In a competitive ruling post, Riot Games has finally revealed its findings from its investigation behind the recent allegations of verbal abuse and bullying by TSM’s CEO Andy “Reginald” Dinh.
Officials believe that there was “a pattern and practice of disparaging and bullying behavior exhibited by Andy Dinh towards TSM players and staff members,” which has prompted the league to fine the former pro-turned-owner a total of $75,000 while having him complete mandatory sensitivity training and executive training.
TSM has also committed itself to a “culture shift within their organization,” but to ensure that this shift will continue to take place, Reginald will be placed on probation for the next two years across the Riot ecosystem. An independent monitor will establish a tip-line where TSM employees can anonymously report instances of abuse by Reginald, and if Riot finds that Reginald has violated this probation, severely enhanced penalties will be brought down.
These conclusions are the culmination of an internal investigation conducted by Riot officials following several public accusations toward Reginald by a former TSM player. These allegations included constant verbal assaults that would lead to public humiliation and mental breakdowns among the staff and players. Additional people who are or were involved with TSM also revealed similar accusations through the LCS Players Association.
After interviewing 14 individuals and reviewing emails and other electronic communications, public statements, and videos, Riot found that Reginald did verbally abuse some of his pro players and staff members while communicating in a demeaning way. These outbursts were limited to a player or staff’s performance and never had to do with race, gender, age, or sexual orientation. There were also no reports of threatened or actual violence toward a TSM staff member or player.
Related: ‘No unlawful conduct’ by TSM CEO Reginald, independent investigation finds
The team had also gone through its own investigation of the situation and found that there was “no unlawful conduct” by Reginald, although it did say that he provided feedback in an aggressive tone. As a result, Reginald was assigned mandatory executive coaching, along with voluntary coaching for other executives.
