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Attracting & Retaining
Better Employees
Because we are a business development-oriented organization, I spend a lot of time in this column -- and with my clients -- discussing how to get and retain better customers. This month, however, we are going to be a little more introspective and talk about how to attract and retain better employees.
Whether you are currently feeling it or not, there is a global labor crisis going on and it is only going to get worse before it gets better. There are several steps that you can take to proactively minimize the impact of the labor shortages and also improve the retention and motivation of your existing employees at the same time. Not surprisingly, it all comes back to managing relationships properly.
One of the most powerful and least-understood aspects of business is how a sense of connection among people affects their success in life. Employees in an organization with a high degree of connection are more engaged, more productive in their jobs, and less likely to leave the organization for a competitor. “Connection” describes something intangible in relationships. When it is present, we feel energy, empathy, and affirmation. When it is absent, we experience ambivalent or even negative feelings.
Although we know what it's like to feel connected on a personal level, few among us understand the effect of connection on us and on our organizations. The studies that have been done are extensive, however, and you will likely be as surprised as I was by their results …
Click here to read the full article »
Archive of previous columns.
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Location: Annapolis, MD
Focus: Developer of entertainment content for games, movies, and other media.
Facts: Produced two films -- “Dark Ride” and “Danika” -- and is in production on the game “Damnation.”
With two movies under its belt, Blue Omega Entertainment is now completely focused on its upcoming videogame, “Damnation,” scheduled for a winter 2008 release.
“When we opened our doors in 2003,” recalls executive producer Richard Gilbert, “we decided that we would be all about creating great concepts … and then deciding which media fit that concept best. So our initial two projects turned into movies, and now we have a story that is best served by a videogame.”
That game, “Damnation, ” Gilbert explains, has such a huge backstory “that it would require two or three films to tell it all. But, as a game, we have 10-15 hours to tell the plot and really build the characters.”
He describes “Damnation” as a “shooter gone vertical” with both fast-paced, frenetic combat coupled with unique navigation. “We just didn't think it made sense for a character to be the biggest badass in the world, and then have him blocked by a two-foot wall,” he says. “I think gamers will be very pleased with the navigation possibilities the game offers.”
Blue Omega has an internal team of 13 people developing the game plus another 135 or so externally. Codemasters is the publisher, it will be available on PC and next-gen platforms, and Gilbert isn't able to reveal much more than that until it gets closer to the release date.
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Platinum Studios presents Comic Book Challenge 2008.
LA-based Platinum Studios will officially begin accepting submissions for its Comic Book Challenge 2008 on May 1 with May 31 being the final day of submissions. The rules detail how contestants can submit their three pages of artwork.
This year, the winner will receive a publishing deal with Platinum Studios, which will include print, online, and mobile distribution. In addition, the company will help develop the property for film and TV.
Platinum Studios controls an international library of 3800-plus comic book characters which it adapts, produces, and licenses for all forms of media.
For more information, contact FOG Studio’s sales representative Adam Spencer.
Hotrocket leads the pack at two hi-profile Western Canadian events.
Hotrocket, the Alberta, Canada-based interactive production company, has made its mark at two hi-profile events in Western Canada.
In February, the company was named “Best of Show” at the 2008 Fusion Digital Media Venture Forum in Vancouver, beating out 20 of Canada's hottest digital media companies. Later that month, the Hotrocket picked up another win, recognized with the “Marketing Award of Distinction” at the 2008 Alberta Business Awards in Calgary.
Hotrocket specializes in architecting cross-platform interactive projects through concept, financing, and production.
For more information, contact FOG Studio’s sales representative Adam Spencer.
Big Blue Bubble wins Small Business Of The Year Award.
London, Canada-based developer Big Blue Bubble has won the Business Achievement Award for Small Business Of The Year at the 25th annual London Chamber of Commerce Business Achievement awards.
“This award is a big honor for our company, our employees, and me personally, but also great recognition for the already-strong video game industry in London,”" said Big Blue Bubble CEO Damir Slogar. “There is no better motivation to continue on the same path than being recognized in your own community.”"
The company recently announced the commercial release of its highly anticipated J2ME-to-BREW porting tool, B3Xpresso.
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Ping us by clicking on the appropriate link. We are currently looking for the following:
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FOG Studios, the leading agency for interactive rights since 1979, helps:
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Independent developers find publishing partners and other avenues to market. |
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IP owners maximize their return when licensing in the interactive marketplace. |
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Publishers develop relationships with world-class brands and top developers. |
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A Friend Of FOG
Creating cross-platform mobile applications for consumers with more than 7,000 different mobile handsets in their pockets is a daunting task. For that reason, Mob4Hire has developed its “crowdsourcing” platform, currently in beta, that will soon be available to reduce the pain of mobile application testing.
Mob4Hire will help mobile developers by connecting them with an international community of testers, everyday people and professionals on a variety of handhelds who are willing to test applications in exchange for incentives. And for that reason -- for what they will be able to do for mobile application developers -- they are now a Friend of FOG. |
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This is not a complete listing of the opportunities available through FOG Studios. To request more information on any of the featured opportunities, discuss other opportunities exclusively represented by FOG Studios, or to determine the availability of any of our Developer or Service Provider Clients for your upcoming projects, please click here.
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