Microsoft's Shane Kim Retiring This Year

Keane Ng

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Microsoft's Shane Kim Retiring This Year



Shane Kim, the face of Microsoft's game division for some time now, will be stepping down from his job at Microsoft at the end of this year to spend more time with his family.

If you've been following Microsoft's foray into the games industry at all in the last few years, you know who Shane Kim is. In the nearly 20 years Kim has spent at Microsoft, he's been the head of Xbox and Microsoft's games division and most recently held the title of corporate vice president, strategy and business development for the Interactive Entertainment Business. Yeah, if I had that title I'd probably be pretty satisfied with how far I've gotten too.

So why step down? Is Kim trying to make a grandiose exit and say goodbye while he's on top? Or is there some epic power struggle going on at the Microsoft upper echelons that's forced him to make his exit? It's nothing so dramatic as that. "He expressed a desire to spend more time with family, so that's why he's making his retirement," said a Microsoft spokesperson.

With Kim stepping down, Phil Spencer, current manager of Microsoft Game Studios, will step into a role that handles many of Kim's responsibilities while Dennis Durkin, the current CFO of Interactive Entertainment Business, will be promoted to COO. Neither man will inherit Kim's title or job, which won't have a direct replacement.

Anyway, all that corporate whoop-de-do aside, it's a bit sad to know that Kim's stepping down. He's essentially been the corporate face of Xbox, and has been a real class act. I'll miss being able to use his always super-stylin' pictures in articles, so it gives me great pain to do it for the last time right now. Keep it real, Shane Kim.

[Via Gamasutra [http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=25245]]

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sneakypenguin

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Awe I liked Kim when I first heard him in interviews about the 360. Prolly forced out I suppose, people at that lvl don't normally quit unless its to move to a new job.
 

scotth266

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I don't honestly think he was going to get fired. Sometimes, wanting to spend more time with your family is... just wanting to spend more time with your family. I don't see why he would be forced out anyway.
 

sneakypenguin

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scotth266 said:
I don't honestly think he was going to get fired. Sometimes, wanting to spend more time with your family is... just wanting to spend more time with your family. I don't see why he would be forced out anyway.
Hmmm but to have a position that is basically eliminated in that there is not direct replacement is a bit suspicious don't you think. Maybe he wouldn't of been fired but would have been tasked with changing roles within the company. Who knows just speculation.
 

Pigletdude

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I somehow doubt he was being forced out or anything, I mean the XBox has been doing rather well under his wings, It must the truth, and I'm sure his pension scheme is ample :D
 

theultimateend

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I think we should invade North Korea and kidnap their Kim and have him be the replacement.

But that's mainly because I'd die a happy man if I saw a video game made by Kim Jong Ill. It would be one of the most amazing things ever. I bet that extremely expensive alcohol would be the healing potion in it.
 

Vern

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theultimateend said:
I think we should invade North Korea and kidnap their Kim and have him be the replacement.

But that's mainly because I'd die a happy man if I saw a video game made by Kim Jong Ill. It would be one of the most amazing things ever. I bet that extremely expensive alcohol would be the healing potion in it.
Your peasants are having too many chickens for dinner. Do you A) Spend more money on Hennessey and reduce chicken feed rations B) Spend money on buying giant rabbits on the international market to feed your people and then eat them yourself C) Spend more money on AK-47s for the army to kill the peasants with and blame it on the West or D) All of the above.