One of the biggest names in casual gaming, PopCap, announced yesterday that they’ve appointed Mr. Robert Chamberlain to the position of Chief Financial Officer. Having served similar roles in a myriad of companies including, F5 networks, Onyx Software and Watchguard Technologies, Chamberlain brings over 30 years of financial experience, 20 of which are in the technology sector, to the table at PopCap. Chamberlain’s track record is nothing short of stellar, demonstrating sound financial guidance and has arranged a number of IPO’s as well as company sales. Chamberlain will arrive at his new office on August 31st, and will replace temporary CFO Karla Horwitz, a partner with Tatum Executives. Ms. Horwitz has built and grown the PopCap finance team for the past 17 months.
“We’re thrilled to have a seasoned financial veteran like Bob joining our management team and overseeing finances,” said Dave Roberts, CEO at PopCap. “He’ll oversee a sizable team of finance and accounting professionals while also providing critical expertise to our overall expansion plans. As we mature into a sizable corporation, it will be invaluable to have him guiding our financial future in every key respect.”
Most recently, Chamberlain has served as CFO at Watchguard Technologies, Inc., where he lead a team of 62 across various company departments including finance and accounting, manufacturing, IT, HR, facilities and legal services. Previously, Chamberlain successfully managed an IPO for F5 networks, guided PhotoDisc through a merger with Getty Images, and negotiated the sale of ElseWare Corporation to Hewlett-Packard.
“PopCap’s something of an anomaly in the software business – and a rarity in the technology sector as a whole,” Chamberlain said. “Profitable from day one while growing to nearly 250 fulltime employees in ten years while never taking outside funding, which is a major accomplishment. Best of all, the company has tremendous potential, in terms of geographic, platform and channel growth – and I’m excited to be a part of it.”
Remember, PopCap is one of the rare games companies today that seems to have their fingers in just about every pot. Their flagship product, Bejeweled is a mesmerizing; some might say addicting title that has sold over 25 million units across all platforms. It’s even been incorporated into World of Warcraft as a mini-game. Based in Seattle, PopCap games are based on the premise that games should be fun and easy to learn. Their timeless series of games have been downloaded over 1 billion times, and show no signs of slowing. And as far as cross platform is concerned, PopCap is the only casual games developer with a leading market share across all major sales channels, including Web portals, retail stores, consoles, mobile phones and MP3 players.
