Tech Data CEO Joins PopCap Board

PopCap Games, maker of some of the world’s most popular video games, today announced that longtime technology industry veteran Steve Raymund has joined the company's board of directors. Mr. Raymund becomes the sixth member of PopCap's board and the second outside member, joining independent investor Larry Bowman. Mr. Raymund is chairman of the board of directors at Tech Data, a Fortune 150 corporation where he served as CEO for more than 20 years until his retirement in 2006. He also sits on the boards of other leading technology firms, as well as the boards of several non-profit, civic and academic organizations.

"We’re delighted to have Steve on our board of directors, where his decades of technology industry leadership and oversight of operational excellence will be invaluable, particularly in the fast-growing and operationally-intensive social games area of our business," said PopCap CEO David Roberts. "Much more than just a successful entrepreneur, Steve was CEO of a public company from a very young age, so his experience is directly relevant to PopCap’s current position and future growth prospects."

"PopCap's prospects are extremely bright, as the company leaders have done a stellar job leveraging its intellectual property across platforms, geographies and even consumer age and gender boundaries," Raymund said. "From world-class games with the broadest possible appeal to the most diversified revenue stream and distribution network in the industry, the company is poised to become one of the top five video game publishers worldwide, and I'm excited to help guide it to this goal."

Mr. Raymund spent 25 years at Tech Data – during the last 20 of which he served as the company's CEO – while company revenues grew from $2 million to $24 billion. After retiring as CEO in 2006, he continued as chairman of the board, a role he maintains today. Mr. Raymund is also a director of two other Fortune 500 firms: Jabil, Inc., a $13 billion diversified electronics contract manufacturer; and WESCO International, Inc, a $6 billion distributor of electrical products. He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Oregon and a master’s degree from the Georgetown University Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. Mr. Raymund and his wife, Sonia, have two children and make their home in the Tampa Bay, Florida area.

In addition to Messrs. Raymund and Bowman, PopCap's board now comprises CEO Roberts and co-founders Jason Kapalka (Chief Creative Officer), Brian Fiete (Technology Fellow) and John Vechey (VP of Corporate Strategy and Development), all of whom continue to hold senior management roles at the company. PopCap expects to add at least one other outside member to its board by year's end.

Share this GiN Article on your favorite social media network:

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *