Dave Sanderson | Hard Pivot: Changing ExDev Strategies Post-Acquisition

05/09/23 • 45 min

Dave Sanderson, Director of External Development at Phoenix Labs, talks with Chris Wren about why he loves his role and expands on the concept of whether External Development and outsourcing are viable options to grow a company.
Dave’s audio presentation that follows was delivered at XDS 2022. In January 2020, Phoenix Labs was acquired by Garena, transforming it from a venture capital-backed independent company to a unit within a publicly traded global gaming giant. Dave discusses how their corporate planning changed dramatically – and ExDev strategy had to change with it. This talk is a practical review of how and why ExDev strategies change; how External Development contributes to and is driven by wider corporate strategies; and how Service Providers actually experience these strategies in practice.
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Previous Episode

Carla Rylance | External Development Essentials: Diversifying with Confidence

Chris Wren chats with Carla Rylance, Head of External Production, Behaviour Interactive, on why her presentation, Diversifying with Confidence, should be a go-to reference for Service Providers courting new clients.
Carla’s audio presentation that follows was delivered at XDS 2022. It helps Developers and Publishers diversify with confidence by presenting tips and tricks to elevate due diligence processes. It provides value to established and n00b Service Providers by giving an insight into what questions are important for Developers/ Publishers when hunting for the perfect Partner.
The need for external development is showing no signs of slowing down. The importance of diversifying our Partners to stabilize capacity is apparent, but concerns with analyzing new partners or engaging with small vendors with no track record can be challenging.
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XDS gathers hundreds of international attendees from over 45 countries to advance the practice of external development for the games industry with three days of structured networking in Vancouver, Canada, one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

Next Episode

Sam Carlisle | Is your team brave enough to try the Movie Method?

Game Development and the Movie Method: What we'd like it to be, versus what it is and it'd take to be successful. Guest Sam Carlisle, Sr. Director, External Partner Relations, Xbox Games Studios, contemplates the benefits and challenges in shifting to The Movie Method in game development. The audio presentation that follows was delivered at XDS 2022, where Sam explored what the movie method truly is.

Our industry has long been fascinated by the movie model. By which small teams temporarily form to build productions at scale. The differences between game and film production and the traps we set ourselves prevent successful implementation. "There are challenges to overcome and fundamental shifts in approach required. However, I believe there’s also the potential of game changing opportunities to be unlocked, with external development holding the key..."

Watch the video presentation

XDS gathers hundreds of international attendees from over 45 countries to advance the practice of external development for the games industry with three days of structured networking in Vancouver, Canada, one of the most beautiful cities in the world.