More layoffs for ZeniMax (Update: Confirmed)

Sallington

Step 1: Hire extra support people for console launch
Step 2: Wait for console launch issues to die down
Step 3: Get rid of extra support that was hired for the console launch

This is nothing new, and makes perfect sense. It's like any business that has ever used contract workers. You bring them in to handle an increased workload or new project. When the project is done, they are no longer required. There's no use paying a crew of people for a year when their work takes 3 months to complete.

RinaldoGandolphi

dday3six wrote: »

Unless "big" names start disappearing in bulk I don't see much cause for concern.

How IC is received after launch, and what changes are made to the game between than and the next expansion have more consequential impact on the game's health than layoffs of what seem to be nonessential personnel.

Well you do know that

1. Paul Sage the Creative Director for ESO left in late June.

2. Nick Konkle Lead Game play Designer left in March

3. Maria Aliprando Game Play Designer left in May

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariaaliprando
https://www.linkedin.com/pub/nicholas-konkle/5/4aa/a07
http://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/188025/has-paul-sage-left-zos/p1

IMO these were huge losses to ZOS., don't get me wrong i think Rich Lambert is a great guy and will do well, however losing these 3 and then the losses from this round of layoffs should not be discounted.

My point is the whole situation jsut sucks all around and layoffs suck, but big names have already left.

Lets just hope Rich and Company can carry things forward in the future and polish things up nicely. Its the best we can hope for at this point, and no more layoffs

Pallmor

RinaldoGandolphi wrote: »

Pallmor wrote: »

They had layoffs last September too. Then it was developers, this time it's customer service. It really sucks for the employees who put their faith in the company. Even if you're not laid off, you start to wonder if you're next.

Its not only Customer Service this time, 25 Employees from Zenimax in MD also got the axe, thats 105 of their 250 employees if that number is still accurate from their Wikipedia page.

just saying. yes and it does suck that people got laid off, it makes me sad to hear this

I don't think I belong in management. If I had to do something like that, even if I didn't have any choice, I would be thinking about all those people having to go home and tell their families. For some people that sort of stuff doesn't bother them, but it would definitely bother me. It would just suck all around.

RinaldoGandolphi

Sallington wrote: »

Step 1: Hire extra support people for console launch
Step 2: Wait for console launch issues to die down
Step 3: Get rid of extra support that was hired for the console launch

This is nothing new, and makes perfect sense. It's like any business that has ever used contract workers. You bring them in to handle an increased workload or new project. When the project is done, they are no longer required. There's no use paying a crew of people for a year when their work takes 3 months to complete.

Again you didn't read:

""In all, 25 of Zenimax Media’s employees at 101 Schilling Road lost their jobs in the layoff. The action was described in the records as a mass layoff rather than a closure of the site where Zenimax Online Studios operates."

I hope this helps, these are NOT contract workers, It "appears" they are part of the core 250 people that make up Zenimax Online Studios. If their Wikipedia entry is accurate.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZeniMax_Online_Studios

You may want to edit that post and image....its awful these people lost their jobs...its heartbreaking they got layed off...its not in the slightest one bit funny.....

nimander99

These are customer service jobs... it means nothing for the game itself, they were there to handle the influx of gamers with the worldwide console launch nothing more.

Now, if you had an article saying all the devs were laid off then I'd be concerned, this is nothing we haven't seen from every other mmo maker over the last decade.

RinaldoGandolphi

nimander99 wrote: »

These are customer service jobs... .

http://thedailyrecord.com/2015/08/20/maryland-zenimax-media-layoffs/

"Rockville-based Zenimax Media Inc. on Wednesday laid off workers from its Hunt Valley location, according to Maryland state records.

"In all, 25 of Zenimax Media’s employees at 101 Schilling Road lost their jobs in the layoff. The action was described in the records as a mass layoff rather than a closure of the site where Zenimax Online Studios operates.

"The company sent notice of the layoffs on Aug. 14, according to the records.

"Zenimax Media did not respond immediately to a request for comment on Thursday."

@nimander99 These are NOT Customer Service Jobs.

ESO Customer Service are over in Galway Ireland according to what they Wikipedia Article states.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZeniMax_Online_Studios

Yes ZOS did lay off CS, but they also layed off people that work at ZOS headquarters in Maryland which "appear" to be part of the 250 core they started with if their Wikipedia is to be believed.

Yes this whole thing sucks all-around, Lets hope Rich and company rally and make something really great!

Lastly, i wish people would stop acting like someone getting laid off is no big deal, IT IS A BIG DEAL! i don't care its customer service or a Manager, these people have families and kids, and they don't deserve to be spoken about as if their plight doesn't matter.....layoffs in general just suck, and all these people have my sympathies and i hope they find gainful employment very soon.

BigM

nimander99 wrote: »

These are customer service jobs... it means nothing for the game itself, they were there to handle the influx of gamers with the worldwide console launch nothing more.

Now, if you had an article saying all the devs were laid off then I'd be concerned, this is nothing we haven't seen from every other mmo maker over the last decade.

Nothing we haven't seen before?

1. Put the game on hold so they can work on consoles?
2. Ignore the issues with consoles including screams from players for text chat?
3. Over a year and a half and we still don't have IC that was promised in game from start?

Please tell me on just these 3 points that we seen it in another game?

nimander99

RinaldoGandolphi wrote: »

nimander99 wrote: »

These are customer service jobs... .

http://thedailyrecord.com/2015/08/20/maryland-zenimax-media-layoffs/

"Rockville-based Zenimax Media Inc. on Wednesday laid off workers from its Hunt Valley location, according to Maryland state records.

"In all, 25 of Zenimax Media’s employees at 101 Schilling Road lost their jobs in the layoff. The action was described in the records as a mass layoff rather than a closure of the site where Zenimax Online Studios operates.

"The company sent notice of the layoffs on Aug. 14, according to the records.

"Zenimax Media did not respond immediately to a request for comment on Thursday."

@nimander99 These are NOT Customer Service Jobs.

ESO Customer Service are over in Galway Ireland according to what they Wikipedia Article states.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZeniMax_Online_Studios

Yes ZOS did lay off CS, but they also layed off people that work at ZOS headquarters in Maryland which "appear" to be part of the 250 core they started with if their Wikipedia is to be believed.

Yes this whole thing sucks all-around, Lets hope Rich and company rally and make something really great!

Lastly, i wish people would stop acting like someone getting laid off is no big deal, IT IS A BIG DEAL! i don't care its customer service or a Manager, these people have families and kids, and they don't deserve to be spoken about as if their plight doesn't matter.....layoffs in general just suck, and all these people have my sympathies and i hope they find gainful employment very soon.

I am not speaking at all to how much it sucks to lose a job, but, with the economic downturn we are facing globally, it is what it is. I'm not going to get into the sky is falling, because people get laid off all the time! Yes it sucks, maybe it's concerning, mostly its driven by the bottom line.

Does it mean a company like Zenimax is going to cease to exist in a week... nope not in the slightest.

MaxBat

This very same thing happened at PC release. A couple of months in, a bunch of people were laid off and there was a crowd screaming that Zenimax Online was going under, the game would fail, and the world would end.

Eventually, someone from Zenimax responded that these were temporary hires for PC release and their layoff was expected. I even thing the same source reported that story.

Yattaq

RinaldoGandolphi wrote: »

nimander99 wrote: »

These are customer service jobs... .

http://thedailyrecord.com/2015/08/20/maryland-zenimax-media-layoffs/

"Rockville-based Zenimax Media Inc. on Wednesday laid off workers from its Hunt Valley location, according to Maryland state records.

"In all, 25 of Zenimax Media’s employees at 101 Schilling Road lost their jobs in the layoff. The action was described in the records as a mass layoff rather than a closure of the site where Zenimax Online Studios operates.

"The company sent notice of the layoffs on Aug. 14, according to the records.

"Zenimax Media did not respond immediately to a request for comment on Thursday."

@nimander99 These are NOT Customer Service Jobs.

ESO Customer Service are over in Galway Ireland according to what they Wikipedia Article states.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZeniMax_Online_Studios

Yes ZOS did lay off CS, but they also layed off people that work at ZOS headquarters in Maryland which "appear" to be part of the 250 core they started with if their Wikipedia is to be believed.

Yes this whole thing sucks all-around, Lets hope Rich and company rally and make something really great!

Lastly, i wish people would stop acting like someone getting laid off is no big deal, IT IS A BIG DEAL! i don't care its customer service or a Manager, these people have families and kids, and they don't deserve to be spoken about as if their plight doesn't matter.....layoffs in general just suck, and all these people have my sympathies and i hope they find gainful employment very soon.

That location isn't their HQ (google Zenimax Online Studios), and they have (had now?) CS employees located in Hunt Valley (they had job postings open for it for all of last year). The press release also said CS employees.

Kuroinu

I believe you may have had the best intentions for your thread, but maybe you don't realize what you are actually doing with this thread. You have given us a topic in which we have no control over and are escalating a situation to where you are making others fear for the future of the company and therefore this game.

I don't mean to come over as insensitive, I'm sorry people lost their jobs. But your thread can only have a detrimental impact on the forums. This is why my original post mentions doom and gloom, because nothing good can come out of this thread and you are making people fear for the future, albeit indirectly.

BabeestorGor

RinaldoGandolphi wrote: »

Riko_Futatabi wrote: »

I actually want this game to do well as the TES Franchise as a whole depends on it, this game fails there may not be a TES 6 so me wanting to say that is absurd.

I doubt that.
Zenimax (or rather its subsiduaries) makes more than just TES and ESO, and Fallout 4 (although not my sort of thing) looks set to be a moneyspinner for them.

JamilaRaj

On the flip side, now that ZOS got rid of expendable people, funds that would otherwise go on CS salaries can be diverted and spent on creating some new, exciting content such as Santa costume just in time for christmas.

Gyudan

EQBallzz wrote: »

I'm surprised it hasn't been more and sooner, honestly. Game has been on cash shop auto-pilot for a while now. How many people does it take to make 25 dollar horse skins, anyway?

WHAT? Horses with skins that are only different colors aren't worth 25 dollars? I'm shocked!

News flash:
The game is B2P/P2P now. ZoS was looking for the quick $60 from new players. Customer retention is no longer a priority.

wraith808

RinaldoGandolphi wrote: »

I actually want this game to do well as the TES Franchise as a whole depends on it, this game fails there may not be a TES 6 so me wanting to say that is absurd.

You really think that? They're two separate entities. The success of ESO has little to do with what happens to the TES franchise as a whole. That's the reason they used different studios, in all likelihood.

Elsonso

RinaldoGandolphi wrote: »

Pallmor wrote: »

They had layoffs last September too. Then it was developers, this time it's customer service. It really sucks for the employees who put their faith in the company. Even if you're not laid off, you start to wonder if you're next.

Its not only Customer Service this time, 25 Employees from Zenimax in MD also got the axe, thats 10% of their 250 employees if that number is still accurate from their Wikipedia page.

just saying. yes and it does suck that people got laid off, it makes me sad to hear this

You have referred to this as the "headquarters", but the ZOS HQ is at 200 International Circle, Cockeysville, MD. I am not sure what is located at 101 Schilling Rd, Hunt Valley, MD, who might work there, or what they are doing there.

You seem to think that ZOS has no customer support people in the United States. I would not make such a bold assumption.

In any case, it is always sad when people get laid off. You seem to be circling this information very aggressively. What exactly is your mission here?

Personofsecrets

fearing for the game is healthy and gets the blood flowing.

Selique

To bad for the employees.

But, in reality... How many of them are/were DIRECTLY involved with ESO? ZoS is a company that has more than just Elder Scrolls Online.

So, saying that this is bad for ESO may not be 100% accurate. What were the titles of those who were laid off? Employee can mean anything from CEO to Janitor...

BigM

Selique wrote: »

To bad for the employees.

But, in reality... How many of them are/were DIRECTLY involved with ESO? ZoS is a company that has more than just Elder Scrolls Online.

So, saying that this is bad for ESO may not be 100% accurate. What were the titles of those who were laid off? Employee can mean anything from CEO to Janitor...

Wrong! ZoS only works and made ESOTU. Also am glad you think the place doesn't need cleaning, that poor poor janitor.

RinaldoGandolphi

wraith808 wrote: »

RinaldoGandolphi wrote: »

I actually want this game to do well as the TES Franchise as a whole depends on it, this game fails there may not be a TES 6 so me wanting to say that is absurd.

You really think that? They're two separate entities. The success of ESO has little to do with what happens to the TES franchise as a whole. That's the reason they used different studios, in all likelihood.

Well AFAIK Both Bethesda and ZOS are owned by Zenimax Media are are subsidiarity of Zenimax Media. So yes one does directly effect the other as both subsidiaries were started to put money in the pockets of the company that owns them.

RinaldoGandolphi

Selique wrote: »

To bad for the employees.

But, in reality... How many of them are/were DIRECTLY involved with ESO? ZoS is a company that has more than just Elder Scrolls Online.

So, saying that this is bad for ESO may not be 100% accurate. What were the titles of those who were laid off? Employee can mean anything from CEO to Janitor...

I don't know, you would have to look at the Maryland Records to find out, I would think thats all public record, but i don't know where you would access those records as i don't live in that state to know.

Mighty_oakk

I've played mmos that had less then 50k players. Eso wont be going anywhere anytime soon. That being said after orsinium I wouldn't count on any dlcs being close to being on time. Even zos won't miss an xmas release.

Selique

My point is simply for those who think this is bad for ESO. It isn't unless those 25 people were directly involved with ESO. In all likelihood, they were not. So there isn't much for ESO players to worry about.

I doubt there are even close to 250 people total working on ESO at the moment. So, a loss of 25 non-essential (To ESO) employees (Who could have been janitors for all we know) is nothing to make a big deal over.

RinaldoGandolphi

As i said though, this whole sitation sucks, but we will wait see.

Folks need to stop trying to put a positive spin on layoffs, its as bad as politicians putting a positive spin on horrid job numbers and such for our economy...its a crap sandwich anyway you slice it, stop trying to convice people that its a steakburger...

ghostwise

Game is doomed. (That's sarcasm)

MrGrimey

Maybe they should do a better job at listening to the community

RinaldoGandolphi

Selique wrote: »

My point is simply for those who think this is bad for ESO. It isn't unless those 25 people were directly involved with ESO. In all likelihood, they were not. So there isn't much for ESO players to worry about.

I doubt there are even close to 250 people total working on ESO at the moment. So, a loss of 25 non-essential (To ESO) employees (Who could have been janitors for all we know) is nothing to make a big deal over.

Of they could just as easily be guys like Nick Konkle or Maria Aliprando that we didn't find out they were no longer with ZOS until they updated their LinkedIn profiles...just saying...there is two sides to everything, be patient, sit back and see how things unfold.

Hopefully its nothing, last thing we need is anymore job losses of any kind.

RinaldoGandolphi

ghostwise wrote: »

Game is doomed. (That's sarcasm)

I wouldn't go that far heh

Justice31st

Moderators can we get a /lurk please.

Selique

Probably not though. There probably aren't 25 "big names" resigning (These were laid off, though, mind you.)

And, if you are simply posting this to say "Oh how sad, people got fired" there are worse things in life. Perhaps all the people killed the past week are worth mentioning?

Or maybe the South Koreans who were injured by mines are worth a note? I don't know... Just seems like your motive for posting this is more than just "sad news of the day"....