Brad Wardell's views about technology, politics, religion, world affairs, and all sorts of politically incorrect topics.
Published on September 9, 2012 By Draginol In Business

While the unemployment rate nationally remains over 8%, the unemployment rate in the tech industry is basically zilch. Software developers and game studios can't hire people fast enough and fiercely compete for the talent out there.

This is why companies fiercely guard their company cultures. When every person at a given company knows that they can easily find another job if they so choose, the onus is on companies to make sure that the "work experience" is such that they have an incentive to stay.

I've read a lot of articles that imply that terrible working conditions in the game industry. But that's not the norm. Most game studios and developers in general live and die on their development talent and treat them with that knowledge. Horror stories are news because they're uncommon.

In software, a top percentile developer can produce over 20X more usable code than the average developer.  This is why so many companies are willing to do a lot in order to ensure that the culture that attracts and keeps high end talent.

In a small company like ours, our success boils down to attracting great talent but, and this is the key, keeping it.

A lot of the software we make simply can't be made elsewhere. Years after Fences was made, there's still no competitor to it. Same for WindowBlinds, WindowFX, and countless other products that we are, literally, the only provider of at any price.  

The game industry side of the fence is the same thing.  Simply put, a company as small as ours (50 or so) was able to do all the aforementioned non-game software while publishing Sins of a Solar Empire and Demigod, develop Galactic Civilizations (And now Fallen Enchantress) as well as design, write and run Impulse along with its international server farm.  

And that doesn't even taken into account that we also run or host many different websites such as WinCustomize.com, Stardock's various sites, Neowin.net, and countless others.  And again, 50 or so people total are making this happen.

That sort of achievement is only possible because of employee retention and that means always providing the kind of company culture that makes people want to get up and come to work every day and do amazing things.

Because if we don't provide an environment that keeps people happy and wanting to do cool stuff, they know that they can go anywhere they want. It's that competitive.

And that, my friends, is why software companies take their company cultures very seriously.


Comments (Page 1)
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on Sep 09, 2012

Don't worry bro, we're on your side in this thing.

This Fallen Enchantress was totally asking for it, it wasn't your fault.

on Sep 09, 2012

Personally from what little I've heard this appears to be a situation that would best be served with as little energy as possible.

Life, the universe, and everything is constantly unravelling naturally: a process lubricated via fewer complications.

The heart prevails.

 

On the original topic of this thread, it is comforting to hear from you at all Brad, let alone of your value for quality in this day and age.  Your company seems like a very intriguing place to play.  And while the opportunity presents itself: Fallen Enchantress is off to a truly beautiful start, thank you.

on Sep 09, 2012

I wonder if there is a time limit before people stop thinking every blog or comment is about something unrelated.  

This past week we did, after all,have the DNC which, I hope, to most people, was a bigger deal than internet gossip. The current economy is a big issue and yet, for software companies, the jobmarket for hiring  and retaining talent is very competitive.  That's where creating a good company culture comes in.

on Sep 09, 2012

I wish my boss understood this....

on Sep 09, 2012

Frogboy
I wonder if there is a time limit before people stop thinking every blog or comment is about something unrelated.  

This past week we did, after all,have the DNC which, I hope, to most people, was a bigger deal than internet gossip. The current economy is a big issue and yet, for software companies, the jobmarket for hiring  and retaining talent is very competitive.  That's where creating a good company culture comes in.

 

To create games is to create culture.  It can be inferred from the nature of your company's games that the culture creating them must be nothing short of magical 

Attempted to edit my last post back onto topic, apologies.

on Sep 09, 2012

No sweat. I was thinking gof the first post.

The other day when we were setting up littletinyfrogs.com I was reading very old posts of mine that talked about how some people hate the concept of corporations so much that theyfind latch onto any excuse to hate on them. And you can imagine how some people would try to latch onto that if e date wasn't 2005.

on Sep 09, 2012

Sounds like a community within a community within a still larger community. We all have enough in common to bind us together, but enough differences to keep our individuality. 

Damn the recent bad press, Stardock still sounds like a great place to pursue a career.

on Sep 09, 2012

I didn’t think this had anything to do with the recent threads concerning law suits. I was going to respond with; I’ve been on-line about 13 years and have never seen anything quite as cool or fun as what’s being done here. I’m not even a gamer but could live on this site. My hat’s off to Brad, everyone employed by Brad and all the skinners involved. /kissing up

on Sep 09, 2012

Brad, what is your opinion of feminism? Do you think it has gone 'too far'?

on Sep 09, 2012

FaithLehane
Brad, what is your opinion of feminism? Do you think it has gone 'too far'?

 

I give this post an 11/10. Bravo.  You win.

on Sep 09, 2012

FaithLehane
Brad, what is your opinion of feminism? Do you think it has gone 'too far'?

 

Congratulations, you have won the Internets with your cleverness. 

 

 

on Sep 09, 2012

FaithLehane
Brad, what is your opinion of feminism? Do you think it has gone 'too far'?

Clarify.

  

on Sep 12, 2012

Heh. I always like it when dumb people put something snarky up into the conversation. 

on Sep 12, 2012

FaithLehane
Brad, what is your opinion of feminism? Do you think it has gone 'too far'?

 

Nice. Right up there with "The nazis really had some good ideas" and "Why do you think American is the number one country?"

on Sep 12, 2012

Frogboy
Heh. I always like it when dumb people put something snarky up into the conversation. 

In these forums?  Snark?

 

That never happens 

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