With comings and goings commonplace across the industry, GambleAware, Nederlandse Loterij and the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission are among those to have seen changes to their teams recently.
GambleAware
GambleAware has appointed Professor Siân Griffiths CBE as its new Chair of Trustees.
Since 2018, Griffiths has been the Deputy Chair for the charity. However, she will now be replacing Baroness Kate Lampard CBE as Chair of Trustees on July 18, as Lampard is stepping down after eight years in the role to lead the Lampard Inquiry investigating mental health inpatient deaths in Essex.
Griffiths brings public health insight and experience to the role and has helped gambling harms to be seen alongside other public health issues. Alongside being Deputy Chair, she was also Chair of the charity’s Performance and Delivery Committee for several years.
She has previously been President of the UK Faculty of Public Health, Associate Non-Executive Director of Public Health England and Chair of the Public Health England Global Health Committee. She is also currently a Non-Executive Director for Public Health Wales.
“I am delighted to accept this appointment and to continue working with GambleAware to ensure gambling harms are viewed as a serious public health issue,” commented Griffiths.
“Due to the deeply stigmatised nature of gambling harm, it can be difficult for people to reach out for help. This is why it is so important we take a public health approach, one which recognises the wider societal influences whilst focussing on early intervention and prevention activity.
“Alongside this, GambleAware’s independence from the industry remains paramount and is demonstrated across all areas of the charity’s work. I look forward to continuing these efforts with my public health colleagues and experts within the GambleAware Board as we transition to a new statutory funding model.”
Lampard initially joined GambleAware as Chair in 2016, then known as the Responsible Gambling Trust, where she oversaw the charity’s move to an independent Board of trustees, with NHS and public health leaders and improved engagement with the gambling harms lived experience community.
During her tenure, she called for the replacement of the voluntary funding system with a statutory levy on the gambling industry, which has since been included last year in the UK government’s gambling white paper.
She also expanded the country’s gambling harms system in partnership with the government, NHS and third sector through recommissioning the National Gambling Support Network.
Lampard added: “I am pleased to be succeeded by Siân and to be leaving the charity in such safe hands. Gambling harm can affect anyone. From working with and speaking to individuals from the lived experience community I know how much of an impact gambling harm can have on individuals and wider society.
“This is why it is fundamental that statutory funding is provided to address the issue. I am proud of what we have achieved and it has been a pleasure to see how the charity and wider gambling harms system has grown over the past eight years. I wish GambleAware and Siân all the best for the future.”
Nederlandse Loterij
Nederlandse Loterij has named Arno de Jong as its new Chief Customer Officer.
Alongside this position, de Jong will also be a part of the gaming organisation’s Executive Board, which features CEO Arjan Blok and CFRO Jet Roos-van Aerssen.
Since 2016, De Jong has been a part of the Nederlandse Loterij as Chief Marketing Officer. Before joining, he was the Marketing Director of De Lotto, the organisation that merged with De Nederlandse Staatsloterij to become Nederlandse Loterij in 2016.
Alexander Pechtold, Chair of the Supervisory Board of Nederlandse Loterij, stated: “Our offering of attractive and responsible games of chance through various channels is constantly evolving.
“With Arno de Jong as CCO in the Executive Board of Nederlandse Loterij, we are putting our player even more in the heart of the organisation. So that we also remain leading and distinctive in the future – both digitally and in shops. Arno, with his entrepreneurial and creative spirit, is the right person to guide Nederlandse Loterij in the desired further development.”
Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission
Steve Brennan has announced that he will be stepping down as CEO of the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission before the end of the year.
Posting on LinkedIn, Brennan stated that he is stepping aside after 17 years at the helm of the GSC and that he enjoyed his time with the commission “enormously”.
The search for a new CEO of the GSC has already begun.
Brennan commented: “After 38 years in the Isle of Man Government, the last 17 of which have been at the helm of the Gambling Supervision Commission, I’ll be stepping down as its Chief Executive towards the end of this year. The search for my replacement has begun and I am pleased to share the link to the recruitment information pack.
“While the information pack details pretty much everything you need to know, it doesn’t really convey the incredible people you’ll meet, the fabulous professional relationships you’ll build, the expert knowledge sharing you’ll enjoy and the great camaraderie and support the sector offers.
“I’ve enjoyed my time enormously and hopefully contributed, in some way, to the advancement of regulating, and regulation of, online gambling.”
Xpoint
Xpoint has added Ron Braunfeld as Chief Revenue Officer.
Braunfeld brings experience in business development, sales, and strategic partnerships within the technology and venture capital sectors to Xpoint, including over 12 years of experience in the location technology sector.
Most recently, he was Vice President of Business Development at Mobi Systems. He has also served as General Manager for Philadelphia at Capsule and has worked at MapQuest, WHERE, PayPal, SnipSnap and Pingup.
Manu Gambhir, CEO of Xpoint, said: “We are delighted to welcome Ron to our executive team as Chief Revenue Officer. His extensive experience and impressive achievements in business development and sales within the technology and venture capital industries will be invaluable as we expand our offering and strengthen our market position.”
As CRO, Braunfeld will be responsible for Xpoint’s revenue generation efforts, enhancing client relationships and identifying new business opportunities.
Braunfeld commented on his appointment: “The igaming and geolocation industries are developing rapidly, so to join an innovative technology-focused company like Xpoint at this time is incredibly exciting.
“I am looking forward to helping the company continue its strong growth trajectory through the delivery of the most accurate, reliable and cost-effective geolocation services available in the market.”
GR8 Tech has expanded the roles of CTO Artur Ashyrov and CRO Oleksandr Feshchenko, promoting them both to the position of Deputy CEO.
The company has undergone the management team expansion to allow for CEO Evgen Belousov to be “less involved in operational matters and more focused on the strategic and visionary aspects of the business, moving towards GR8 Tech’s long-term goals”.
Belousov stated: “The greatest challenges and opportunities arise where the interests of different functions intersect. Oleksandr and Artur have a proven track record in cross-functional projects, showcasing their deep understanding of our business. Their new
roles will enable them to steer GR8 Tech toward even greater success.”
As Deputy CEOs, Ashyrov and Feshchenko will help to identify growth opportunities and action plans to address them, in addition to continuing to lead GR8 Tech’s technology and revenue functions.
“I’m a huge believer in the efficiency of cross-functional teams, having seen their ingenuity and fresh approach multiple times,” commented Ashyrov.
“Combining my CTO experience with a Deputy CEO perspective is an exciting and extremely interesting challenge. I’m eager to enhance our internal processes and deliver noticeable improvements in our SLAs, platform’s stability and performance, and so on.”
Feshchenko added: “Coming from the product side, I’ve always been invested in the entire lifecycle – from profitability to process optimization. As Deputy CEO and CRO, I’m excited to implement my vision for a more efficient and innovative company-wide flow.”