Wizards of the Coast "Reorganizataion"

The report:

http://www.gamingreport.com/article.php?sid=19503

Edit: Somewhat ironically, I originally posted a link to a layoff notice from 2002, which gamingreport has listed as the "most read story" regarding Wizards. Oops!

This bums me out. Partially because I still have a lot of friends that work there, and I'm sure they're bummed out. Partially because I still see 'ol time Wizards though rose colored glasses. From my perspective, which is hopelessly skewed, Wizards has become a game production machine. Cold, efficient, effective, but it's hard to feel the love. I know the people who make the games still really care about the work they do, but it's tougher and tougher to see that through that ever thickening corperate shell they've self-imposed upon themselves. That press release is rubbish.

"Today’s organizational changes are designed to help drive our business into the future to improve our performance and our long-term profitability."

Improve performance and long-term profitability? Talent makes capital dance, and Wizards has scuttled several members of the band. Wizards paid a lot of money to send me to a customer management seminar back in 2003 (it changed all my views on business). One of things that stuck with me from the event was this statement: "Take care of your employees first, your customers second, and ignore the bottom line because it will take care of itself." This came from the a Vice President at T-Mobile wireless, and while she seemed like a nightmare to work for, I believe she was right on target there. Point of note, I lost my job less than a year after hearing those words.

Hasbro never 'got' Wizards. Now, Wizards was no bowl of peaches before Hasbro. There were layoffs and product shortages and all sorts of nonsense. When bad things happened back then, it was really was just as bad. It just seems like it was "Wizards bad" and not "Hasbro bad", and "Hasbro bad" seems worse.

The people who have lost their jobs are all amazingly talented and I really believe they'll find success just as quickly as they choose to. Regardless, I wish them all luck. I'm better off without Wizards (obviously), I think they will be as well.

I'm still bummed though. I'm just not sure why, anymore.

-Adam!!!