"Don't judge the resume, judge the K/D": Ex Activision Blizzard exec defends new Xbox CEO with absolutely zero gaming experience, says "it IS learnable"

One former Activision Blizzard exec has come to the defense of new Xbox CEO Asha Sharma, saying that – from her own experience – "even though there is a LOT to learn for someone without a gaming background, it IS learnable."

Sharma is replacing former Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer, who is retiring from his role at the same time as Xbox president Sarah Bond resigning, ultimately making for an enormous leadership shakeup all at once. Many previously assumed that Bond would eventually take over from Spencer, and, confusingly, Sharma has no background in games, having joined Microsoft in 2024 as president of the company's CoreAI product. But Lulu Cheng Meservey, former executive vice president, corporate affairs and chief communications officer at Activision Blizzard, says that lack of experience shouldn't be a dealbreaker.

Taking to Twitter, Merservey – who departed Activision in early 2024 after first joining as a board member in April 2022 – acknowledges that some Xbox fans "are asking how much it matters that Asha doesn't have gaming experience," and she has "some thoughts since I've been there" before.

"I had never worked in gaming when I joined Activision Blizzard's board and later became CCO & EVP Corp Comms," Merservey writes. "And although I'd played games, I wasn't very good.

"The learning curve was huge. I had to quickly understand the products and players. Gaming culture is unique, and it's not just one culture! COD vs WOW have very different communities. Launching DIV was totally different from Overwatch work."

Merservey admits that "getting up to speed took a ton of listening and learning (often the hard way, because while you're figuring things out you still have to Do Your Job)," which involved studio visits, talks with devs and streamers, "and lots of reps getting absolutely murked in Modern Warfare II."

However, she continues, "The players made a huge huge difference. I learned from so many of you, whether you were sharing feedback or meeting up at BlizzCon or cooking me on twitter (tough crowd, strong feelings – never change!)"

Looking back, by Merservey's own reckoning, she definitely "didn't have the 'right' resume or a background in gaming," but she "did know how to communicate, negotiate, get creative, take care of people, and, when needed, fire shots." She continues: "I still made plenty mistakes. But my point is that skills from other jobs do transfer. Even though there is a LOT to learn for someone without a gaming background, it IS learnable."

She calls Sharma a "smart, effective, and a fast learner," and someone who "has no ego, just wants to get the job done. Playing lots of games in a short period is her way of preparing as best she can, and she shouldn't be put down for that."

What's more, "she's determined to make Xbox the best it's ever been, from the foundation built by Phil and Sarah and their team." Merservey says, "If I could've stayed after our acquisition, I'd be super excited right now to work for Asha!"

She wraps things up with her gratitude towards all the folks who were welcoming to her when she joined the gaming community, "and gave me advice and encouragement (even as I was far from perfect)." Concluding, she says: "I hope you'll give Asha that opportunity to load in, learn, and show what she can do. Don't judge the resume, judge the K/D."

Certainly, only time will tell if Sharma is the right fit for the role, although you can understand some folks' hesitance, especially at a time when Xbox has already undergone enormous changes, layoffs, and (for better or worse) has been waving goodbye to platform exclusivity on many of its biggest hitters. This was already a weird era for Xbox, and new leadership coming in on top of that was always going to raise questions – the CEO's CV is only part of that.

New Xbox boss says "I don't pretend to be the best gamer," but that's not her goal, anyway: "My focus is to make Xbox the best place to play, return to our roots, ship great things, and become stronger."