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[GHG]

Blames Farage, blames Andrew Tate, blames Elon, blames DEI teams being in the crosshairs of cost cuts, but yet says nothing about the content of the games that are being created.

Here's the full transcript for anyone who wants to read instead of watch (the transcript isn't punctuated, so apologies on advance):

00:00:04 we've got a short session now with Amicus leader Liz Prince Liz will be talking about how to maintain progress against it amongst during an EDI backlash please welcome [Applause] Liz thank you Pier that was absolutely amazing um and I kind of wish i' had spoken before Pierre because I feel as though I'm I'm the sort of slightly depressing voice and he was the he's the really uplifting one so um I haven't got any slides I've literally got a 10-minute little slots so I hope you don't mind if I'll just whiz through

00:00:42 some thoughts oh we've got this horrid change over hello cool um so hi my name's Liz Prince I head up a specialist games recruitment business called Amicus um I'm the founder of G gaming which is an initiative that we launched in 2018 um to look at the desperate um position that we had on the pipeline of well no women coming into the industry um I'm also the co-founder alongside dumsha and Yuki's raise the game of an Empower up platform um it's an EDI set of resources and hopefully you'll take a look at that

00:01:24 um so EDI is pretty much at the heart of everything that I do in my professional life um I've been a woman in the games industry for almost 20 years now um and right now I'm a mixed bag of sadness uh of Anger of concern um mostly around this sort of real world backlash against EDI and the sort of negative perception that we seem to have about what it means to be woke um so I just thought it might be useful to spend uh a little bit of time to reflect on that today understand where we are have a think

00:02:02 about what we can do to try and maintain our progress in the EDI work that we're all doing but against that backdrop um so for me I guess this recent Trend against EDI it seems to be promoted and fueled by a number of significant and yet influential figures um and it just generally raises a lot of important questions about the values that we uphold because like to be awake to social injustice um and issues and to have compassion we talked about compassion this morning in a session how can that be an insult um who wants to be

00:02:45 on the other side of that Spectrum there's obviously not just one individual reason that we're seeing this backlash at the moment politics has of course played a huge role we've seen a rise in the far right across many nations often fueled and emboldened by a feeling of Injustice amongst the populations who are facing a lot of economic difficulties and that's definitely led to populist politicians using divisive rhetoric I'm looking at you Nigel farage going into the jungle and trying to look like a really great

00:03:24 guy social media is of course a really powerful force in spreading misinformation and extremist views so-called influences like the Dreadful and dangerous Andrew Tate are playing a significant role in suggesting that Ed EDI initiatives are discriminatory against white men or that these initiatives are promoting that woke agenda and it undermines Traditional Values and let's not forget Elon Musk using his own platform to um and and his influence to suggest that EDI is not merely immoral but illegal in the corporate world the

00:04:08 economic downturn has obviously played a significant part in in fueling that EDI backlash when times are tough and again this was raised this morning when times are tough there can be a tendency to focus on short-term gains cost cutting measures rather than the long-term investments in EDI and that can lead to a perception that Ed initiatives are some sort of unnecessary luxury or that they maybe divert resources from more commercially focused projects these are some of the issues that we're facing as people

00:04:44 professionals as well as individuals who care strongly about Equity inclusion and belonging in the workplace and life in general so why should we continue to strive well obviously first and foremost embracing Equity diversity and inclusion aligns with ethical imperatives that transcend those corporate B dreams and social rhetoric our world is a rich landscape of cultures backgrounds and perspectives it's through the celebration and embracing of our different experiences that we Foster a more empathetic and

00:05:19 understanding Global Community by creating environments that champion diversity we not only honor the Dignity of every individual but also lay the groundwork for a more just and Equitable Society from a business standpoint the advantages of promoting EDI are undeniable countless stud Studies have constantly demonstrated that diverse teams outperform homogenous ones for instance companies with high racial diversity are 35% more likely to have the financial returns above the industry mean inclusive companies are 1.7 times more like likely to be Innovation leaders and varied perspectives breed Innovation creativity and problem solving approaches that are essential in today's rapidly evolving Market landscape and boy do we need those now organizations that Embrace diversity cultivate a stronger connection with a diverse customer base so enhancing their ability to understand and meet the needs of a broad range of customers and service users we also know that inclusive workplace culture has been linked to higher Employee Engagement improved retention rates and better working relationships inclusive teams make Better Business decisions twice as fast and diverse companies are 70% more likely to capture new markets when individuals from different backgrounds are valued and included they are more likely to contribute their best work just listening to a talk about unmasking um it it yeah it means so much I think EDI just can't be a tick boox on a studio to-do list it's an integral component of sustainable and impactful business practices and remains a crucial

00:07:18 eth ethical imperative so how do we try and continue our work um as someone said earlier convincing seite exacts and leaders of the importance of EDI can be really challenging right now especially given our current climate typically we see success from framing EDI initiatives in terms of those business outcomes rather than focusing solely on the mor moral or ethical benefits of EDI Kira Chan who some of you might know spoke to the UK EDI group last week about her success in implementing inclusive and compassionate people-led

00:08:01 policies but that were business focused and business Le which sounded like a perfect combination to me so she was talking to us about the B the benefits of policies such as unlimited leave and self-care days and then they were evidence through data around the reduction in the days lost through sickness absence and prism and and it totally it just resulted in greater productivity when they looked at their data and they they were a a pre-revenue studio who needed to really maintain that High Velocity

00:08:38 production schedule so it made absolute you know um Roi sense to all of the Business Leaders as well as being a huge huge benefit to um to the team people Centric policies can be low cost and simple to implement but they result in increased Innovation improved Talent acquisition and retention and enhanced customer satisfaction on Empower up we've got lots of ideas around policies um and around some things that um that you can have a look at if you feel that you just want somewhere to start or somewhere to

00:09:18 think about please head there and and start that journey and have a look one of the other things that we've seen a lot of success with is identifying allies within the key um stakeholders of the studios just having someone there to help in advocating through influence by working together you can create a much more powerful and effective Coalition and please don't forget about the external networks of support from our wider industry organizations like women in games out making games and raise the game lots of games for sharing

00:09:54 great ideas at the same time talking to team members about the the benefits of dni is so important maybe through training sessions or workshops or other initiatives um and we've seen some really interesting mentoring that's been established around Studios that aren't just helpful with career progression but also potentially for putting people together who may not otherwise have socially or naturally um aligned or got to know each other within the studio if everyone understands even theoretically the importance of EDI

00:10:34 employees are more likely to support and participate in the initiatives if those from underrepresented groups are willing ask them to lead the conversation I was listening to um Sandy to toxic I can never say her name properly she was on um woman's hour this week talking about her her latest book um and she was just advocating and encouraging people to listen and her phrase was because you just can't know what it's like to be a marginalized person if you've never experienced that yourself so let's make sure that we

00:11:12 listen and understand fully the impact that we have on one another and the impact of the policies that we Implement and the behaviors that we encourage in our businesses to sum up those advocating against EDI fail to acknowledge the profound benefits of a diverse and inclusive Workforce while it's important to recognize the right to ex Express diverging viewpoints it's equally critical to assess the implications of those positions particularly when they run counter to ethical practices and well documented

00:11:52 benefits such stances can cause clear and knowing harm to those who lose out when when EDI is not prioritized as we navigate the current complexities that we experience we need to keep standing up we need to stay resilient and push back in a robust and nuanced way it's essential that we all continue to Champion the foundational pre principles of empathy understanding and progress especially as the games industry comes out of this huge period of change let's not go back backwards embracing EDI isn't just a moral

00:12:33 obligation it's a strategic imperative that propels us towards a more Innovative resilient and harmonious future let's continue to build our world where voices are heard equitably that lesser heard per perspectives are valued and every individual and Community is empowered to thrive thank you [Applause]

-------


The following section was particularly interesting:

Studies have constantly demonstrated that diverse teams outperform homogenous ones for instance companies with high racial diversity are 35% more likely to have the financial returns above the industry mean inclusive companies are 1.7 times more like likely to be Innovation leaders and varied perspectives breed Innovation creativity and problem solving approaches that are essential in today's rapidly evolving Market landscape

inclusive workplace culture has been linked to higher Employee Engagement improved retention rates and better working relationships inclusive teams make Better Business decisions twice as fast diverse companies are 70% more likely to capture new markets when individuals from different backgrounds are valued and included they are more likely to contribute their best work

So the question becomes, where are these statistics coming from, and is there any statistical relevance to the gaming industry?

Here's the answer:

https://cecp.co/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/cecp_di_whitepaper_FINAL.pdf

As expected, not a single gaming business to be seen. So in summary:

In large part, this is why we are seeing what we have across the gaming industry in recent years. These are the kinds of disingenuous tactics (along with all the scare mongering) that the likes of SBI deploy when pitching for business, but yet the people in decision making positions didn't question it. Why?

The good news here though is that from this talk you get the sense that they feel like they are on the ropes and know the grift is coming to an end. It's just a shame that things needed to get this bad, both for gamers and the bean counters.

 

[killatopak]

Why?

I can only assume ESG money.

 

[Sebastian1295]

This reads like she is spewing a bunch of numbers and statements with little to nothing supporting any of it because she has to justify her salary and so her throwing all these numbers in ur face is supposed to make it look like she's doing something productive. I tried reading some of it and it's just a mess to understand wth she's even saying with some of the crap she's spewing.

 

[Fafalada]

So the question becomes, where are these statistics coming from, and is there any statistical relevance to the gaming industry?

As much as Gaming likes to act like it's unique - it has a lot more in common with the rest (and the worst of) tech than not. Especially when it comes to organisational dynamics - which - really aren't unique in game industry at all.

 

[Panajev2001a]

Blames Farage, blames Andrew Tate, blames Elon, blames DEI teams being in the crosshairs of cost cuts, but yet says nothing about the content of the games that are being created.

Here's the full transcript for anyone who wants to read instead of watch (the transcript isn't punctuated, so apologies on advance):




-------


The following section was particularly interesting:





So the question becomes, where are these statistics coming from, and is there any statistical relevance to the gaming industry?

Here's the answer:

https://cecp.co/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/cecp_di_whitepaper_FINAL.pdf

As expected, not a single gaming business to be seen. So in summary:

In large part, this is why we are seeing what we have across the gaming industry in recent years. These are the kinds of disingenuous tactics (along with all the scare mongering) that the likes of SBI deploy when pitching for business, but yet the people in decision making positions didn't question it. Why?

The good news here though is that from this talk you get the sense that they feel like they are on the ropes and know the grift is coming to an end. It's just a shame that things needed to get this bad, both for gamers and the bean counters.

The methodology section sounds like they got a statistically insignificant sample size and out of that they restricted it to people that were most likely to tell them what they wanted to hear.

How do businesses really buy into arguments made like this and invest tons of money in the process???

 

[GHG]

I can only assume ESG money.

I think this is true for the larger publicy listed companies who have investors who are pushing for this kind of thing (for example Blackrock), but for the AA and indie studios who have decided to follow this advice it's been detrimental since they haven't got the necessary finnacial resources to weather the resulting storm.

As much as Gaming likes to act like it's unique - it has a lot more in common with the rest (and the worst of) tech than not. Especially when it comes to organisational dynamics - which - really aren't unique in game industry at all.

Gaming businesses are somewhat unique in the tech world though. The products they produce out are entertainment products.

If you're going to attempt to draw parallels to other industries it would make more sense to look at media and entertainment companies whom they share more in common with than the likes of Honeywell and HSBC.

 

[Angry_Megalodon]

Imagine believing any of the bullshit she spews.

Please, remind me of the demographics of the 99% of company founders.

 

[Cyberpunkd]

The methodology section sounds like they got a statistically insignificant sample size

The first thing I looked at - 58 companies….bruh, this is like high school statistics class.

 

[Unknown?]

No one playing a game cares who made it. They all talk diversity like its so great but they never talk diversity of thought, diversity is only good when the peons think like you and agree with "the narrative". If they don't, all the racial and demeaning slurs come out and somehow, in their minds, it is justified when they do it.

How were game companies successful when it was all just nerdy men making the games?

 

[Humdinger]

I'd bet good money that these are correlations being spuriously used to imply causation. This happens all the time in the media. Anyone who has taken a basic stats or experimental design course knows that you cannot infer causation from correlation. That doesn't stop journalists and management consultants from doing it every day, though.

There is a correlation between financially successful firms and those with diversity training etc. The consultant is implying that DEI creates the financial success. It is far more likely that being financially successful allows one to indulge in diversity training, etc. They have the causation backwards, in other words.

p.s. What would be informative is to look at companies before and after implementing DEI programs. Does it help or hinder? We have many examples where instituting DEI policies has hindered profit.

 

[Three]

Wasn't that Chris Dring? Is his middle name Pierre?

 

[GHG]

Wasn't that Chris Dring? Is his middle name Pierre?

Pierre was the previous speaker:

 

[Wildebeest]

It's all about getting women with degrees comfy jobs, not about the games. Although if they care about gender pay equality, surely they would let the games industry be male only to act as a ballast dragging down men and lifting women.

 

[Three]

Pierre was the previous speaker:

Oh, that makes sense

 

[Gilgalaad]

Question :

Answer :

 

[GrayChild]

Good luck with that... cunt.

Nobody's gonna miss your lot once the industry shakeup ends.

 

[Tertullian]

I'd bet good money that these are correlations being spuriously used to imply causation. This happens all the time in the media. Anyone who has taken a basic stats or experimental design course knows that you cannot infer causation from correlation. That doesn't stop journalists and management consultants from doing it every day, though.

There is a correlation between financially successful firms and those with diversity training etc. The consultant is implying that DEI creates the financial success. It is far more likely that being financially successful allows one to indulge in diversity training, etc. They have the causation backwards, in other words.

Damn, you beat me to it. DEI departments don't create success. Rather, successful companies have the most leeway to chase administratively-expensive indulgences like DEI initiatives, and (because they are the most in the public eye) stand to gain the most from such virtue signaling.

That and the extremely obvious lie that women like this want "varied perspectives." They want an arbitrary array of skin colors and sexualities (well, not even that; they want as few white and straight people as possible). But they do not want a variety of worldviews. They want exactly one worldview, one perspective: 2024 Seattle.

 

[LectureMaster]

So the question becomes, where are these statistics coming from, and is there any statistical relevance to the gaming industry?

 

[Banjo64]

I can’t believe these people use terms like global citizen and global community and don’t realise how Orwellian it sounds.

 

[LectureMaster]

Before clicking in I thought it was gonna be a serious introspection and reflection on the overly pushed DEI matter; turns out it is a sugarcoating with misleading stats to further undergird DEI. The industry is gross as usual, fuck.

 

[Unknown?]

I can’t believe these people use terms like global citizen and global community and don’t realise how Orwellian it sounds.

People pushing DEI love authoritarianism.

 

[cormack12]

Couldn't even be arsed putting slides together. Wtf have Tate and Farage got to do with video games.

Sounds like a cult the way she describes it. No wonder Chris Dring is pressing eject.

 

[DonkeyPunchJr]

I’m a software engineer in the US in a different industry (not gaming) and we have a very racially diverse organization.

It’s not because we have some DEI initiatives or racial quotas or whatever. It’s because there are SO MANY immigrants, children of immigrants, and foreign students studying here with degrees (or working on degrees) in computer science and other STEM fields. Mostly from Asian countries. And a surprisingly large % of them are women too.

It’s actually surprising to me when I see pictures of large game development teams and they’re like 90% white. Probably because their far left identity politics and infantile behavior are so off-putting to those who came here pursuing the American dream.

 

[Wildebeest]

It’s actually surprising to me when I see pictures of large game development teams and they’re like 90% white. Probably because their far left identity politics and infantile behavior are so off-putting to those who came here pursuing the American dream.

It's because the pay, hours and career stability are shit. Most immigrants and women have their heads screwed on straight, unlike dudes who grew up playing games and dream job is making games, and will put up with any shit to work in a fun industry. That's why this speaker has so much trouble getting women to work in her game companies, not lack of ugly female protagonists in action games, or andrew tate podcasts.

 

[winjer]

If I had been in a coma for the last 3 decades and woke up today, I would have thought that it was the Soviet Union that won the Cold War.

 

[HogIsland]

It seems really dumb to talk about "DEI" in videogames since an all white male developer team can make any oppressed identity character they want in a game.

Shouldn't DEI at least mean somebody else got a job?

 

[Dr.D00p]

Jesus...they're so far up their own sanctimonious arses.

 

[Killer8]

The stuff about how companies with people of different backgrounds perform better can easily be explained if they are selling products in multiple countries. No shit sales performance will improve when a company becomes multinational and has regional offices everywhere employing all sorts - because their market size has increased. It's not some magic of diversity causing that.

 

[Topher]

It seems really dumb to talk about "DEI" in videogames since an all white male developer team can make any oppressed identity character they want in a game.

DEI should at least mean somebody else got a job.

Somebody else? You mean other than white male?

 

[violence]

They want a non-merit based world, so they want “progress” even if we go off a cliff.

 

[Three]

You guys are going down too far down the politics rabbithole.

 

[Cakeboxer]

"Studies have constantly demonstrated that diverse teams outperform homogenous ones for instance companies with high racial diversity are 35% more likely to have the financial returns above the industry mean inclusive companies are 1.7 times more like likely to be Innovation leaders and varied perspectives breed Innovation creativity and problem solving approaches that are essential in today's rapidly evolving Market landscape"

What studies? How many and who participated?

What innovations/creativity? There is no such thing in the gaming industry anymore.

I only believe the problem solving part, because those people create the "problems" they solve. Look, there is a straight white protagonist. That's a problem!

 

[Angry_Megalodon]

You guys are going down too far down the politics rabbithole.

Who's the one preaching from a pulpit?

 

[LectureMaster]

It seems really dumb to talk about "DEI" in videogames since an all white male developer team can make any oppressed identity character they want in a game.

Shouldn't DEI at least mean somebody else got a job?

Hey look Matt! We found you a fan!

 

[GHG]

It's because the pay, hours and career stability are shit. Most immigrants and women have their heads screwed on straight, unlike dudes who grew up playing games and dream job is making games, and will put up with any shit to work in a fun industry. That's why this speaker has so much trouble getting women to work in her game companies, not lack of ugly female protagonists in action games, or andrew tate podcasts.

Also, most women don't want to work in environments with women like this:



For the people who can't see twitter:

Spoiler

 

[Lions Gate]

 

[ProtoByte]

The games will just keep failing, then. Some of them might not even deserve it, but that's what will happen.

 

[Orpheus]

You guys are going down too far down the politics rabbithole.

Indeed. No more communism/capitalism debate please.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

These organizations are going to double down. The only hope is for these games to keep flopping, for the backlash to continue, and for them to even face legal consequences.

 

[jason10mm]

I feel like the DEI movement in gaming is fundamentally flawed because they are trying to merge three distinct and largely unrelated groups; women, non-whites (and often excluding high performing asian groups as well), and LGBT+ (and the T in there is far more divisive than folks want to admit). So when you are trying to serve these 'groups' equally you end up with what we are seeing now, lots of minority lesbian women. A niche of a niche that ends up appealing to almost no one unless you cast them to appeal to the hungry cishet male gaze which was the rally cry in the first place!

 

[DonkeyPunchJr]

Also, most women don't want to work in environments with women like this:



For the people who can't see twitter:

Spoiler

The only diversity I see here is the hair colors.

 

[Kacho]

I can’t get over how forced and inorganic this is.

 

[Fbh]

"Diversity makes products so much better and more creative and commercially successful".

Meanwhile the team outselling and outreviewing almost everyone:

 

[SlimySnake]

As much as Gaming likes to act like it's unique - it has a lot more in common with the rest (and the worst of) tech than not. Especially when it comes to organisational dynamics - which - really aren't unique in game industry at all.

The product itself is unique in that its played exclusively by males. Women buy iphones. They dont buy Silent Hill 2.

 

[Plague Doctor]

There's not much more to add.

DEI as a policy is dead even if they rebrand it. Why? The same laws that were developed decades ago to prevent actual factual discrimination are the same ones that are smashing down this, ahem, "well meaning discrimination and preferential treatment". There is a literal feeding frenzy of lawsuits and a small army of lawyers taking companies with DEI practices to trial for unfair hiring process.

Even if they rebrand, those lawsuits ain't slowing. There is blood in the water and the sharks will feast. No amount of podium virtue signalling and articles is going to stop them lawsuits from coming in.

This is on top of the question of a lack of meritocracy and the bad press.

 

[Wolzard]

DEI policies are like a virus for companies, its destroy them from inside until they declare bankruptcy and have to sell their assets very cheaply. Then a bigger company like Microsoft, Sony, EA, Take Two, Embracer, buys them and monopolizes the market.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

You guys are going down too far down the politics rabbithole.

until this post I didn't see any

 

[PeteBull]

The product itself is unique in that its played exclusively by males. Women buy iphones. They dont buy Silent Hill 2.

True, even those women who game, most of them game coz their brother/dad/boyfriend/husband/fiance games so usually they dont buy AAA titles at launch for themselfs, us guys do, hence we still hold majority of buying power and our preferences are the deciding factor when the game flops or is succesful

 

[Zacfoldor]

Edit: removed for potential political beliefs, sorry just read the above

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

DEI policies are like a virus for companies, its destroy them from inside until they declare bankruptcy and have to sell their assets very cheaply. Then a bigger company like Microsoft, Sony, EA, Take Two, Embracer, buys them and monopolizes the market.

Ubisoft's demise next year is going to be another one of those rare incel victories that should shake the industry up