growth and that’s exactly what it was and what I needed at that time.


What would your advice be to someone looking to follow in your footsteps? And would this differ depending on if you were talking to a woman or a man?


Always remember to listen and continuously seek to understand ‘why’ because making successful games is objectively subjective. To know where we are going is to appreciate where we’ve been. Learning where we’ve been, understanding what the market needs - it lays a foundational understanding that we need to be inherently successful. In order to get there, you have to listen and understand why - and I would say that to anyone.


I am a mom of two girls and


want them to believe they can do anything they want to do. The only way that’s going to happen is that they see their mom as a model for that - and see people like themselves at


the table. It’s a statement that goes beyond gender, it applies to race, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, etc. Having


leaders in the early days of my career being young moms, for example, made me feel that I can be a successful working mother and succeed.


I think the hardest challenge was going into my role as product and content manager, because it didn’t come naturally. Doing math and being creative with math is second nature. Becoming a product and content manager required me to learn more about the business side, and at that time I had just completed my MBA, so it was an opportunity to put theory into practice. Of course, theory and reality are different, and so learning more about how and why the business decisions are made was something that I was not exposed to previously. I had to challenge my thinking, which I believe made me a better game designer and a better leader. It gave me a far larger breadth of understanding when it comes to making decisions and to always understand the “why” behind the products that we make.


But hard as in enjoyable?


It was also one of the highlights ofmy career. I had an amazing leader in Michelle Smith, someone who was a strong female leader and a mom. I’d just had my second child when I started working for her, and she helped me to understand what I needed in my career at that time, and how to attempt to balance it all. Being outside your comfort zone brings


Are there enough opportunities for young people in the gaming sector right now and is the industry targeting this group appropriately?


At Aristocrat we’ve worked hard to create a clear understanding of what the career opportunities are for progression. I think exposure across the business and the industry is important too. Exposure has increased and opportunities exist for university partnerships, an area in which Aristocrat is leading the way. Tere is always room for growth, but it has come a long way.


A man accepts a role knowing only a fraction of what is needed, as opposed to a woman, who needs to know it in its entirety. Is that statement true of your path?


For me it is relatable, not because I’m a woman but because I’m a perfectionist. I want to make sure that what I do is with supreme success, and I need to feel confident in doing so. I’d say that’s more personality driven - and have also been very grateful to have individuals speak my name in rooms of opportunity and advocate for me. I think without that I wouldn’t have the confidence in situations to go after those opportunities. If


you’re not given that assurance, I can see how others might feel intimidated about taking an opportunity, but in my case it hasn’t impeded how I operate.


Is it irritating to be asked gender-related questions - when I wouldn’t be focusing on a man’s gender when discussing his career?


I think it’s very important that we continue to talk about gender. Just because personally, I don’t feel like I’ve experienced gender bias, doesn’t mean that it doesn’t exist. Te data shows there is so much room for improvement. However, what Aristocrat has achieved in this field is widely inspiring and is a huge reason why I am here and continue to be here. Over 40 per cent of our board members are female, 45 per cent of our senior leadership is female and overall, in the business a third are female. We are paving the way, and we are doing it through actions.


I am a mom of two girls and want them to believe they can do anything they want to do. Te only way that’s going to happen is that they see their mom as a model for that - and see people like themselves at the table. It’s a statement that goes beyond gender, it applies to race, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, etc. Having leaders in the early days of my career being young moms, for example, made me feel that I can be a successful working mother and succeed. Had I not seen it - I would probably have thought I can’t do both.


Was the step to Studio Head a big one? Was it what you imagined?


Yes. I’ve gone from being responsible for myself - to being responsible for a team of 13 as a game design manager, to now leading a group of 80 very talented individuals globally. We have 70 employees in India and 10 in the US. Where the leap comes is in having the passion and responsibility for my people first, because without them we are nobody. I strive to make sure each individual is valued and they’re setup for success in each of their roles. I bear a lot of responsibility for that, which has been the biggest change – but is also one of the best parts of the role.


We’ve spoken to several women in the casino industry that describe glass ceilings, and who call for positive discrimination in the sector. What’s your view?


Tere is still room for improvement in terms of smashing the glass ceiling. Te data show there remains a ceiling, but at the same time, there are amazing female leadership examples in the business who are showing that it’s possible. And if we continue to rely on actions being louder than words and demonstrate success through those actions, I think we will continue to break down barriers and propel forward more individuals like me.


Is Head of Studio & Content the ceiling for your career?


I’m just getting started in this role. Tere is so much room for growth, for myself and my team within this business. We went live just


WIRE / PULSE / INSIGHT / REPORTS P53


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