Technical direction

Technical DirectionCommunication, ROI and TriageMIKE ACTON (ENGINE DIRECTOR, INSOMNIAC GAMES)@MIKE_ACTON

Why?

1. Nothing really new2. Only my experience3. Only my perspective4. Things I’ve learned

My experience

1. 10+ yr Engine Director @ Insomniac Games2. See the problems…3. …to the end.

Why this talk?

1. Very hard to talk about!2. Clichés and The Obvious3. The Gap

Your easy to remember “take away”

0x999990

What does it mean to manage technical direction (for me)?

1. Confidence2. Cost3. Commitment4. Conflict5. Cooperation

*Context


a. Exampleb. Risk profilec. Hard for

med. Training



med. Training

What it means to me; Rules of thumb.


*Context (Example)

“PM is making unrealistic schedules!”

Confidence

Schedules are only about confidence.

Confidence

Schedules are only about confidence.

Ask: What would you need to feel confident about this project/system/feature/etc.?

Confidence

80/50 Rule

Confidence


*Context (Example)

“You can’t know how long it’s going to take to solve a problem you haven’t solved before!”

Cost

If you don’t know how much it’s worth, you don’t know enough to work on it.

Cost

Development vs. Research problems. Have a cost profile.

E.g. 80/20

Cost

Development problems: Have an expected return.

E.g. 5:1

Cost

Build vs. Buy: Have a function.

E.g. Can we create a competitive advantage by knowing our context better than anyone else?

Cost


*Context (Example)

Q: “Can we do X?”

A1: “Well it depends… on the art, design, animation, etc., etc.”

A2: “Well anything is possible…”

Commitment

Always “lots of variables.” Don’t hedge.

People don’t need a probability table, they need to know what they can plan around.

Commitment

What are you willing to stake your reputation/job on?

Commitment

What would you be proud to say you did five years from now?

Commitment

Choices aren’t forever. But 10 years is a pretty good bet.

Commitment


*Context (Example)

1. How do you not be like Uber?2. “I don’t want to work with that guy anymore! He’s always so abrasive!”

Conflict

Put process to protect people from my biases, when they conflict with my values.

Conflict

Need to represent the company well – What does the company stand for?

E.g. “To be a force for good.”

Conflict

If someone thinks there is a problem, there is a problem. Even if it’s “just” a perception problem.

Conflict

Accountability: Prepared to accept the cost to fix mistakes that affect others.

Conflict

Conflict cockroaches.

Insidious, stubborn, and very, very hard to kill completely.

Conflict


*Context (Example)

1. “It’s not working because they’re not using the tool/engine/system correctly!”

2. “I had to rewrite it because they couldn’t tell me what they wanted!”

Cooperation

Surprise is the enemy.

Every day find a way to make something more boring.

Cooperation

80% of the thing is selling the thing

1. Know what people say they want2. Paint a picture for the future you’re selling

Cooperation

Super boring: Roadmap

1Q2Y5Y

Cooperation

Every feature needs a user-side champion.

Cooperation



med. Training

How I approach the trade-offs.


*Context (Risk profile)

> Not doing anything interesting.< Not getting anything done.

Confidence

> Not doing anything interesting.< Not getting anything done.

1. R&D profile2. Shift to learning opportunities3. Commoditization

Confidence



> Losing money< Opportunity to make better

Cost

> Losing money< Opportunity to make better

1. Triage2. Measure UX3. Ruthless editing

Cost



> a. Kill yourself / Burnout b. Long-term failure< a. No one can work with you b. Implicit promises.

Commitment


1. Steady pressure: 80/50 Rule

Commitment


2. Team drive commitments + veto/review

Commitment


3. Provide problem and value to solve. (Never solution)

Commitment



> Toxic environment< a. No creative energy b. No critical review

Conflict

> Toxic environment< a. No creative energy b. No critical review

1. Survey team constantly2. Intra-team review comfort 3. Unfiltered feedback firehouse

Conflict



> Design by committee< Pieces don’t fit

Cooperation


1. Practice leadership. Everyone is a leader.

Cooperation


2. Champion for/of every feature.

Cooperation


3. Work backward from production schedule

Cooperation



med. Training

How I shore up my weaknesses.


*Context (Hard for me)

Scale of communication.

- Unique per person: Want every single person to have confidence.

Confidence

Scale of communication.

1. Leads needs to know messaging.2. Easier for people to react. Make commitments loud and early.3. All the 1:1s

Confidence



Perception is reality.

- Subjective measures of value. A. How much is 1ms worth? B. How much is one person slightly less frustrated worth?

Cost

Perception is reality.

1. Lots of surveys2. Budget time for bunch of low-hanging fruit3. Budget time for optimization sprints

Cost



Autonomy vs. Management

1. Self-burnout2. “Oh yeah, that would probably be pretty easy to do…”

Commitment

Autonomy vs. Management

1. Strongly encourage time off2. We don’t want “heroism” – always represent it as a problem to be solved.3. Examples of implied promises

Commitment



Not naturally “warm”

1. First instinct: “Suck it up.”2. First instinct pretty much always wrong.

Conflict

Not naturally “warm”

1. Time to build trust that I actually care.2. Ask if looking for suggestions or advice.3. Reminder perception problems are real problems

Conflict



Timing

The next thing is always the most important thing, ever.

Cooperation

Timing

1. Goal is to stay out of the way of the next thing (demo, etc.)2. Build reference targets3. Dedicated resources to immediate concerns

Cooperation



med. Training

What I want to make sure team knows.


*Context (Training)

How to pitch

What do I need to know most in order to be confident?

Confidence

These things should be included in any pitch

Paint a picture Identify Value Identify Cost Identify Opportunity to LearnStrategy for Transition


*Context (Training)

Cost/Value metrics

Can you articulate return on investment (ROI)?

Cost

These things should be part of ROI

Development costMaintenance costCost of entryEfficiency return (if applicable)Player value (if applicable)Learning value


*Context (Training)

Minimum viable product (MVP)

“You will be able to…”

Separate would-be-nice from guarantees.

Commitment

These things should be part of commitment

Concrete changes (What will you be able to do you can’t do now?)

Problem and part of problem solved. (Not tasks or tech description.)

Clear expectations about what will not be done.


*Context (Training)

Clear expectations for values

Not about “changing your personality” – about effectiveness and what’s right.

Conflict

These things should be part of setting clear values

What do you believe?Connect to news / current events.Value expectations part of review/1:1

processAlways know who will take action after

conflict.


*Context (Training)

Champion a solution

Follow through end-to-end. Force sign-off to give yourself confidence.

Cooperation

These things should be part of championing solutions

Articulate how the studio/games will be radically different.

Articulate why the change is important to you, personally.

Need to know how to gather support.


*Context

Review

Your easy to remember “take away”

0x999990

Review


*Context


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*Context


CCCCC*C = 0x999990

*Context

0x999990Mike ActonEngine Director, Insomniac Games@[email protected]

Engineering

Technical direction