Video games beget plenty of thrills: the satisfaction of solving complex challenges. The joy of using envelope-pushing tools. The fulfilling sense of accomplishment from charting new territories.
While these experiences come vis-a-vis fictional worlds, they’re not all too dissimilar from the real-world fruits of labor enjoyed by the professionals who help create them. Think engineers, for example, who wield their analytical acumen and novel problem-solving skills to get users to where they want to go.
And, just like a gamer needs an ideal environment to steam ahead, engineers need the right culture to make impactful contributions.
As a software engineering lead at Intercept Games — the Seattle-based developers of Kerbal Space Program 2 — John Roper aims to create an environment where collaboration and ownership are the engines of success.
What are three words you’d use to describe your engineering team culture? And what does that look like in action?
Efficient, collaborative and self-directed.
In action, this looks like a team where each member has a full knowledge of the scope and direction of the product; a passion for communicating about the things they have made; and a deep respect for the work of other team members. Combined with an overall team culture of continuous learning, this allows us to create great games without getting bogged down in the burdensome aspects of the software development process.
In action, this looks like a team where each member has a full knowledge of the scope and direction of the product.”
As a leader, how have you worked to cultivate this type of culture?
An emphasis on communication, empathy and clear goals over strict process, combined with selecting team members who are driven by a desire to create something great.
What are some ways this culture sets the engineers on your team up for success and allows them to grow and thrive in their careers?
A culture of collaboration gives engineers the flexibility to deal with changing requirements and priorities while maintaining a high level of code quality.
As an example, our test-driven development approach gives our engineers the real-time feedback required to rapidly make large-scale changes in response design requirements with confidence by providing continuous feedback on the state of code quality.
