Thanks to our awesome squad of volunteer bloggers, we have details summaries/notes from most conference sessions (FYI, we didn’t bother capturing the “idea swap” sessions as those were purely interactive group discussions).

Note, ppt files and the videos will be posted in the coming weeks. Stay tuned.

Here’s an index of what was captured:

Keynotes

• MVP Leadership – Curt Schilling, 38 Studios / Red Sox
• Production Methodology: Past, Present and Possible Futures – Mark Cerny, Cerny Games
• Studio Heads on the Hotseat – Jen MacLean, IGDA / Mike Capps, Epic Games / Brett Close, 38 Studios / Tobi Saulnier, 1st Playable Productions / Tim Train, Big Huge Games

Personal Leadership Track

• Truly Tapping Your Strengths – Scott Crabtree, Intel
• Being a Pioneer: Staying Passionate About the Future of Games – Don Daglow, Stormfront Studios
• Book Review Jam
• MBA Lessons, Applied – David Edery, Xbox Live Arcade
• GGD: Getting Games Done – 10 Lifehacking Tips for Producers – Rodney Gibbs, Fizz Factor
• Workshop: Personality Analysis – Kathy Gibson, Threewave Software
• Leadership from the Trenches – Manveer Heir, Raven Software
• Leadership in Conflict: Navigating Through Choppy Waters – Kane Minkus, SomaTone Interactive Audio
• Workshop: Problem Solving and Root-Cause Analysis – Michael Saladino, Pandemic Studios

Project Leadership Track

• Making Lots of Small Games Without Going Crazy – J.C. Connors, Griptonite Games
• Applying User Testing During Development – Curtis Creamer, Bungie Studios
• Methodology Cases: PMI / Agile / CMM PSP – Heather M. Chandler, Media Sunshine / Karin Groepper Boosman, Aspyr Media / Rich Vogel, BioWare Austin / Tobi Saulnier, 1st Playable Producions
• Level of Detail for Project Planning – Mat Hart, Ninja Theory
• Myths of Scrum – Clinton Keith
• Game Prototyping And New Product Science – Jamie Fristrom, Torpex Games
• Communicating Vision – Tom Smith, THQ
• Working with Licensed IP – Michael Waite, Amaze Entertainment

Management Leadership Track

• Reducing Turnover: Keeping Teams Intact Through Strong Leadership – Linda Bonanno, Emergent Game Technologies
• Studio Growth Cases – Tim Gerritsen, Big Rooster / Jason Coleman, Big Huge Games / Shaun Himmerick, Midway Newcastle / Kelly Zmak, Radical Entertainment
• Civic Entrepreneurialism – Rodney Gibbs, Fizz Factor
• The Due Diligence Process Revealed – Michael Heilemann, D2C Games
• Organizational Development as a Game – Richard Hilleman, EA [sadly, this one got missed, if anyone has notes to share please submit...]
• Let’s Reboot the Developer/Publisher Relationship – Mike McShaffry
• Training as a Productivity Multiplier – Andrew Oliver, Blitz Games Studios
• Managing an Engineering Community – Stefan Posthuma, EA Black Box

Lunch Sessions

• Girl on G.I.R.L.: A Call to Action -Torrie Dorrell, Sony Online Entertainment
• Hansoft 5.3 Preview + Common User Patterns – Patric Palm, Hansoft
• Charitable Efforts: Giving Back is Good – Moderator: Tom Buscaglia, The Game Attorney / Martin de Ronde, OneBigGame / Robert Khoo, Penny Arcade / Shonda Schilling, The Shade Foundation of America

Snapped a few quick photos to post here. Though, seems like more a floating around Facebook, etc.

Pre-conference drinks: Coray Seifert (Koas), Julianne Greer (The Escapost), Michael Capps (Epic), Jamie Fristrom (Torpex), Tom Buscaglia

More drinks…: Ray Gresco (Blizzard) Rodney Gibbs (Fizz Factor), Tina Kowalewski (Sony), Richard Vogel (BioWare Austin)

Room fills up to see Curt Schilling for the opening keynote.

Curt Schilling at the podium.

Group huddle during the “idea swap” session.

Studio growth case studies panel: Jason Coleman (Big Huge Games), Tim Gerritsen (2K Boston), Shawn Himmerick (Midway Newcastle), Kelly Zmak (Radical).

Folks mingling at the lobby bar.

Folks enjoying the nice sit-down dinner :)

At the open-bar “after party” sponsored by EA Partners, Green-Ear and Image Metrics.

Mike Capps (Epic) belting out some Beastie Boys to great effect.

Mark Cerny keynote action.

Team problem solving workshop…

More team problem solving workshop action…

Off course, scrum guru Clinton Keith has his group stand up for the problem solving workshop.

Closing studio heads’ “hot seat” panel: Tim Train (Big Huge Games), Tobi Saulnier (1st Playable Productions), Michael Capps (Epic), Jen MacLean (38 Studios), Brett Close (38 Studios).

Conference participant Maureen Starkey also uploaded a bunch of Leadership Forum photos to her Flickr stream.

Good morning from the back of this very large room!

I’m Zhenelle Falk, a producer at 1st Playable Productions in Troy, New York, and I too will be live blogging several sessions over the course of this Leadership Forum, including:

• Day 1 – 9am – Keynote, Curt Schilling – MVP Leadership
• Day 1 – 11am – Workshop: Personality Analysis
• Day 1 – 4:15pm – Leadership from the Trenches
• Day 1 – 5:30pm – Reducing Turnover: Keeping Teams Intact
• Day 2 – 11am – Methodology Cases: PMI / Agile / CMM PSP

I’m looking forward to sharing my notes with you all – it’s going to be a great conference!

Oh, and only because Jason asked and I know Z’s are scary, the “Zh” in my name is said like Zsa Zsa Gabor, or the “S” in leisure. ;)

Hi, I’m Brett Douville, and I’m looking forward to live-blogging a few sessions this afternoon. I’ve been coming to the GDC since 1998, but this is my first time at the IGDA Leadership Forum. I led engineering teams at LucasArts for years, spent a couple of years consulting and now lead the “Systems Group” of engineers at Bethesda Game Studios.

Check back to this space later for my witty and thrilling commentary on such sessions as:

• Myths of Scrum
• Managing an Engineering Community
• Being a Pioneer: Staying Passionate

Looking forward to the conference!

My coverage includes:

- Day 1 – 11am – Project Management Idea Swap
- Day 1 – 2:45pm – Getting Games Done – 10 Lifehacking Tips
- Day 2 – 11am – Management Idea Swap

Is anyone coming in on the 12th? If anyone wants to meet up to share indie game dev or innovative stuff… let me know. Coming early so I get enough sleep beforehand and do this blogging (and other business) coherently.

We’ve got another fine squad of volunteer bloggers who’ll be taking notes during each session, and posting the notes (more or less) in real-time. This was massively appreciated last year, and we’re super appreciative that these fine folks have stepped up to handle live-blogging the Leadership Forum this year.

• Alan Bell – Sidhe Interactive
• Alison Beasley – Lincoln Beasley PR
• Andy Jih – Schell Games
• Ben Hoyt – Paramount Digital Entertainment
• Brett Douville
• Jason Schklar – Jason Schklar Consulting / Initial Experience
• Karin Groepper Boosman – Aspyr Media
• Lulu LaMer – 2K Marin
• Michael Lubker – Axelo Development Corporation
• Mike McSchaffry
• Robin McShaffry – Mary-Margaret.com
• Zhenelle Falk – 1st Playable Productions

Thanks!

I’ll be blogging the following sessions:

- Day 2 – 1:30pm – Applying User Testing During Development
- Day 2 – 4:15pm – Communicating Vision

I’m looking forward to some great talks.

Cheers,

J

Here are some topics we’ll likely explore during the two “idea swap” sessions:

Project Leadership

• managing experiments and controlling iteration
• agile/scrum
• managing stakeholders
• MS Project tips and tricks
• team building tactics
• pre-production
• localization
• scheduling
• asset tracking
• post-production
• content production
• usage of open source code, tools, tech
• effectively delegating responsibility, sense of ownership
• etc, etc, etc

Management Leadership

• studio growth strategies
• managing risk
• the “Hollywood” model
• office layout and workspace design
• quality of life
• credit standards
• start-ups
• self-publishing and new biz models
• outsourcing
• staff introduction practices
• employer branding
• managing product development while developing employees
• etc, etc, etc

Please add a comment to this post (or email jason @ igda.org) with the other topics you’d like to explore with your peers during the “idea swap” discussion sessions.

Some additional details on the networking and social activities during the Leadership Forum:

1 – Informal pre-social
For those arriving on Wednesday, come by the Marriott’s lobby bar to hang out for an informal pre social from around 8pm onwards.

2 – Breakfast/lunch/breaks
We’ll be providing continental style breakfast on Thursday/Friday mornings, as well as lunches and two coffee/snack breaks each day. Plus there’s a Starbucks in the lobby. Eating and drinking should not be an issue…

3 – Wifi Lounge
We’ve set up a casual space for participants to lounge in during breaks, etc. The lounge is set in Salons B-D. There will also be wifi access from the lounge.

4 – Dinner reception
All conference participants are welcome to join us for a full plated dinner (and wine) following the end of conference sessions on Thursday. The official start time for dinner is 7:30pm. The dinner will take place in Salon E+F.

5 – “After Party”
After the dinner, we’ll be hosting an “After Party”, with an open bar sponsored by EA Partners, Green-Ear and Image Metrics! The party will run from 9pm to midnight in Salons G-J. In addition to boozing/schmoozing, we’ll have a brand new copy of Rock Band 2 to play on the big screen (and we’ll be raffling off all the kit after the party :)

Here are some logistical oriented highlights to help participants prepare for the Leadership Forum:

1 – Check-in process overview
The registration area is located on the second floor of the Marriott (up the escalators past the lobby bar). Registration will be open on the following days/times:

• Wednesday, Nov-12 from 6pm to 8pm
• Thursday, Nov-13 from 8am to 5pm
• Friday, Nov-14 from 8:30am to 4pm

Once you check in, you’ll be given your attendee badge and conference materials. You’ll also get your conference polo shirt (of the size designated on your reg form).

Note, we still have some seating left. So, additional colleagues could register at the conference directly.

2 – Airport shuttle
If you are flying, the San Francisco Airport Marriott is located in close proximity to the San Francisco International Airport (SFO). There is a free shuttle service directly to and from the airport to the Marriott.

3 – Dress code
There is no strict dress code (is there ever at a game industry event ;) Though, we encourage you to NOT come with ripped shorts and a stained t-shirt; we similarly discourage you from wearing a suit+tie. Business casual? Developer casual? Use your best judgement, you’re a leader after all.

4 – Hotel options
The block of rooms we had reserved (with a special rate) at the Marriott have all be sold out. In case you are still sorting your room details, the Westin across the street has stepped in to take our overflow at the same low rate of $119! Call them directly, quoting “IGDA Leadership Forum” to get access to the special rate.

Online registration is now closed. On-site registrations will be accepted beginning Wednesday, November 12th, from 6-8 pm local time at the Marriott. Will still have seating.

After our warning on the hotel rate deadline, we got a bump in registration and folks snapped up all the remaining special rate rooms at the airport Marriott.

The nearby Westin has stepped in to take our overflow at the same low rate of $119! Call them directly, quoting “IGDA Leadership Forum” to get access to the special rate.

Westin-San Francisco Airport
1 Old Bayshore Hwy, Millbrae
1-888-627-8404

Further, feel free to contact the IGDA events team if you are still feeling stuck or need some help/advice: +1-856-423-2990 or meetings at igda.org.

Just over a month to go before the Leadership Forum, and many developers are already signed up to participate!

A special “warning” to those who are traveling in: the hotel cut-off for the reduced rate ends on October 15th. So, if you are planning to come, but have been procrastinating, reg now so you can get dibs on a reduced-rate room in the conference hotel (which also has a free shuttle from the airport).

Anyway, here’s a quick listing of all the studios represented by the hundreds of attendees so far (including speakers and sponsors).

• 1st Playable Productions
• 2K Games
• 38 Studios
• Action Pants
• Amaze Entertainment
• ArenaNet
• Art Institute of California Orange County
• Aspyr Media
• Autodesk
• Axelo Development Corporation
• Babel
• Beenox
• Berkeley Sound Artists
• Bethesda Softworks
• Big Big Studios
• Big Huge Games
• Big Rooster
• Binary Culture
• BioWare Austin
• BioWare Corp.
• Black Rock Studios
• Blizzard Entertainment
• Blue Fang Games
• Bungie Studios
• Buzz Monkey Software
• D2C Games
• Demiurge Studios
• DemonWare
• Digital Development Management
• Dynamic Gaming Software Solutions
• EA Black Box
• EDS, an HP company
• Electronic Arts
• Emergent Game Technologies
• EmSense Corporation
• Epic Games
• Fizz Factor
• Foundation 9 Entertainment
• Full Sail University
• Fun In Motion
• Game Recruiter
• Gendai Games
• Gracenote
• Griptonite Games
• Hansoft
• Heatwave Interactive
• High Moon Studios
• Hive7
• Human Soft
• Illusion Softworks
• Image Metrics
• Infinity Science Press
• Intel
• ISOPOD LABS
• iSportGames
• Johnson Simulation Center
• Joju Games
• Kidsland
• Language Automation
• Lincoln Beasley PR
• Lockton Companies
• Locomotive Games
• Massive Entertainment
• Media Sunshine
• Microsoft Games Studios
• Midway Home Entertainment
• Midway Newcastle
• Mind Candy
• MTV Networks
• Namco
• Ninja Theory
• Nokia
• Obsidian Entertainment
• OMNI Interactive Audio
• Pandemic Studios
• Paramount Digital Entertainment
• ProjectConnections.com
• Raven Software
• Rebellion
• Red Rocket Games
• Remedy
• Retro Studios
• Riot Games
• Rocky Mountain Gameworks
• Ronin User Experience
• Sandia National Laboratories
• Santa Cruz Games
• Schell Games
• Slant Six Games
• Slipgate Ironworks
• Sneaky Games
• SomaTone Interactive Audio
• Sony Computer Entertainment
• Sony Computer Entertainment Europe
• Sony Online Entertainment
• Splash Damage
• Starbreeze
• Stormfront Studios
• Stubborn Gorilla Games
• Terathon Software
• The Fizz Factor
• Threewave Software
• THQ
• Toys For Bob
• Trinigy
• TwelveJ Learning
• Ubisoft Montreal
• Ubisoft France
• Valkyrie Entertainment
• Vapor Entertainment
• Versant
• Virtual Air Guitar Company
• Virtuos
• Vision Scape Interactive
• Wizards of the Coast
• X-Ray Kid Studios
• Xbox Live Arcade
• Zipper Interactive

And, that covers eleven different countries: Australia,  Canada,  China,  Czech Republic,  England,  Finland,  France,  India,  Ireland,  Sweden,  United States.

The early bird deadline to register for the IGDA Leadership Forum is Friday, September 5th. Not only does registering early save you $50, it also ensures that you actually get a seat! FYI, last year’s Leadership Form sold out, and we expect the same this year.

So, be sure to register by Friday, September 5th.

The schedule grid for the Leadership Forum program is now live:

Day 1	Day 2

The Leadership Forum is now open for registration! While the event is still a few months away, given the limited seating (around 500) we expect things to fill up fast. (Last year was sold out.)

Pricing is a very reasonable $350 for IGDA members (and $395 for non-members) until the early-bird deadline of September 5th. For those traveling, we have a block of reserved rooms you can book at the amazingly low price of only $119/night (plus applicable taxes/etc) at the conference hotel.

Check out the awesome line up of sessions/speakers for this year, as well as browse content from last year.

Hope to see you there!

We are proud to announce our line-up of keynotes and track sessions. Here are the awesome sessions the Committee put together from the 100+ proposals. Enjoy!

Keynotes

• MVP Leadership – Curt Schilling, 38 Studios / Red Sox
• Production Methodology: Past, Present and Possible Futures – Mark Cerny, Cerny Games
• Studio Heads on the Hotseat – Jen MacLean, IGDA / Mike Capps, Epic Games / Brett Close, 38 Studios / Tobi Saulnier, 1st Playable Productions / Tim Train, Big Huge Games

Personal Leadership Track

The sessions in the Personal Leadership Track cover the personal skills we all need to be successful leaders.

• Truly Tapping Your Strengths – Scott Crabtree, Intel
• Being a Pioneer: Staying Passionate About the Future of Games – Don Daglow, Stormfront Studios
• Book Review Jam – Jason Della Rocca, IGDA
• MBA Lessons, Applied – David Edery, Xbox Live Arcade
• GGD: Getting Games Done – 10 Lifehacking Tips for Producers – Rodney Gibbs, Fizz Factor
• Workshop: Personality Analysis – Kathy Gibson, Threewave Software
• Leadership from the Trenches – Manveer Heir, Raven Software
• Leadership in Conflict: Navigating Through Choppy Waters – Kane Minkus, SomaTone Interactive Audio
• Workshop: Problem Solving and Root-Cause Analysis – Michael Saladino, Pandemic Studios

Project Leadership Track

The sessions in the Project Leadership Track will focus on the nuts and bolts of game production.

• Making Lots of Small Games Without Going Crazy – J.C. Connors, Griptonite Games
• Applying User Testing During Development – Curtis Creamer, Bungie Studios
• Project Management Idea Swap – Jason Della Rocca, IGDA
• Methodology Cases: PMI / Agile / CMM PSP – Heather M. Chandler, Media Sunshine / Karin Groepper Boosman, Aspyr Media / Rich Vogel, BioWare Austin / Tobi Saulnier, 1st Playable Producions
• Level of Detail for Project Planning – Mat Hart, Ninja Theory
• Myths of Scrum – Clinton Keith
• Game Prototyping And New Product Science – Jamie Fristrom, Torpex Games
• Communicating Vision – Tom Smith, THQ
• Working with Licensed IP – Michael Waite, Amaze Entertainment

Management Leadership Track

The sessions in the Management Leadership Track cover broader scale topics that go beyond a single team or project.

• Reducing Turnover: Keeping Teams Intact Through Strong Leadership – Linda Bonanno, Emergent Game Technologies
• Studio Growth Cases – Tim Gerritsen, Big Rooster / Jason Coleman, Big Huge Games / Shaun Himmerick, Midway Newcastle / David Mann, Foundation 9
• Management Idea Swap – Jason Della Rocca, IGDA
• Civic Entrepreneurialism – Rodney Gibbs, Fizz Factor
• The Due Diligence Process Revealed – Michael Heilemann, D2C Games
• Organizational Development as a Game – Richard Hilleman, EA
• Let’s Reboot the Developer/Publisher Relationship – Mike McShaffry
• Training as a Productivity Multiplier – Andrew Oliver, Blitz Games Studios
• Managing an Engineering Community – Stefan Posthuma, EA Black Box

FYI, the Sponsorship Opportunities page has been updated with the final packages and info for those companies interested in reaching the leaders in game development.

Big props to Autodesk, our returning Platinum sponsor, and Hansoft, which returns as the Silver sponsor.

This note is primarily intended for those trying to gain exposure and build goodwill within the dev community. Though, if you are a game developer that knows of a tool/software/service vendor that would benefit from reaching out to a room full of producers, dev leads, and studio directors, please point them over here.

The IGDA’s Production SIG and Leadership Forum got props in Erin Hoffman’s Escapist article:

“The IGDA’s Production SIG has been making significant strides toward developing a knowledgebase of production methods, and last year’s related Leadership Forum was a tremendous success and a significant step forward in discussing better ways to make games from the top level down.”

The article, titled “Inside Job: It Takes a Method”, focused on the rise of formal production methodologies.

We invite your participation in the second annual IGDA Leadership Forum, focused on advancing the state of the art in game production and management. This event is valuable for producers, discipline leads, project managers, studio directors, and all others seeking to become better leaders, create successful games, and learn from other working professionals in the game industry.

The first IGDA Leadership Forum was a smashing success with top rated sessions by Don Daglow (Stormfront Studios), Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk (BioWare), Tim Schafer (Double-Fine), Mike Capps (Epic Games) and Clinton Keith (ex High Moon Studios). And, we welcomed 300+ delegates from over 15 countries, including the UK, Finland, India and Australia.

The 2008 IGDA Leadership Forum is EXPANDING its session offerings so we can encompass a broad range of leadership topics, including personal leadership, project leadership and management leadership. The sessions will run in parallel tracks and will consist of a mix of lectures, panels, and interactive workshop sessions.

Personal Leadership sessions will cover the skills we all need to be successful leaders, such as:

• effective communication
• entrepreneurialism and taking initiative
• persuasion and making ideas stick
• personality analysis (Myers-Briggs, etc)
• handling challenging situations/conflict
• personal time management and “life hacking”
• career planning
• “personal MBA”

Project Leadership sessions will focus on the nuts and bolts of game production, such as:

• development methodologies and best practices
• risk assessment and analysis
• scheduling and scoping techniques
• pipeline optimization
• pre-production and prototyping
• post-mortems and case studies
• metrics
• outsourcing and remote development

Management Leadership sessions will cover broader scale topics that go beyond a single team or project, such as:

• multi-team/site management
• company culture and sharing a core vision
• motivation and morale
• hiring and retention strategies
• 3rd party relationship management
• studio lifecycle planning and scaling
• HR best practices
• quality of life
• workforce development/training

The Program Committee welcomes session proposals from qualified speakers for all three areas. Please send an informal email proposal, with the topic(s) and format(s) of interest and qualifications, to leadership-forum[at]igda.org by May 1st.

The Committee also welcomes suggestions for session topics and feedback on what would interest prospective attendees.

We appreciate your help in growing the IGDA Leadership Forum for 2008!

- Heather Chandler
Chair, Program Committee
Executive Producer, Media Sunshine