Ubisoft’s former editorial vice president Tommy Francois was fired earlier this week following the results of an investigation into misconduct.
A source close to the matter confirmed the news to Gamasutra, with Ubisoft initially claiming that Francois had simply ‘left the company.”
They explained Francois was terminated with cause, and wasn’t handed a financial settlement. He had also been suspended without pay since the beginning of July.
Although the outgoing exec will retain whatever Ubisoft shares he’d already acquired, he won’t be able to make future acquisitions.
We’re told that French laws prevent Ubisoft from labeling some of the recent high-level departures, which includes the “resignation” of Francois’ fellow editorial vice president Maxime Beland, as dismissals.
As Ubisoft looks to reshape the editorial department following the sackings of Francois and Beland, there remains a healthy amount of skepticism within the company.
Employees, we’re told, are happy with some of the changes being made — such as those outlined in the action plan shared by Ubisoft chief exec Yves Guillemot — but are keen for the new editorial VP spots to be filled by people from diverse backgrounds.
Some are still doubtful that enough has been done to effectively alter the makeup of the editorial team, and are pushing for urgent changes to address the rampant toxicity that we’ve been told permeates the studio on a global level.