Women in Games is collaborating with the University of Nottingham and Abertay University to host the two-day Creative Leadership Programme Scotland in Dundee this July.
This exciting new event will see 24 Scotland-based women working at mid-level positions in the games industry benefit from two full days of advice on career and personal development. Participants will leave with the resources to instigate and manage culture change within their organisations; a framework for nurturing and mentoring more junior colleagues and specific creative leadership development training.
The Creative Leadership Programme Scotland will help these women to step up to the next level of their career into more senior roles and help them reach down to support their junior colleagues.
The initiative is being spearheaded by Women in Games CEO Marie-Claire Isaaman and Helen W Kennedy, Professor of Creative and Cultural Industries at the University of Nottingham. Professor Ruth Falconer and Senior Lecturer Lynn Love from Abertay University are supporting the development of the lab to fit with the Scottish games community and will host the event.
This Lab builds on a successful pilot event hosted online in September 2022. This new event will be held in-person for the first time and will build on the success of the pilot.
“It was a very effective and useful program for me. I feel more confident… I can speak without fear, and I have motivation for so many things,”
2022 participant working in Turkey
This iteration of the programme is aimed specifically at women and those who identify as female working in the games industry in Scotland. Isaaman and Kennedy have ambitions to develop this programme moving forward to create an on-going series of initiatives, such as Development Activities, Retreats, Mentoring and ‘Reverse Mentoring and Networking Opportunities.
Having more women in senior leadership roles across the games industry is vital to creating a culture of belonging for all women and those identifying as women, but also to provide role models for those just starting their career in games, or considering a move into the industry.
Women in Games CEO Marie-Claire Isaaman.
Participants in our online pilot reported that the lab provided tools and expertise to drive forward their career aspirations whilst also giving them the confidence to mentor colleagues. We are very excited to be able to bring this in person iteration to Scotland and to help provide women with skills to support them to develop their careers.
Ruth Falconer, Professor at Abertay University added:
Through our undergraduate and postgraduate video games courses, Abertay University has been supporting the development of new talent for almost 25 years. We are excited to host the Creative Leadership Lab as it allows us to help talented women working at mid-level positions to reach their potential as future female leaders in video games.”
Applications Open
The application process for the Creative Leadership Programme Scotland is open now. The programme will run in person at Abertay University on Monday July 24th and Tuesday July 25th 2023.
Places are limited, so to express your interest in participating, please complete this short form by June 26th 2023. Successful applicants will be informed by Monday 3rd July.
