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Riot brings in former Uber exec Frances Frei as part of culture rehabilitation efforts

League of Legends developer says it will continue “pulling in the best of the best” to support its efforts

Riot Games has hired former Uber management and strategy executive Frances Frei amid the churning diversity controversy of recent weeks.

The League of Legends developer found itself at the centre of controversy last month after an article on Kotaku exposed the apparent sexist work culture at the studio.

Frei has reportedly been in discussions with Riot Game executives "over the past few weeks" and has recently begun "intensive work with our cultural transformation team".

She joined Uber in June last year with the remit of fixing one of the most contentious and toxic work cultures in Silicon Valley; after just nine months, the job was considered done and Frei returned to her full-time position teaching at Harvard.

Riot promised that it would continue "pulling in the best of the best" to support the rehabilitation of its culture.

"Throughout her career, Frances has helped many companies evolve and navigate change to achieve their full potential, and we're humbled that she's chosen to work with us," said Riot Games in a blog post.

Frei claims that, after speaking with Riot execs, the studio is "truly putting everything on the table and committing to evolving its culture".

"In my interactions with Rioters, I've seen extraordinary levels of engagement on these issues across the company," she said.

"Every Rioter with whom I've met truly cares about inclusion, which means real change is possible.

"Riot isn't interested simply in fixing problems on the surface, it has the ambition to be an industry leader and to provide a roadmap for others to follow. I share that ambition and am eager to help Riot navigate this process."

This hire could be an important step in bringing some peace and stability to the company which has found itself the subject of numerous disparaging headlines and think pieces over the past month.

Just last week, two staff departed the studio -- one reportedly fired -- over social media posts regarding a diversity panel held at PAX.

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Ivy Taylor

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Ivy joined GamesIndustry.biz in 2017 having previously worked as a regional journalist, and a political campaigns manager before that. They are also one of the UK's foremost Sonic the Hedgehog apologists.