Nintendo made some announcements today as part of its financial results statement, and there’s been a bit of musical chairs when it comes to the company’s directors. A number of these individuals are planning to retire this summer, but an even more surprising move comes as Nintendo of America gets some restructuring in a significant way—Satoru Iwata himself will be taking over as the CEO>
The current CEO of Nintendo of America (and chairman) will be receiving a promotion to the level of general manager of Corporate Analysis and Administration, and general manager of the General Affairs Division. This comes as a result of two directors retiring from the main NCL HQ located in Kyoto. The promoted Tatsumi Kimishima’s left-behind responsibilities will be taken up by Iwata, Nintendo’s company president, resulting in a more hands-on working relationship with Nintendo of America President and COO Reggie Fils-Aime.
Nintendo released a statement talking about the personnel shift:
“Many of his current responsibilities, including the CEO title, will be assumed by Global President Satoru Iwata. The move will support the company’s unified global strategy, allow streamlined decision making and enhance Nintendo’s organizational agility in the current competitive environment. Reggie Fils-Aime will continue in his role as president and COO of NOA, reporting to Iwata.”
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen Fils-Aime and Iwata work together closely—for example, they’ve teamed up at E3 before—but this does remove some of the barriers between these senior staff. We should end up seeing more coordination and cooperation between Nintendo’s branches in North America and Japan—and it may come as a result of the slower sales recently, pinpointing Western countries as a place that Nintendo needs to improve its profile and position in.
While it’s a surprise for us, it’s possible that Iwata has been wanting to oversee more closely the North American branch’s operations. It will take some getting used too—particularly for those who were part of the restructuring in the company—but we here at Nintendo Fire are hopeful that this means more good things are to come. Fils-Aime and Iwata, working closely together—what’s not to like about that?
