Xbox hires – Microsoft has recruited game industry analyst Matthew Ball as Xbox chief strategy officer, with Xbox CEO Asha Sharma saying he’s widely respected across gaming, media, and technology. Sharma also named Scott Van Vliet as chief technology officer and promoted C
The Xbox leadership shake-up didn’t start with a new console promise or a new roadmap slide—it started with a name that many in gaming already know.
Microsoft has recruited game industry analyst Matthew Ball as Xbox chief strategy officer. Xbox CEO Asha Sharma announced Ball is joining Microsoft in a memo to Xbox employees this morning. seen by The Verge. Sharma described Ball as a “longtime gamer” and said he’s “widely respected across gaming. media. and technology.” Ball publishes an annual state of video gaming report that is described as a popular read across the game industry.
Sharma said Ball has already been involved in shaping Xbox’s direction well before his official start. “Matthew has been partnering with us on strategy since day 10 and will officially start this month. reporting to me. ” she wrote in the memo. That matters because Sharma has only been Xbox chief for 90 days. meaning this “official” moment arrives after weeks of strategy work—just without the clearer picture many players have been waiting to see beyond a promise of “a return of Xbox.”.
Alongside Ball, Xbox also has a new chief technology officer. “Scott Van Vliet is joining as our CTO,” Sharma said. She described Van Vliet as someone who has spent more than two decades building technology and consumer platforms across cloud, commerce, gaming, and entertainment.
Van Vliet’s prior work includes leading Azure AI infrastructure at Microsoft before joining Xbox. He has also worked at Amazon on Fire TV and the Appstore. Sharma added that Van Vliet has been part of the Xbox community since the original Live beta in 2002.
The memo also addressed what won’t change. “There are no changes to Hardware, Helix, or OS, which will continue reporting to me. Scott will begin ramping up now and formally start after Showcase.”
There was another personnel move. too: Sharma is promoting Chris Schnakenberg to corporate vice president of partnerships and business development as part of today’s Xbox leadership changes. Sharma’s message frames the reshuffling as ongoing rather than finished—these are the second major Xbox leadership changes in a matter of weeks.
Earlier this month, Sharma added new faces to Xbox who used to work alongside her in Microsoft’s CoreAI division. And she made clear the latest changes aren’t the end of the process.
“These changes are about strengthening our foundation by creating more clarity and improving execution,” Sharma said. “As we head toward Showcase and beyond, we’ll continue making the changes needed to position XBOX for the future.”
Xbox Matthew Ball Asha Sharma Scott Van Vliet Chris Schnakenberg Microsoft chief strategy officer chief technology officer gaming industry strategy