The Work in Esports podcast is a place you can hear from industry professionals about their path in esports, how they got started, gained experience, and the skills they developed along the way.
If you have ever wanted a career in esports or just want to know how to get more involved, this is the podcast for you. From designers, to shoutcasters, to co-founders, we have a growing list of guests from across the industry who walk you through their experiences, step-by-step, and help you gain perspective to help give you an edge and maybe just find an esports career for you.
Matt has been forging their own path in esports for over 7 years now, mostly from a General Manager side of things. From managing players to assisting with visas to supporting leadership and diving into analytics, he has gained experience at Envy Gaming, UCI Esports, Misfits Gaming Group, Flyquest, and Cloud9. He is passionate about organizational strategy and intends to further put his stamp on the industry in the coming years as he wraps up his MBA in 2023.
Please note that this previously unreleased episode was originally recorded on February 25, 2021.
21 Jul 2021
Nishant Patel on founding AFK Gaming, esports in India, and what skills are in highest demand.
Nishant Patel is one of the co-founders of AFK Gaming (https://afkgaming.com/) and also serves as its Head of Content. AFK Gaming is one of the top esports news/media sites around, specializing in topics around mobile esports & what's happening within the industry in India.
We discussed his vision for Asian esports, what it takes to survive as a media company in such a fast-moving industry, and what you as a job-seeker can do to make yourself the best possible candidate for a job in esports.
You can find him on Twitter @therealClouDx (https://twitter.com/therealClouDx) or on LinkedIn. (https://www.linkedin.com/in/nishant-patel1/)Make sure you also check out AFK Gaming, along with their latest news and projects.
19 Apr 2021
Breanne Harrison-Pollock on designing esports apparel and the importance of persistence
Recorded at the end of 2020, Breanne discusses what went into building what Forbes described as "the Nike of esports," an innovative apparel company called Ateyo. We explore how she stumbled upon PC Cafes in New York, helping to spark the initial idea for their first product. She also shares what went into founding and setting up the company, negotiating with factories, work-life balance, networking, and more!
You can find her on Twitter @breannehp (https://twitter.com/breannehp) and you can find out more about Ateyo here: https://ateyo.com (https://ateyo.com/)
I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did; if you did, please leave the podcast a review (it really helps!)
2 Feb 2021
Duran Parsi ON: founding CSL, new challenges at FACEIT, and building a career in esports
Duran is a longtime esports veteran, playing for the National team in StarCraft: BroodWar while in high school, eventually founding the Collegiate StarLeague, and more recently taking on new challenges at FACEIT. In this episode, we explore each step throughout his career, his motivations & challenges, and his advice for anyone looking to build a career in esports.
20 Oct 2020
Will Whittingham ON: finding a job in esports
Will is on the front lines of helping people find work in the esports industry. His job as a Content Coordinator for Hitmarker requires him to actively seek out the most recent job openings in gaming, so if you want to work in esports, you might want to give this episode a listen!
We discuss his upbringing, his realization that he didn't want to work in politics, the hiring process, tips for interviewing, some things to NOT do while networking, and some additional insight.
Let us know what you think about this episode over on our Twitter (https://twitter.com/WorkInEsports). And please leave a review on iTunes or your favorite podcasting platform, it helps a lot!
4 Sept 2020
Cody Elsen, Esports Director at Northwood University
Cody and I both graduated from the same university, but never spoke in detail until this conversation. He started his own organization, Fable Esports, competed as a player himself, and worked alongside professional golfers for years, helping to ensure they had the right tools they needed to succeed on the course, and today he finds himself doing the same thing at Northwood, helping students succeed in the classroom and also in-game.
What I found most fascinating about this conversation was learning about all the support that the university is offering students and the amount of REAL, hands-on experience they are organizing for their students. It definitely seems like they are setting them up for success.
If you want to learn about what it takes to become a college esports athlete, how to manage an esports team efficiently, or the importance of analytics in all things, then you might want to give this episode a listen. Learn how to work in esports by hearing about Cody's experience.
1 Sept 2020
Reid "RAPiDCasting" Melton, esports caster in Korea tells us how he got there
Want to know how to become a professional esports caster? Want to know what makes a great reel? Always wanted to move to Korea and work in esports? Well, you might want to hold your horses and listen to this podcast first! Reid has done it all and will walk you through the ins and outs of his experience and how you might be able to gain experience and find work for yourself if you think you're up to the challenge.
28 Aug 2020
Angela Natividad ON founding an esports agency
A time-consuming but excellent conversation with one of my favorite humans about how she got into esports, her background in customer support and advertising, moving to France just before the market collapsed and she ended up out of a job. We also dive into the creation of Hurrah.group and Angela's work with Women in Games and France Esports.
If you want to learn something about leadership, being pitched an idea while drunk, how to manage stress, or maybe even how to work in esports, then you are in the right place. Enjoy this one.
19 Apr 2020
AC ON: Esports Event Management & Making Connections
In this episode, AC tells us about the life of an event manager. The long hours of planning, the excitement and stress of event day, and even some crazy experiences from that one event at an indoor waterpark! We also discuss networking and how to provide value at the same time without coming off as "too much."
You can contact AC at @ACWOAE (https://www.twitter.com/ACWOAE) on Twitter!
Thanks for listening, and let me know what you think about the episode on Twitter (https://anchor.fm/dashboard/episode/twitter.com/notspencer).
23 Mar 2020
Jon Koob on Social Media Marketing in Esports
Jon Koob is a master of social media, yet he seems to be a student at the same time - always learning and improving at his craft. He attended The University of Iowa, excitingly pitching and starting their Snapchat channel. Later he joined Vancouver-based esports startup, Battlefy, as their social media manager, and today he flexes his skills over at SteelSeries in Chicago.
In this episode, we discuss some of the stigma around social media roles in esports, with many people assuming every company just has a social media intern to handle things - Jon tells us that it's really so much more than that. Also, we touch on the power of networking (how we met), and what it takes to actually find a role in esports or even just at a startup.
You can contact Jon at @JonKoob (https://www.twitter.com/jonkoob) (https://twitter.com/theresagaffney)across most social media.
Thanks for listening, and let me know what you think about the episode on Twitter (https://anchor.fm/dashboard/episode/twitter.com/notspencer).
2 Mar 2020
Theresa Gaffney ON: College Esports and how to get involved
Theresa is a resident of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, working as the Head Coach and Coordinator of Esports at Messiah College. She is a master of metal and memes, and formerly served as the Editor-in-chief at the Collegiate StarLeague. That is how we first came into contact, she was looking to hire an esports writer and I happened to land the gig.
This conversation was a very enjoyable one for me, as we got to focus a lot on the specifics of collegiate esports. If you have ever wondered about what it takes to succeed as a collegiate esports athlete or if non-competitive gamers can play a part in a college program, then this is one you won't want to miss!
We also discuss important skills for freelancers, how to value your work and properly balance your free time, and even touch on interview tips and networking.
You can contact Theresa at Terrigafff (https://www.instagram.com/terrigafff/) on Instagram, Theresagaffney (https://twitter.com/theresagaffney)on Twitter, and tmgaffney#2481 on Discord!
Thanks for listening, and let me know what you think about the episode on Twitter (https://anchor.fm/dashboard/episode/twitter.com/notspencer).
Josh is a resident of Las Vegas, working as a money manager, who created time for himself to find work in the esports industry as a caster-turned collegiate historian. He is a WWE and all-around wrestling fanatic, and he doesn't shy away from standing up for what is right, even in the face of pressure. He is a guy I look up to in that sense, and I loved our conversation.
We got a chance to talk about what sets a successful collegiate esports program apart from an unsuccessful one, skills needed to work in esports, and the importance of networking with others online and the excitement that comes with meeting them in person.
Hit me up on Twitter (twitter.com/notspencer) and let me know what you think, and be sure to follow Josh on Twitter (twitter.com/pheques)!
10 Jul 2019
Episode 2 - Matt "GundayMonday" Sever - Creating Value and Utilizing Artificial Intelligence in Esports
Matt is a data science lover who also happens to be one of the most experienced Sejuani players in the world. We first met at an anime conference in Detroit, where he was competing in a League of Legends tournament. He has been involved in some cool projects, such as a fighting game and his most recent work, Tryharder.gg - an AI driven self improvement tool for League of Legends players. He offers some fascinating insight into the data driven side of the industry and gives us some tips for getting started with projects of your own.
Hit me up on Twitter (https://www.twitter.com/notspencer) and let me know what you think, and be sure to follow Matt on Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/gundaymonday) and Twitter (https://www.twitter.com/graceunderfiero)!
Tyler is a high level Overwatch player who also works in the esports industry. He has spent most of his time developing content over at Proguides.com - helping players improve at League of Legends, Overwatch, and Hearthstone. We worked together for a few years, so I thought it would make for a good first episode. Hit me up on Twitter (https://twitter.com/notspencer) and let me know what you think, and be sure to follow Tyler on Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/artorigold) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/artorigold)!
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