Xbox’s newly created chief operating officer position has been vacated after a short tenure, Microsoft said. Helen Chiang is leaving the company after three months as Xbox’s first COO, according to an internal memo from Xbox CEO Asha Sharma circulated Oct. 23.
Role created during brand reset
The COO job was introduced as part of a broader leadership restructuring announced by Sharma earlier this year. In that announcement, Sharma assigned the role “end-to-end P&L responsibility across content, hardware, platform, and services,” tasking the position with wide operational and financial oversight of Xbox’s business units.
“Her immediate responsibilities are being split up between other Xbox leaders for now,” Sharma wrote.
Chiang had been with Microsoft for 21 years before taking on the Xbox COO title. Microsoft provided a brief statement to Eurogamer saying, “We don't discuss individual personnel matters. We're grateful for Helen's years of service and wish her well.”
Company statement and reporting
- Tenure: Chiang served three months as COO and more than two decades at Microsoft.
- Responsibilities: The role included profit-and-loss oversight across Xbox content, hardware, platform and services.
- Transition: Chiang's duties will be redistributed among existing Xbox leaders while the company evaluates future leadership for the COO function.
Separately, Eurogamer published an anonymous-source claim that Chiang had been terminated for policy violations; PC Gamer cited Eurogamer's coverage but Microsoft declined to comment beyond its boilerplate message.
Shifts at the executive level come as Xbox lays out plans tied to its next generation of hardware and broader business strategy. The COO role was presented internally as central to Sharma’s effort to consolidate operational control and align content, hardware and services under common financial accountability.
For now, Xbox says it will split Chiang’s immediate duties among other leaders while leadership decisions about the COO position are finalized. The company did not provide a timetable for selecting a permanent successor.
