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TALENT DOESN’T HAVE A SELL-BY DATE
Liz Prince MBE, Business Manager at Amiqus and Founder of G Into Gaming and Empower Up, salutes easyJet’s recent recruitment drive – and asks whether the games industry is doing enough to value experienced talent…
I
’ve written about ageism and the value of older workers before. But I’m returning to the subject because we still don’t talk about it enough in the games industry. We have many conversations about attracting young people into games and creating opportunities for graduates and those at the beginning of their careers – and quite rightly so. That work is hugely important. But inclusion needs to work across the age spectrum. And a recent announcement from easyJet
provided a timely reminder of that. The airline has been actively encouraging people over 50 to consider becoming cabin crew, including through its Returnship initiative. Since 2022, the number of easyJet cabin crew aged over 50 has increased by 127%, while the number aged over 60 has almost quadrupled. Today, around 12% of its cabin crew are over 50. Of course, games and aviation are very
different industries. But what struck me about the easyJet story was the deliberate decision to challenge assumptions about what its workforce should look like – and, to actively tell a group of people who might not otherwise have considered the opportunity: we want you here. So, what could games learn from this? For me, the biggest lesson is that talent doesn’t have a sell-by date.
Games has rightly invested enormous energy in building the next generation of talent. But after several years of redundancies and restructuring, we should be asking an equally important question: how good are we at
valuing and retaining experienced talent – and creating routes back in for those who have left the industry?
Someone in their 50s or 60s may bring decades of professional and life experience. They may have managed teams, navigated difficult situations, worked through periods of enormous technological change and developed communication, problem-solving and leadership skills that can be invaluable to an employer.
And that experience doesn’t necessarily have to have been acquired within games – someone coming from another sector may bring transferable skills and perspectives that a games business genuinely needs. There are people who have previously worked in games and left – perhaps because of caring responsibilities, redundancy, burnout or simply because life took them in another direction. At a time when we talk so much about skills and talent, shouldn’t we be making it easier for those people to come back? I also wonder whether, as an industry, we sometimes make assumptions about experience without even realising it. Does a long CV become ‘overqualified’? Does extensive experience become an assumption that somebody will be too expensive? Do we question whether an older candidate will ‘fit’ into a younger team?
None of those things necessarily looks like ageism in isolation. But collectively they risk creating an environment in which experienced
At Amiqus, we have many resources available to help, so please do get in touch via
liz.prince@
amiqus.com
people find it harder than they should to get through the door.
After everything the games industry has
been through in recent years, we cannot afford to overlook experienced professionals because their CV is longer, their career path isn’t conventional, or they don’t fit our unconscious picture of what a games industry candidate looks like. Different generations bring different experiences, perspectives and reference points. In a creative industry making products for a vast and varied global audience, surely that should be an advantage. There are practical things employers can do. Look at the language and imagery in recruitment materials and consider whether it unintentionally signals who we imagine the role is for. Even seemingly positive phrases such as ‘digital native’, ‘high-energy’ or ‘fresh perspective’ can carry assumptions about age. Focus instead on the skills and capabilities required. Consider returnships, flexible working and retraining opportunities. Look again at how transferable skills are assessed. And question assumptions about what the ‘ideal’ candidate looks like.
The challenge isn’t to choose between investing in emerging talent and valuing experience. We need both – and everything in between. A healthy industry should create opportunities for people to enter, progress, return, change direction and thrive throughout their working lives.
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