.png){kind=logo}
It is hard for gamers, especially those fond of racing games, to have never heard of the Hill Climb series. In a surprising announcement, the mastermind behind this series announced his departure from Fingersoft, leaving behind his role as Chief Operating Officer at the organization.
This news was shocking for the gaming enthusiasts. Rauma took to LinkedIn to announce his departure while expressing gratitude for his time at the organization. However, the mysterious part is that he mentioned no specific reason behind this decision to leave after 11 years of a glorious career.
Ville Rauma joined Fingersoft back in 2014 as a full-stack developer and product owner. Within two years, he was promoted to the post of CCO of the company, and since then, it has been his position until he resigned. While he was the CCO, he even served as an acting CEO during 2019.
Rauma has heightened the company to a new level in this working time, from growing the 12-member team to a workforce of 100 professionals, working on multiple live service titles. This expansion has doubled the company's annual revenue and proved the credibility of Rauma as a leader.
Rauma has always focused on the growth of the company. He used to offer his insights and opinions on Fingersoft’s philosophy and growth strategies. He strongly believes in creativity and using the existing strengths in a proper way to get the best outcome.
In the last few years, the gaming industry has faced massive challenges, and to survive those, organizations have undergone shifts. Sometimes, these shifts are good; sometimes they include layoffs. At this turbulent time, of course, Fingersoft wasn’t unaffected by the pressure. The company laid off 14 employees across various departments in October last year, including development, marketing, community, and App Store Optimization. The CEO, Jaakko Kylmäoja, mentioned that the company was suffering through a significant decline in revenue, and these layoffs were necessary to keep the operation going.
Despite the hurdles, the company has been doing well. It was comparatively less affected by the recessions and pandemic. Even after this, the departure of the CCO is raising questions.
Starting in January 2025, this company has been going through several changes. The organization has been restructuring its leadership. First, it removed the existing CEO, Jaakko Kylmäoja, and brought Teemu Narhi to his place as working CEO. The former CEO was shifted to the board of directors. This shows that Fingersoft has been trying its best to adapt to the evolving situation of the gaming industry.
It's probably coincidental, but Rauma's departure comes at a point when this internal restructuring is going on. The organization has been going through multiple transitions, though there was no news of them removing Ville Rauma from the CCO position. Therefore, it’s still unanswered why he left the organization suddenly. Anyway, Rauma has mentioned his exit is caused by his curiosity to explore new gaming startups. At this point, it's hard to say what actually happened to him.
In conclusion, Fingersoft is trying its best to keep its dominance in the mobile gaming industry. However, how it affected Rauma's dedication to contribute to this organization's growth is unclear. He was a great leader who helped Fingersoft achieve a lot. Now it’s time to see if the company can maintain the same thing after this departure.
