Tanya Loktionova, founder of Values Value, spoke about the challenges of 2020 and the company's success in the game development recruiting market.
Tatyana Loktionova
How did 2020 go for you in terms of work?
In the spring, we were worried about the lockdown, our future in general, and we were preparing anti-crisis measures, because the recruiting business in IT was severely affected. Agencies were closing down en masse, and owners were hiring. Dumping and a war for customers began. And although trends in the gaming industry talked about growth, no one knew how this would affect hiring (especially with the help of contractors). As a result, we mobilized, and the VV team managed to have a very cool year.
- 2020 is an excellent year in terms of net profit. Top managers will receive annual bonuses for the first time.
- Our CEO, Head of Client Experience and Head of Recruitment have been co-owners of the company since 2021.
- Our team has significantly changed and improved in terms of skills, maturity and willingness to grow and develop.
- We tried online conferences for strength and conducted many activities that previously seemed possible only offline.
- We have done a lot of work and helped the guys from Belarus to move to Ukraine. This is a project that I am especially proud of this year.
All these successes would not have been possible without my colleagues. Back in the spring, I delegated most of the tasks to top managers. My working year ended on the first of May, when I went on full maternity leave. I planned to return in September, but I started some business activities only at the end of November. Apparently, my long vacation and one hundred percent delegation is the best thing that has happened to the company. Colleagues coped with the tasks perfectly and brought their vision to the Values Value business.
What new trends in your niche do you consider worth paying attention to?
The pandemic and events in Belarus have had the greatest impact on the labor market. If we talk about trends in 2020, they are lower.
- Remote and everything related to it. Companies learned how to hire and bring remote workers to work. But retaining and adapting such employees has yet to be learned, as well as forming their loyalty. Plus, lockdown is not a remote thing – many had to learn how to work with children, spouses and pets "on their heads".
- Fluctuations in hiring. There was a subsidence in the spring, the summer showed smooth growth, and as a result, by the end of the year there were significantly more vacancies than in November-December 2019.
- Vacancies without a reboot. Everyone hires everyone. Those who hire only in the office face difficulties. Europeans and Americans "without roots from our region" are ready to hire Eastern European guys remotely.
- More job responses. People cope with stress and look at vacancies. The remote mode makes another trend possible…
- Passive job search. You no longer need to ask for a "doctor's appointment" to go to an interview on the other side of the city. You just switch between tabs.
- All kinds of "gates". I will especially highlight "Me Too" in the industry: Riot Games, Christopher Avellone, composer Jeremy Soule, Ubisoft, Lab Zero Games.
- The burnout pandemic. Employees have a huge request for help in dealing with stress, for healthy relationships and competent processes in the company. Lectures about burnout are sold out. Companies include sessions with a psychologist in the compensation package, and we give New Year's gifts in partnership with the online psychological assistance service Yasno.
What new market trends would you note in general?
The trends of 2021 in management, hiring and retention of employees, I would highlight the following:
- training, development and evaluation of remote personnel. Building internal communications, especially informal ones;
- performance monitoring and process optimization;
- Succession programs: anyone can get sick, burn out, find a job quickly and quit;
- formation of a knowledge base and accumulation of collective experience;
- Juniors: their painless adaptation and hiring. This is much more difficult to do remotely. It seems easier not to hire them at all, but then who should companies hunt after a conditional three years?
- middle management training. It has finally become obvious that it is the middle tier that projects and teams are based on. And these managers are often taken out at the expense of charisma; leadership qualities and willpower. Now we need to learn management the way we learn to drive a car: gain theoretical knowledge and practical skills;
- the fight against harassment.
What will be the stake in the development of the company in 2021?
The following year, Alina Mudraya, CEO of VV, approved a concentration strategy: to continue to strengthen the team, improve the quality of services and the speed of vacancy closure. Values Value will place great emphasis on building relationships with clients and candidates. Our team has more resources and specialists for consulting companies and candidates. We will also continue our salary research and will help the industry grow and develop to the best of our ability.
I will have time off from the operating system, so I hope to start implementing long-delayed plans: Telegram channel, podcast and YouTube project.
Which third-party game releases are you interested in this year? Which ones did you pay attention to as a gamer?
This year we played ageless classics at home — SHOGUN: Total War, World of Tanks Blitz, Metro Exodus, Brawl Stars. We did a Cyberpunk 2077 refand.
It took me a long time to catch up with ads for various casual games. In the end, I gave up and stuck with Merge Dragons from GRAM GAMES. I've been waiting for five years for something new in my favorite match-3 genre. Plus, all this time I was actively playing "daughter-mother".
I plan to come back to different genres on different devices next year. I'm really looking forward to the VR breakthrough on PlayStation 5, especially the new version of my favorite Beat Saber.