Game Industry HR Professionals Seek Greater Support from Studio Leaders Amidst Redundancies

The 2025 GamesIndustry.biz HR Summit took place on October 2 at the Royal Institution in London, featuring over 60 industry leaders and studios sharing their expertise and insights. The keynote address, delivered by Sega Europe's Chief People Officer Nicky Ormrod, alongside Simon Court and Dan Bobby of Value Partnership, focused on developing a strategy to drive Sega's growth. Other main stage discussions included a talk by Gina Jackson from Skillfull and Liz Prince from Amiqus on the importance of interdisciplinary skills in the industry's transition, as well as a discussion by Niki Head and Chiara Santevecchi on the impact of AI on work culture. Throughout the day, various workshops were held, including one by Next Jump's Kevin McCoy and GameDataCore's Simon Sparks on team development with limited resources. For those who missed the event, GamesIndustry.biz will release videos and summaries of the presentations in the coming weeks. The GamesIndustry.biz HR Summit remains a unique event in the UK business calendar, dedicated to HR professionals in the video game industry. However, a notable observation was the absence of certain key stakeholders. The final main stage session, a wrap-up workshop, allowed attendees to discuss and introduce new ideas. One question posed was, "Who is promoting the work of HR professionals?", sparking a discussion on the often-overlooked contributions of HR and the need to share their success stories with the media. The audience also emphasized the importance of HR representation at the board level, with many agreeing that C-suite members should attend future HR Summits. This sentiment is understandable, given that HR professionals often feel their voices are not heard by decision-makers. While the HR Summit provides a valuable platform for networking and knowledge-sharing, there is a concern that it may be an echo chamber, and that key messages need to reach beyond the event. In follow-up conversations with attendees, frustrations with management were expressed, including the feeling of being subjected to decisions without input. This can lead to sudden hiring or downsizing decisions, without considering alternative approaches. If HR representatives are not consulted, their insights may go unheard. There is a sense that HR is often viewed as an afterthought, rather than a core aspect of business. The need for greater dialogue between executives and HR professionals is clear. GamesIndustry.biz will consider how to address this in future events. For now, HR professionals who resonate with these points may want to share this article with their managers and initiate a conversation.