The devcom Leadership Summit takes place from February 19 – 21, 2025 in Lisbon, Portugal.

The devcom Leadership Summit offers an exclusive platform for industry leaders to exchange insights, discuss emerging trends, and explore strategies for driving innovation in the gaming and tech sectors.

The program includes keynote speeches, panel discussions, and networking opportunities designed to foster collaboration and leadership development.

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Wednesday, February 19

Our summit begins with doors opening at 3 pm, offering attendees a warm welcome, refreshments and time to settle in.

A Workshop on Leadership Health and Performance starts at 4 pm, as well as Group activities and Casual Networking, creating opportunities to get to know each other individually in smaller groups.

At 6 pm, the Opening Speech sets the tone for the event, followed by Guided Networking at 6:15 pm, helping attendees establish meaningful professional connections.

A compelling Keynote by Shawn Layden at 7 pm wraps up the formal agenda for the evening, transitioning seamlessly into a seated Dinner at 7:30 pm, allowing participants to unwind and converse.

Thursday, February 20

A hearty Breakfast at 9 am starts the day, preparing attendees for a day of insights and collaboration.

The Opening Panel with our speakers and Opening Session by Gareth Williams at 10:30 am feature industry leaders discussing pressing topics.

Lunch at 12 noon provides a chance to refuel and network.
At 1:30 pm, Roundtable Discussions encourage interactive dialogue, with refreshment and coffee breaks ensuring energy levels stay high.

The day concludes with Industry Hot Takes at 5:30 pm, where hosts, moderators and participants share quick insights on topics that cropped up most frequently, followed by a 7 pm Keynote by Shawn Foust, and Dinner at 7:30 pm, offering a perfect mix of thought leadership and relaxation to wrap up the day.

Friday, February 21

The final day kicks off with the Closing Panel at 10:30 am, where key takeaways and actionable strategies are highlighted.

The summit ends with a brunch at 11:30 am, giving attendees a last chance to network and reflect on the event or engage the rest of their day individually.

Speakers

Work in progress: the summit program and speaker line-up are not yet final.

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Workshop: “Leadership Health and Performance”

Wednesday, 4 pm

Certified Health & Performance Coach

Michelle Flynn is a Health & Performance Coach and will be running a practical workshop including her “Life Audit” tool to enable leaders to be high performing.

The session will bring a clear visual of how balanced your priorities are across key areas including work, health and relationships. By identifying strengths and uncovering areas needing attention, it provides a foundation for setting meaningful goals for the year ahead.

This reflective exercise empowers leaders to align their actions with their values, fostering greater fulfilment and effectiveness both personally and professionally.

Roundtables

Thursday, 1:30 pm

Effective communication and the exchange of ideas are essential for driving progress and adapting to the evolving challenges and opportunities in our industry.

To foster these conversations, we have curated six expert-led roundtables, each focusing on a key theme. These themes are supported by potential subtopics designed to inspire and guide dynamic, meaningful discussions that, we are sure, will kickstart discussions that will be fruitful and valuable for our attendees.

  • Crisis Leadership in the Age of Studio Closures and Consolidations
  • DEI in Leadership and its Role in building Inclusive Studios
  • Mental Health for Leadership: Sustaining Well-Being in High-Pressure Environments
  • Fair Work Contracts & Unions
  • Senior Staff on remote vs Mid Staff onsite and no Space for Juniors
  • Economically sustainable Production Cycles, from Indie to AA/AAA
  • Co-Dev & Outsourcing are not the same
  • Fighting your Team Lead on the Battle for Efficiency
  • Are we back on engineering-imposed Rules?
  • Data-driven or Data-aware Decision Making in Game Design?
  • Mergers & Acquisitions: strategic Growth or risky Gamble?
  • It’s only Business: why Developers would choose different Business Models to Shareholders
  • From Games to fully-fledged Media Ecosystems: Opportunities for Transmedia Expansion
  • Small Core Teams with Co-Dev/Full Dev outsourced: Game Studios as Creative Production Houses and not full Devs
  • Fair Business Models and the Race to reduce Costs
  • Country Incentives and Grants as Part of the Investment Equation
  • Game Designers: what’s their Role in today’s Flow and KPI-centric Projects?
  • Open World Fatigue and its Impact on World Building (and Overall Scope) in Games
  • The Risky Innovation Game: copying other Games based on Trends vs. filling the Creative Gap
  • Player Experience first: Player vs. Shareholder Experience – what’s the Way to go?
  • Engine Choices and their Impact on Production
  • Engine Dependencies and Rule Changes (Deal Terms, License Fees, etc.)
  • Need for Hardcore Devs: building Blocks Ooutside of the Engine’s Ecosystem
  • The Remasters Race: upscaling Graphics and keeping old IPs alive
  • AI’s Impact on Production Scope: navigating the AI-driven Game Development Landscape
  • AI Methodologies that can improve your (Art) Pipelines
  • AI-driven Pipelines that avoid Copyright Issues
  • AI redesigning Production Flows and Team Composition
  • AI’s Impact on Team Sizes and Roles within these Teams

devcom Leadership Summit 2025

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