Vice Chairman, CNQ Global Advisors
Former Chief Administrative Officer, Activision Blizzard; former Under Secretary of State for Management and Chief Operating Officer of the CIA.
Read the bio →Brian Bulatao is a distinguished executive, investor, and co-founder of CNQ Group. He leverages decades of leadership experience across government, diplomacy, national security, and the private sector to advise clients on geopolitical risk, organizational transformation, strategic growth, and complex global challenges.
Brian currently serves as an Independent Director on the boards of American Century Investments, the Call of Duty Endowment, and the Global War on Terrorism Memorial Foundation. He also serves as a Senior Advisor to McKinsey & Company.
Most recently, Brian served as Chief Administrative Officer of Activision Blizzard, one of the world's largest interactive entertainment companies, with operations spanning North America, Europe, and Asia and iconic franchises including Call of Duty®, World of Warcraft®, and Candy Crush™. In this role, he led enterprise-wide functions critical to global scale and operational excellence, including Human Capital Management, Enterprise IT and Cybersecurity, Consumer Products, Global eSports, Logistics, Compliance, and ESG initiatives. He also served as Executive Sponsor for both the Call of Duty Endowment and the Veterans Employee Network. Following Microsoft's $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Brian played a key leadership role in the post-merger integration.
Prior to Activision Blizzard, Brian served as Under Secretary of State for Management at the United States Department of State, where he led the Department's historic global repatriation effort during the COVID-19 crisis, helping bring home more than 100,000 American citizens from over 130 countries. He oversaw the Department's global contingency and crisis response operations, budget and joint strategic planning, global talent management, diplomatic security, consular affairs, diplomatic technology and cybersecurity, and overseas building operations.
Earlier, Brian served as Chief Operating Officer of the Central Intelligence Agency, working directly with the Director and Deputy Director as the Agency's third-ranking official. In this role, he drove organizational alignment, operational agility, and mission execution across several CIA directorates. He also championed the integration of advanced digital, cyber, and technology capabilities into intelligence collection and operational tradecraft. For his service, Brian received both the Distinguished Intelligence Medal and the Director's Award.
Before entering public service, Brian spent several years in private equity as both a founding partner and senior advisor, focused primarily on middle-market growth buyouts. He also held senior executive leadership roles across manufacturing, logistics, aerospace, and industrial services, including serving as CEO of Chick Companies, President of Nefab Americas, and President and Co-Founder of Thayer Aerospace.
Brian began his business career at McKinsey & Company and holds an MBA from Harvard Business School. He is also a distinguished graduate of the United States Military Academy, where he earned a B.S. in Engineering Management.
A former U.S. Army airborne infantry officer and honor graduate of Ranger School, Brian remains deeply committed to advancing veteran causes, leadership development, and national service initiatives across both the public and private sectors.