Slot and system manufacturer Konami Gaming, Inc. announced that Steve Sutherland, formerly executive vice president and chief operating officer, has been promoted to president and chief executive officer. He succeeds Satoshi Sakamoto, who has transitioned to the position of senior executive director or Konami Gaming’s parent company, Japan’s Konami Holdings Corporation.
Since joining the company in 2000, Sutherland has spearheaded Konami’s success in the North American casino market, where it has most recently doubled its capacity and cemented its position among the top four slot suppliers in the industry. He will now provide central leadership in all aspects of the business as president and CEO.
Konami also announced several other promotions and appointments as it reorganizes its executive leadership team. Thomas Jingoli moves from executive vice president and chief administrative officer to executive VP/chief commercial officer. Thomas Soukup has been promoted from vice president of systems research and development to senior vice president and chief systems product officer. Yuji Taniguchi, formerly vice president, research and development, games, has been promoted to senior vice president and chief games product and strategy officer. Kazuya Kozuki remains executive vice president and chief financial officer.
“From our company’s first game installation and systems implementation, Konami has worked diligently and responsibly to establish itself as one of the top four industry suppliers,” said Sutherland. “Our success to date was created through personal commitment, contribution, and longstanding tenure of its leadership team and employees, who strive on a daily basis to demonstrate an unwavering commitment to fulfilling customer expectations.
“These appointments reflect a continued strengthening of our leadership team as we pursue the achievement of key strategic and operational objectives across the domestic and international markets we serve.”
