A new CEO, interim titles turned permanent, and new ventures pulled executives in fresh directions across gaming’s top ranks this week.
Here are the moves worth knowing in this week’s Hires and Higher-Ups:
- Scientific Games named its new CEO
- FanDuel keeps its interim leader for the long term
- Novig names its first chief product officer
- Hacksaw reshuffles its management to chase prediction markets
- Paysafe hires a chief revenue officer from video games
- SciPlay begins life after Josh Wilson
Scientific Games hires Flynn as CEO
Scientific Games named Dan Flynn chief executive officer, the lottery supplier announced Thursday.
His appointment took effect Monday. Flynn fills the job Pat McHugh left when he retired in September.
Kevin Schneider ran Scientific Games as interim CEO after McHugh left. He now moves to chairman of the board. Schneider joined the board as an independent director in 2022 and became vice chairman in March.
Flynn comes from CDK Global, a Brookfield portfolio company that sells technology to auto dealers, where he was chief transformation officer. Before that, he ran Caterpillar‘s global rental and used equipment business, which had more than $4bn in annual sales. He also spent more than two decades at Hertz, finishing as senior vice president of North American operations, where he oversaw a $6.6bn business.
Flynn will join the Scientific Games team at the World Lottery Summit in Sydney, Nov. 9-13.
Genetski to become FanDuel’s permanent CEO
A Flutter spokesperson confirmed to SBC that Christian Genetski will become FanDuel’s permanent CEO on Jan. 1, 2027. Genetski took over on an interim basis in May after Amy Howe was pushed out.
“Christian has done a fantastic job leading FanDuel on an interim basis,” Flutter CEO Dan Taylor wrote in an internal email first reported by Front Office Sports. “He knows the business inside out, has been part of its growth from the beginning, and understands the team and the opportunities ahead. Making the appointment permanent gives FanDuel continuity at an important point in its growth and means the team can keep building on the progress already made.”
Genetski joined FanDuel as chief legal officer in February 2015 and added chief commercial officer duties in 2017. He became president in 2022. Taylor himself became Flutter CEO on Oct. 1 after Peter Jackson stepped down.
Novig promotes engineering head to CPO
As it continues to lean into sports prediction markets, Novig announced on Thursday the promotion of Head of Engineering Ari Hirsch, who becomes the company’s first chief product officer.
Hirsch will report to co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Kelechi Ukah and will oversee product design and engineering from end to end, including customer onboarding, market discovery, trading, and withdrawals.
Hirsch has been with Novig since 2023 as one of the firm’s first 10 employees. The company said he played a central role in developing the platform’s technology and consumer-facing features throughout its evolution from betting exchange to sweepstakes site to its current guise as a federally regulated sports prediction market exchange.
“No one is better suited for the position than Ari, who spends just as much time architecting our product and platform as he does engaging with our members,” said Ukah. “His technical expertise, commitment to our mission, and relentless optimization of the Novig experience make him the perfect person to drive the product forward in its next phase.”
Hacksaw Gaming builds separate prediction markets team
Hacksaw appointed Philippa Gregory Operational CEO of its subsidiary Hacksaw Gaming. She succeeds Marcus Cordes, who will build a team for Hacksaw Markets, the B2B prediction markets platform the group launched in October.
The two will work in parallel until Dec. 1. After that, Gregory will focus mainly on the gaming business.
Gregory joined Hacksaw Gaming in April 2022 and has sat on Group Management since January 2025. The company cited her experience with evolving regulatory requirements.
“Over the past five years, I have focused on building a strong management team, ready to take the company onto its next phase,” Cordes said. “Philippa has always been a natural successor in my eyes, and I was pleased to recommend her appointment. This allows me to return to what I do best and focus on where I can create the most value for the Group.”
Luke Hammett, Hacksaw Gaming’s Chief Commercial Officer in Malta, also joined Group Management. Group CEO Ana Vrabic Verdir said the change “gives both businesses the dedicated leadership and focus needed to support our group strategy.”
Paysafe hires Schonfeld as Chief Revenue Officer
Paysafe named Rob Schonfeld chief revenue officer on Nov. 2. He will lead its global revenue organization, including commercial strategy, sales execution, business development and strategic partnerships.
Schonfeld brings more than 25 years of experience. He most recently served as chief business officer at Ludeo. Before that, he was global revenue officer at Activision Blizzard, which he joined in 2012, and he helped the company through its 2023 sale to Microsoft. He also spent 12 years at The Walt Disney Company.
“Rob is a proven leader with a remarkable track record of driving growth and transforming global businesses,” Paysafe CEO Bruce Lowthers said. “His extensive experience building high-performing commercial organizations, combined with his deep understanding of the gaming ecosystem and digital commerce, makes him an outstanding addition to our executive team.”
SciPlay starts its own CEO search
Meanwhile, Josh Wilson‘s tenure as CEO of Light & Wonder‘s social casino business SciPlay ended Oct. 30.
Light & Wonder CFO Oliver Chow took over executive oversight of the unit on Nov. 1 and will hold it until the company names a permanent CEO, according to Light & Wonder. Wilson led SciPlay from 2019, the year of its IPO.
He leaves a shrinking segment. SciPlay revenue fell 12% year-over-year to $173m in the third quarter, Light & Wonder reported Wednesday.
