Ubisoft CEO mentions the company "learned a lot" from the misconduct scandal yet reforms have reportedly been "painfully slow"

At a press event nearly a week ago that discussed what Ubisoft envisioned as the future of the company, Yves Guillemot momentarily addressed the misconduct crisis that came out into the fray back in 2020. The CEO acknowledged they had "stumbled" but have now "learned a lot along the way" and want to ensure "an inclusive, rewarding and respectful workplace for all."

In the past couple of years, Ubisoft has at times been in the limelight for the wrong reasons. A slew of reports concerning s*xual misconduct and harassment came out.

There have been a number of departures from the company, and people have criticized the management for not being able to address the issue promptly or effectively.

Yet, it looks like the reforms and progress have been "painfully slow" with recent interviews with Ubisoft employees painting a long road ahead for the company.

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Ubisoft CEO comments on misconduct scandals and points to generational differences, while some employees feel that change has been slow

As reported by Eurogamer, Guillemot fleetingly touched on the crisis that began in 2020 and led to multiple departures from the company and a lawsuit. He said:

"Our goal is to offer the best working environment for them to thrive and reach their full potential. In a context of great reshuffle, we want to build one unique employee value proposition and bring changes whenever needed."

He continued:

"First, we want to ensure an inclusive, rewarding and respectful workplace for all. Yes, we stumbled. And we have acknowledged that. We learned a lot along the way, and have made meaningful progress with concrete action plans led by our leaders together with Anika Grant, our chief people officer, and Raashi Sika, our VP of diversity and inclusion."

Speaking to Axios after the event, Guillemot explained that he felt betrayed in 2020 by those who were close to him and that he would not have accepted the things had he known about them. He mentioned that things were not "organized enough to detect the problems and resolve them."

Guillemot further pointed out that some of the problems were due to generational differences. He mentioned:

"The company was running and there were ways things were done. And then there was a new young generation, coming [into the company] with different needs. And we had to adapt. I think we didn't adapt fast enough to what people expected and needed."

In the same interview, Guillemot stated that measures and steps have been taken to address the issues with "a dedicated HR team for the centralized “editorial” group and “regular” meetings with employee resource groups, so that he can hear from more diverse voices and not just those who are members of Ubisoft HQ leadership.

Yet, interviews with Ubisfot employees have repeatedly mentioned that even though there have been some changes, the progress has been "painfully slow."

In an interview with AC Sisterhood, members of the group A Better Ubisoft discussed regarding the changes since the stories came forward and mentioned that they have been "a lot of talk and not much walk" and more local in nature.

They also revealed that a number of alleged abusers are still working at Ubisoft, with some having changed roles, given more responsibility, and moved to different studios. Those who quit were not fired, but rather only resigned and thus faced no repercussions for their actions.

The members further mentioned that something that they think Ubisoft direly needs is transparency, one that it verily lacks now.

Guillemot concluded:

"Transparency is key. For two years now I have seen company-wide presentations where management will say “We’re looking forward to continuing to make progress in this area as we have done in the past X months” when the progress made is oft impossible to see and the ‘progress’ we’re promised is nothing but that line. There are often no plans to go with the promise, no roadmap, no deadlines or targets for when things might happen or what might happen."

In the Axios interview mentioned earlier, Guillemot did accept that the most vital thing for them moving forward is "to make sure that communication is as efficient as possible." It remains to be seen how effectively that is implemented and the voices of the employees are heard.