Cover-Credits:
RISE, Riot Games
TSM CEO and Founder Andy “Reginald” Dinh is being investigated by Riot Games and his own organization after multiple current and former employees accused him of bullying and verbal abuse in the workplace. According to a report by Wired, both investigations have been underway since late 2021, with Riot’s being led by O'Melveny & Myers LLP. TSM’s own internal investigation involves an “independent subcommittee,” outside legal counsel, and an independent investigator.
TSM CEO Reginald reportedly berated players and staff
According to employees who spoke to Wired, TSM is dominated by a culture of fear. They alleged that Dinh had a habit of verbally abusing and yelling at players and employees, with a few claiming that he called employees “stupid” or “worthless.” In addition, he allegedly berated employees after hours, and yelled at them publicly to “make an example” out of them.
TSM’s CEO is also being accused of berating the organization’s pro players, making several of them cry. This is in line with ex-TSM AD Carry Yiliang "Doublelift" Peng’s recent allegations about Dinh and his treatment of current and former players on his Twitch stream, where he stated that the TSM CEO was “a bully who gets away with being a bad person because he’s powerful,” and “people are afraid to stand up to him.”
Reginald’s admits to using language that is “too harsh” and “ineffective”
In an email exchange with Wired, Dinh said that he sets “an extremely high bar,” and when he feels that someone is not delivering, he “directly and bluntly” shares that feedback. However, he admitted that his “vocabulary was at times too harsh and ineffective.”
Reginald also admitted that he needed to improve the way he communicates with his team and those around him. “I support and am fully cooperating with the independent investigations that are already underway and will gladly embrace any recommendations from the investigators,” he added.
This is not the first time that Dinh has gotten himself into a tumultuous situation with Riot. Earlier in Feb., the TSM CEO was reportedly fined $5K USD for a Tweet he made against then Cloud9 player Philippe “Vulcan” Laflamme. He claimed that the latter would be “out of a job” if not for the LCS.
While Riot did not reveal any further details about the announcement of its findings, TSM expects to reveal the results of its investigation later this month.
