Recruiter Hotseat – Anna Donaldson, HR manager at 10:10 Games

Anna Donaldson tells us about 10:10 Games, and how everything they do is based around the needs of their team.

What differentiates your studio from other developers?

We are a brand-new studio based in the heart of Warrington and have just celebrated our one-year birthday. This month we announced our long-term partnership with Funko which is really exciting! We are an independent studio, which allows us to have the freedom to do what we value as a team, and from our inception we have operated with full transparency so that the entire team is directly involved in how our studio evolves. We are also committed to creating multiple pathways into the industry, so we have true entry level roles opening up alongside apprenticeships, internships and more experienced roles.

How many staff are you currently looking to take on?

10:10 Games is looking to double its team size, so we will be taking on around 30 new people across most of our departments to add to the amazing talent that we already have.

What perks are available to working at your studio?

We have zero core hours therefore whether our team likes to walk their dog, go to the gym or need to pick up their children from school, they can work around this in a way that suits them! We work on a hybrid basis, so people can come into the studio or work remotely on days that they prefer, this is on top of the industry leading benefits package we offer to our team.

10:10 Games also has a zero-crunch policy, so any decisions we make surrounding the game are based on the wellbeing of the team. We would never commit to something that would result in a crazy overtime schedule.

What advice would you give for a successful interview at your studio?

We look for 50% skills and 50% personality. We are building an open, inclusive, and friendly culture, so we are looking for people that can mesh well with our current friendly team. Our advice would be to try and be as relaxed as possible, ask us some questions and show an interest in what we do!

What is the culture like at your studio?

We have a people first culture here at 10:10. Therefore everything we do is based around our team. We reach out for feedback with different avenues each quarter, including an anonymous survey, biweekly stand ups with the whole studio and quarterly meetings with each team. This is to ensure we are accountable for the promises we make and our values setting up the studio are maintained.

10:10 Games loves to be involved with any outreach opportunities and have a dedicated group leading this area that anyone can be included in. We are partners with Women in Games, Grads in Games and Into Games. We also know the importance of opening the doors into the industry, therefore we have partnered with our local college and other universities to offer a route through internships, work experience and apprenticeships. We currently have a focus on learning and developing our team internally, with a view to create promotion pathways and have quarterly development 1:1s so everyone has a clear route to develop their skills and continue to grow with the studio.

About Vince Pavey

Vince is a writer from the North-East of England who has worked on comics for The Beano and Doctor Who. He likes to play video games and eat good food. Sometimes he does both at the same time, but he probably shouldn’t.

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