Laura Miele (born June 9, 1969) is an American businesswoman who serves as President of EA Entertainment, Technology & Central Development, where she oversees Electronic Arts' studios other than those responsible for its sports titles.[1] She formerly served as COO and Chief Studios Officer at EA.[2][3] Under her tenure, the company has developed several games in the industry, including Battlefield, Star Wars, Need for Speed, The Sims, Bejeweled, Mass Effect, and the EA Sports portfolio.[4][5]

Personal life

Miele was born in San Francisco and grew up in a residential area near Lake Tahoe.[6] She got her start in games through an affinity for board games with family.[2] While studying at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas, Miele simultaneously worked at architectural companies. Miele now lives in the Bay Area.[2]

Career

In 1996, Laura Miele joined video game developer Westwood Studios as a project manager and then become the head of marketing for its parent company, Virgin Interactive, and when EA acquired Westwood in 1998,[7] she stayed on to focus on developing advanced analytics for revenue forecasting.[2]

Laura Miele hired a data analyst team known as "the Jedi," and directed them to build Electronic Arts' first statistical regression models to study "sales trends, seasonality, and preorders". It took about two years to put the system in place.[2]

Miele has held a variety of leadership roles during her tenure at Electronic Arts.[8] As Chief Studios Officer, Miele has managed 6,000 staffers and thousands of contractors, in addition to overseeing EA's 25 studios.[2] Laura Miele became known for incorporating the gaming community's feedback in her decisions on what games should be made, such as those related to skateboarding.[6]

Prior to that, Miele served as executive vice president of global publishing, senior vice president of publishing, and when EA signed a 10-year deal with The Walt Disney Company in 2013, Miele became Star Wars general manager. She also served as senior vice president of global marketing and vice president of strategic planning.[2][9]

Miele started a women's networking and mentorship group at Electronic Arts. Being interested in women's rights, she works for the representation of women in games.[10] Miele served on the board of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation and also leads the EA Women's Ultimate Team.[11]

In April 2022 Miele was appointed to the British Film Institute's Board of Governors for a four-year term.[12]

References

  1. ^ Sinclair, Brendan (2023-06-20). "EA realigns into EA Sports and EA Entertainment divisions". GamesIndustry.biz. Retrieved 2023-07-01.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Kharif, Olga (May 19, 2021). "The Most Powerful Woman in Gaming Wants to Make EA Loved Again". Bloomberg News.
  3. ^ Smith, Dave (August 1, 2019). "One of EA's highest-ranking female executives shares her 3 biggest keys to being successful at work". Business Insider.
  4. ^ Pereira, Chris; Makuch, Eddie (December 2, 2021). "Battlefield Franchise Undergoes Major Shake-Up". GameSpot.
  5. ^ Valentine, Rebekah (February 24, 2021). "EA Is Putting the Future of its Franchises, Including Titanfall, into its Studios' Hands". IGN.
  6. ^ a b Kharif, Olga (September 30, 2021). "EA's Laura Miele, Most Powerful Woman in Gaming, Moves Up to COO". Bloomberg News.
  7. ^ Morris, Chris (August 17, 1998). "EA buys Westwood". CNN.
  8. ^ Makuch, Eddie (June 22, 2020). "EA Boss On The Importance Of Diversity And Inclusion". GameSpot.
  9. ^ Favis, Elise (March 5, 2021). "From Star Wars to Marvel, licensed video games are becoming more ambitious. Here's why". The Washington Post.
  10. ^ Segarra, Lisa Marie (January 17, 2020). "Electronic Arts executive wants to make video games more inclusive". Fortune.
  11. ^ "Electronic Arts Executives". Electronic Arts. December 31, 2016.
  12. ^ "BFI chairman Tim Richards welcomes five new governors to the BFI board". BFI. 8 April 2022. Retrieved 2023-07-01.
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