release The Sims Social.

At the beginning of August 2012, an executive reshuffle saw COO John Schappert - who was personally cited in said lawsuit - lose his responsibility for games as the company attempted to 'unify' its operations.

Schappert's resignation followed just over a week later, and seems to have prompted an executive exodus at the company.

One of many

Chief creative officer Mike Verdu left at the end of August – apparently on amicable terms – in order to form his own games company.

Just days later, Zynga refused to confirm or deny the rumoured departure of two VPs, Bill Mooney and Brian Birtwistle.

Other key personnel who have recently handed in their notices include CMO John Karp, VP Ya-Bing Chu, and a number of general managers including Alan Patmore, Erik Bethke and Jeremy Strauser.

[source: VentureBeat]
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