10 Things You Didn’t Know about John Riccitiello
What do you know about John Riccitiello, the Chief Executive Officer of Unity? Unless you play a lot of video games, you may be wondering what type of company Unity even is. Suffice it to say, it is a video game development corporation that is located in California. As it happens, there are many things to be discussed about their CEO. If you want to know more, all you have to do is keep reading.
1. He’s heading up a company that has never turned a major profit
He has been at Unity for quite some time now, years in fact. Despite that fact, it’s interesting to note that the company has never actually turn an annual profit thus far. All things considered, it’s interesting to note that the company has managed to experience rapid growth while still not being profitable in the financial market. Nevertheless, the company decided to go public not long ago so it could be traded on the stock market. It will be interesting to see what eventually happens with it in the financial market.
2. He moved from refreshment-based companies to entertainment years ago
For a number of years, he worked for places like Sara Lee, Pepsi and similar companies that dealt with food and beverages. It wasn’t until the late 1990s when he started moving into companies that were related to sports, with one of the first of them being Wilson Sporting Goods. His migration seemed to make sense, as he is also an avid tennis player. Eventually, he migrated away from real world sporting goods equipment and started working in the world of video game software development.
3. He’s worked for many of Unity’s competitors
As such, he has worked for some of Unity’s biggest competitors. One of those competitors is EA Sports, the place that he started working when he first decided to move into the video game development world. He worked for the company for some time, but decided to go to work for one of their competitors when profits weren’t what he expected them to be. By the time that he left the company, its financial records were almost in shambles. Nevertheless, the company somehow managed to survive and he moved on to become the CEO of Unity.
4. He also has an interest in the film industry
In addition to his interest in playing sports such as tennis and his obvious interest in the video game industry, he also has a genuine interest in the film industry. In fact, he took a number of college courses related to filmmaking and has always considered it to be one of his hobbies. As such, he’s been trying to figure out how to merge the film industry and the video game industry for a number of years.
5. He’s trying to get Unity involved in additional markets
As mentioned in the above paragraph, he wants to see Unity and other companies like it expand into markets that go far beyond video game development. During his time at Unity, he has been trying to get the attention of filmmakers and those in the automotive industry, all in an attempt to lend his company’s services to their needs. According to him, it’s all about making the most out of each company as well as diversifying its abilities so that it isn’t dependent on a single niche in order to survive. It probably doesn’t hurt that he has an innate interest in the film industry itself and wants to find a way to get involved in it, in one capacity or another.
6. He’s in his alma mater’s Hall of Fame
When he attended the Haas School of Business, he might have never dreamed that he would eventually be inducted into the Hall of Fame, but he was. On the other hand, there is every chance that he had this goal in mind from the time that he was a mere student at the school. One thing he is known for is setting his sights high well in advance and then finding a way to make those goals become a reality.
7. He’s even been recognized by Sports Illustrated
Interestingly enough, he was even recognized by Sports Illustrated, even though he’s not a professional athlete. His work at both EA and Unity have garnered a great deal of attention in the sports world because of the types of video games that these companies routinely produce. As such, he landed on a Sports Illustrated list regarding the most powerful people in sports, coming in at number 39 out of 50. That’s not too shabby for someone who isn’t even an athlete.
8. His tenure has not been without turbulence
In June of 2019 he was accused of sexual harassment by another employee at Unity. According to the individual who accused him, both he and another employee sexually harassed her. According to him, nothing happened. Unity says the same thing, even though the other employee was terminated. The company says that the employee was fired for insubordination. In short, the whole thing has turned into one side blaming the other, with very little definitive proof in either direction.
9. He’s lived all over the world
Because of his professional life, he’s lived in various places around the globe. In the United States alone, he’s lived in places like San Francisco, California, New York City, and even Birmingham, Alabama. Globally, he’s had the pleasure of living in places like London and Paris, as well as Dusseldorf.
10. He’s active in politics
In addition to a busy professional life and a love for sports, he’s also active in politics. During his time in the United States, he’s been known to support the Democratic party more than once. According to him, it’s all about being politically active and using one’s voice to be heard in an orderly manner.
