ZNGA: WOMEN IN BUSINESS Q&A: EXEC. PRODUCER, TROPIC,ESCAPE,MOBILE,&,SOCIAL,GAMES,FEMALE,GAMERS
TROPIC ESCAPE WAS DESIGNED WITH PLAYERS IN MIND, INCLUDING OUR VERY OWN TEAM WHICH FEATURES WOMEN IN EVERY STUDIO ROLE, FROM PRODUCER TO ENGINEER TO DESIGNER.
AS MOBILE CONTINUES TO GROW, WE'RE SEEING MORE AND MORE THE IMPACT OF FEMALE MOBILE GAMERS ON THE BROADER GAMING INDUSTRY.
WOMEN IN BUSINESS Q&A: NICOLE OPAS, COMMON MANAGER / EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - MOBILE AND SOCIAL GAMES, ZYNGA
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Source: www.huffingtonpost.com — AUGUST 29, 2016, AT 1:28 PM
As THE COMMON MANAGER OF ZYNGA'SOUTH NEWEST MOBILE GAME, FarmVille: Tropic Escape, Opas is responsible for business growth and goals; oversight of live operations; and driving a unifying product vision to create the best player experience and business outcomes through excellence in execution.
NICOLE OPAS/ZYNGA
NICOLE OPAS IS A GAMES AND ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY VETERAN WITH FIFTEEN+ YEARS OF EXPERIENCE BUILDING AND OPERATING GAMES AND GAMING NETWORKS FOR MAJOR COMPANIES INCLUDING ZYNGA, DISNEY, AOL AND SONY. As the Common Manager of Zynga'south newest mobile game, FarmVille: Tropic Escape, Opas is responsible for business growth and goals; oversight of live operations; and driving a unifying product vision to create the best player experience and business outcomes through excellence in execution. Opas joined Zynga in two thousand-eleventh and has worked on several successful mobile and web games for the company including Zynga Poker, CastleVille Legends and Zynga Bingo.
Prior to Zynga, Opas was responsible for developing an online community of youth gamers on Disney. com and led production of branded casual games across The Walt Disney Company including Toy Story three, Up, Hannah MT and Tangled. During her tenure at AOL, Opas created and executed promotional programs to invite and maintain visitors to AOL'south casual gaming site including The Sims Online and the first World Series of Poker multi-player online game.
OPAS RECEIVED A BA IN POLITICAL SCIENCE AND PHILOSOPHY FROM THE UNIV OF CALIFORNIA, LOS ANGELES.
HOW'S YOUR LIFE EXPERIENCE MADE YOU THE BOSS YOU'RE TODAY?
I'VE LEARNED THROUGHOUT MY PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL LIFE TO NOT ONLY RECOGNIZE WHEN OPPORTUNITIES ARE IN FRONT OF ME, BUT TO HAVE THE CONFIDENCE TO GET RISKS IN ORDER TO PURSUE THEM. Presently as a boss myself, I've arrive to realize that there were grand people creating many of those opportunities for me, so I attempt to emulate that leadership model for our team. I believe one of the greatest leadership qualities you can possess is a passion to empower those around you.
HOW'S YOUR PREVIOUS EMPLOYMENT EXPERIENCE AIDED YOUR TENURE AT ZYNGA?
Working at AOL, I was inspired by their vision to bring the internet into millions of homes. At Disney, I'd the opportunity to create grand entertainment and work alongside incredible creative talent. While different, both of those experiences blended together perfectly to prepare me for my tenure at Zynga where we're delivering engaging and truly unique experiences, love FarmVille: Tropic Escape, to millions of people around the world.
WHAT HAVE THE HIGHLIGHTS AND CHALLENGES BEEN DURING YOUR TENURE AT ZYNGA?
At Zynga I've been able to create games that I truly like to play. From Zynga Poker to CastleVille: Legends to FarmVille: Tropic Escape, I'm driven by the opportunity to create immersive entertainment experiences that are a portion of my daily life exterior of work. The most rewarding aspect of my work is hearing the stories of connection that people have made in our games. Whether it'south staying in touch with family overseas or meeting the like of their life, the mobile gaming platform is truly unique in how it'south able to so easily, and meaningfully, bring people together.
At the same time, the mobile gaming industry is incredibly dynamic and fast-paced. In just the latest six months, there'south been tremendous excitement and innovation around mobile games that are pushing the boundaries of technology and social. While it'south a highly competitive landscape, the opportunity to innovate and create an impact on people'south everyday lives is an opportunity that I'm incredibly excited about.
WHAT ADVICE CAN YOU PROPOSAL TO WOMEN WHO WISH A CAREER IN YOUR INDUSTRY?
Keep yourself into a mindset that you CAN work in games. If you've a passion to create interactive entertainment, tell stories, give people aspiration and joy, you can absolutely have a career in gaming. I recommend for women who are seeking engineering or design roles, to examine accessible tools to create some games on your own. For artists, one of the best things you can do is to study the variety of art styles in games and realize that the coding side of game making is actually an incredible blend of art and science.
WHAT'S THE MOST NECESSARY LESSON YOU'VE LEARNED IN YOUR CAREER TO DATE?
Grand people with grand chemistry create for the best products and teams. As a leader, the most necessary things you can do are to set up a supportive and enthusiastic culture, bring bright and driven people into it and work together in setting a vision to achieve.
HOW DO YOU SUPPORT A WORK/LIFE BALANCE?
I set my work and personal goals as equal priority. I'd a serious medical emergency about four years ago that really changed my perspective about work/life balance. I realized that my health and personal life require equal focus and energy as work. Since then, I've developed a healthy balance that's made me more productive at work and happier in my life.
WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE BIGGEST ISSUE FOR WOMEN IN THE WORKPLACE?
Having excellent female role models and mentors to see to for inspiration and guidance. One way that I think we can address this is to ensure that both women and men are advocating for visible female leadership at all levels in an organization.
HOW'S MENTORSHIP MADE A DISAGREEMENT IN YOUR PROFESSIONAL AND PERSONAL LIFE?
Mentorship has been enormously impactful on my professional and personal life. Whether it'south someone to bounce ideas off of, a trusted resource for perspective or a person who can assistance open critical doors along your path, I'm a enormous advocate for mentorship.
WHICH OTHER FEMALE LEADERS DO YOU ADORE AND WHY?
I've a dear companion and mentor, Caren Scoropanos, who's the National Director of Alumni and Cause Marketing at KPMG. I met Caren in my first role in games and she's been a mentor and role model to me ever since. Not only is she a bright and driven woman, she takes on grand responsibilities and projects while putting her family and friends first. But what I adore most is that she's a enormous heart for the people she works with, particularly those who work for her. She taught me the most necessary lesson I've learned as a manager, which is to appreciate and foster the unique talents and capabilities of the people around you.
WHAT DO YOU WISH ZYNGA TO ACHIEVE IN THE FOLLOWING YEAR?
At Zynga we're focused on building a world class studio and innovative creative culture which is informing everything we do, from the way we design and staff our teams to creating the best gaming moments possible for our players.
AS MOBILE CONTINUES TO GROW, WE'RE SEEING MORE AND MORE THE IMPACT OF FEMALE MOBILE GAMERS ON THE BROADER GAMING INDUSTRY. Taking into account this growing player demographic,
EVERY ELEMENT OF FARMVILLE: TROPIC ESCAPE WAS DESIGNED WITH PLAYERS IN MIND, INCLUDING OUR VERY OWN TEAM WHICH FEATURES WOMEN IN EVERY STUDIO ROLE, FROM PRODUCER TO ENGINEER TO DESIGNER. The diverse team composition reflects our thoughtful approach to putting our players first as we create new game experiences. I'm excited to look how this approach will translate into the experiences Zynga is delivering our players over the coming year.
Source:
1wnc.com/economics/767135.html
