Microsoft has appointed game industry analyst Matthew Ball as Xbox chief strategy officer, following on from recent leadership changes. According to Xbox CEO Asha Sharma, Ball will officially begin his role this month and will report directly to her.

Ball is no stranger to Microsoft, having worked with the company since day 10 of Sharma's leadership and previously holding roles at Illumination, Amazon Studios, Otter Media, and Accenture Strategy. His annual state of video gaming report is a celebrated piece in the industry.

Meanwhile, Scott Van Vliet has joined Xbox as its new chief technology officer, bringing with him extensive experience in cloud, commerce, gaming, and entertainment from roles at Microsoft’s Azure AI infrastructure and Amazon Fire TV. Sharma highlighted that Van Vliet has been part of the Xbox community since the original Live beta launch in 2002.

These changes are part of a broader reshuffle, with Chris Schnakenberg being promoted to corporate vice president of partnerships and business development. Sharma stressed that these moves aim to strengthen the foundation and improve execution for the company's future plans, particularly as it approaches its Showcase event.