In the rapidly evolving world of game development, the continuous training and development of employees is crucial. Game studios face unique challenges that require specialized skills and knowledge. This article explores the common practices in employee training within game studios, the importance of ongoing education, current training trends, and methods for tracking the benefits to the business.
Common Practices in Employee Training
- Internal Training Programs: Many game studios develop in-house training programs tailored to their specific needs. These programs often include courses on game design, programming, art, and project management. Internal experts or external consultants usually deliver these courses to ensure high-quality instruction.
- Knowledge Sharing Sessions: Regular knowledge-sharing sessions, such as Meet Ups or workshops, are popular in game studios. These sessions encourage employees to share their expertise and learn from each other, fostering a collaborative learning environment.
- Mentorship Programs: Pairing less experienced employees with seasoned professionals helps in skill development and career growth. Mentorship programs provide personalized guidance and support, which is beneficial for both the mentee and the mentor.
- External Training and Conferences: Attending industry conferences, workshops, and courses from external providers keeps employees up-to-date with the latest trends and technologies. Studios often invest in sending their staff to such events for broader exposure and networking opportunities.
- Online Learning Platforms: Utilizing online platforms like Coursera, Udemy, and specialized game development resources allows employees to learn at their own pace. These platforms offer a wide range of courses, from technical skills to soft skills.
Welcome to QS Games
In an unstable market, we decided to focus on employee training, and it paid off. The number of colleagues engaged in learning increased by 86% over the past year. In 2024, 59% of our employees have either participated in or plan to engage in training.
We restructured our processes, launched internal courses on high-demand topics, digitized the measurement of training effectiveness, and included “Sharing knowledge” as a competency in employee performance reviews. The results are already evident and measurable in terms of the financial benefits that training has brought. For example, training for game designers improved our games and their metrics, while leadership training helped us build more efficient teams, saving budgets in the process.
Welcome to AXLEBOLT
Stagnation may as well be defined as taking a step backwards where the gamedev industry is concerned, which is why professional growth is one of our company’s key values. AXLEBOLT employees always keep their skills up to date and are constantly working to improve them. They do so in many ways, including regularly attending conferences and taking courses that focus on hard skills.
Importance of Employee Training
- Skill Enhancement: The game industry is highly competitive and constantly evolving. Continuous training ensures that employees’ skills remain relevant and up-to-date, allowing studios to maintain a competitive edge.
- Innovation and Creativity: Training encourages employees to think creatively and innovate. New skills and knowledge can lead to the development of unique game features and mechanics, enhancing the overall quality of the games.
- Employee Satisfaction and Retention: Investing in employees’ professional development shows that a studio values their growth. This boosts morale, job satisfaction, and loyalty, reducing turnover rates.
- Operational Efficiency: Well-trained employees work more efficiently and effectively. They are better equipped to handle complex tasks and solve problems, leading to smoother project workflows and timely deliveries.
This year, we decided to focus on internal events, as they are more beneficial and cost-effective for the company. External experts, with whom we agree on customized programs, act as speakers for our internal courses. This year, 27 company leads completed the People Management course, and 30 artists completed the 2D course.
We also conducted a course on balance and economics for game designers, attended by 20 employees, with a homework assignment to develop a feature for the game they are working on. In the fall, we plan a series of internal Meet Up sessions, where our employees will be the speakers.
The main goal of these meetings is knowledge exchange to accelerate or improve work. In the future, we plan to hold Meet Ups regularly, as they are an excellent tool for developing our employees as experts. Acting as speakers helps them deepen their knowledge in their professional field and develop public speaking skills.
Next year, we will focus on developing our managers’ leadership skills through an extensive internal course and conduct an advanced course for our game designers on economics and Live Ops.
In addition to internal events, we continue to use external providers’ services. At the end of the year, the L&D specialist, along with managers and the HR team, plans training for the next year. Managers discuss their teams’ needs and submit their requests. HR aligns these requests with business needs and then selects courses from external schools. This plan is flexible and can change throughout the year, depending on team needs and new employees.
Current Training Trends
- Technical Skills: Training in advanced programming languages, game engines (like Unity and Unreal Engine), and new technologies such as augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) is highly sought after.
- Art and Design: Courses in 3D modeling, animation, UI/UX design, and visual storytelling are crucial for creating visually appealing and engaging games.
- Project Management: Effective project management skills, including Agile methodologies, are essential for coordinating complex game development projects.
- Soft Skills: Communication, teamwork, and leadership skills are increasingly emphasized. These skills are critical for fostering a collaborative and productive work environment.
- Live Ops and Game Economy: Understanding live operations (Live Ops) and game economy design is vital for developing games that can sustain long-term player engagement and generate revenue.
Learning & Development (L&D) has always been a priority at QS Games. Continuous development improves our games and increases profits. However, we started actively expanding this area just a year ago. In Confluence, we created the “Universe of Learning,” an educational portal consisting of a Knowledge Base and internal training events.
The Knowledge Base contains a wealth of information on various topics: Game Design, Art, Marketing, Management, Project Management, Product Analysis, HR, internal processes, and using different platforms, among others.
We emphasize soft skills and management skills: a big part of our corporate culture is openness to new perspectives and experiences. And, of course, since we’re a gamedev company, we love everything about games and creating them 🙂 Which is probably why the most popular internal training formats at AXLEBOLT are business games, meetups, and microlearning modules.
Most importantly, our whole team is open and honest when it comes to communication, whether that’s giving feedback on corporate events, suggesting fresh ideas, or sharing lifehacks and helpful materials. All of that gives us amazing opportunities to grow together.
Tracking the Benefits to the Business
- Performance Metrics: Tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) such as project completion rates, bug rates, and time-to-market can help measure the impact of training on productivity and efficiency.
- Employee Feedback: Regular surveys and feedback sessions provide insights into the effectiveness of training programs and areas that need improvement.
- Financial Impact: Analyzing the return on investment (ROI) for training programs helps in understanding their financial benefits. This includes assessing improvements in game quality, increased sales, and reduced development costs.
- Skill Assessments: Conducting pre- and post-training assessments can quantify the skill improvements and knowledge gains of employees, providing a clear picture of the training’s effectiveness.
- Career Progression: Tracking the career progression of employees who have undergone training can illustrate the long-term benefits of professional development initiatives.
All training events are carefully selected and evaluated, and we have a system for assessing the knowledge employees gain. It is important to us that our colleagues not only attend training events but also truly benefit from them, bringing profit to the company.
Additionally, we have started developing our YouTube page and sharing knowledge with the audience for free. In live broadcasts, our HR team and managers share career-building tips, and technical specialists share their knowledge in their fields. For example, in September, we plan to cover the topic “How to draw isometry and avoid common mistakes.” In the future, we also plan to share our knowledge on developing soft skills.
A separate component of our L&D is onboarding new hires. We have developed and continuously update tutorials on all aspects of work to facilitate the adaptation of employees, both new hires and those promoted within the company. A well-organized Knowledge Base helps not only those who are learning but also those who are teaching. This approach saves time and development costs for teams.
In summary, the development of our employees is one of the pillars on which the culture of QS Games is built. We are very pleased with the results of this effort.
Employee training is a cornerstone of success in the game development industry. By adopting best practices, staying abreast of current training trends, and effectively measuring the impact, game studios can foster a skilled, innovative, and motivated workforce. This not only enhances the quality of the games produced but also ensures long-term business growth and sustainability.
Good Morning
I’m Kaymar a Concept Artist – Character Designer and I’m interested in working with you, my working method is very flexible and fast so I can make the corrections you need without wasting much time, I am good working with people and understanding the needs of the client for the work.