Game-changing hires: MobilityWare’s push for diversity

[Text on screen] 30% of all gaming developers identify as female, of which only 4% are black

Jill Wilder: MobilityWare has been around for more than 30 years. If you’ve heard of Solitaire, you’ve heard of MobilityWare. We are currently at 70% female for player demographics which drive a lot of diversity in our games

[Text on screen] Hiring for Diversity by Google for Games

Sandy Nguyen: It’s no secret, gaming’s not known for being the most diverse industry. But we know our games are more powerful and more enjoyable when more people are represented. The more diverse our team, the more players we can connect with people from everywhere.

Helen Leao: To me, diversity means representing and respecting different cultures, beliefs, and perspectives in life. And I feel like sharing those experiences will just promote a richer and more inclusive society.

[Text on screen] Diversity in the Workplace

Wilder: When I started 6 years ago, it felt more primarily male-dominated. We are very excited to see diversity has really come to play, not only in our games but also in our executive staff, and throughout our whole studio.

Leao: I think having a diverse team is very important. The products team that I am on are very diverse in terms of culture and experiences. In our jigsaw game, we pretty much promoted a very unique puzzle pack that celebrated Black History Month. It was a huge hit with our players and I enjoyed playing it, a little too much.

Wilder: We are reaching out to schools that we never have before in order to build up a workforce that is reflective of the people who are also playing our games as well. So as we are building different games, we look at what can we do with our characters and what can we do with our card backs that are important to our players and that show the diversity that we have on our team.

[Text on screen] Building a Diverse Team

Nguyen: Thanks to our internship program, combined with our satellite and remote positions, it allows us to tap into an increasingly larger diversity pool. This change means our games became a better reflection of the world around us and become more meaningful to our communities.

Google influences so many aspects of our business, from the games we make to how we structure our teams. Google’s efforts to bring conversations around DEI to the forefront have inspired us to look internally at our hiring and recruitment practices and find new ways to create a more diverse workforce.

[Text on screen] The Future of DEI in Gaming

Wilder: We are also really excited to continue to build our diverse team across genders, cultures, different background, different abilities. It's just really important to us that the make up of our team is reflective of our team currently.

Nguyen: The more diverse our industry is, the more powerful, enjoyable and accessible our games will become. Our industry will only get better because of it.