Xbox’s First COO Was Leaving Microsoft 109 Days After Appointment

Xbox CEO Asha Sharma told employees Friday, Oct. 23, that Helen Chiang, Xbox’s first chief operating officer, was leaving Microsoft that day, 109 days after her appointment on July 6.

Other Xbox leaders are to temporarily take on Chiang’s immediate responsibilities while plans for COO leadership are finalized. No successor was named.

Sharma created the role during a July restructuring, assigning the COO end-to-end profit-and-loss responsibility across content, hardware, platform and services. Chiang was to report directly to Sharma.

Chiang had spent nearly two decades at Xbox, with work spanning Xbox Live, Mojang and Minecraft. Sharma said the restructuring would bring Xbox under one operating model and sharpen accountability for investment decisions.

The departure’s effective time on Oct. 23 was not specified, and no reason was given. “We’ll share more on COO leadership as plans are finalized,” Sharma wrote.