#1 Aj Grand-Scrutton – CEO of Dlala on his roots in building & growing a studio working on licensed IP
Aj has a wealth of knowledge about running a business in the creative industries. Alongside his team, he’s grown Dlala studios to more than 25 people who work with large entertainment companies around the world to create video games.
In this episode, Aj chats through the trials and challenges of starting a team independently and provides practical tips on how to overcome stressful situations that can arise.
About Dlala
Website: https://www.dlalastudios.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/dlalastudios
About Peter Bottomley
Website: https://whitepaperroots.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Pete_Bottomley
Tip jar: https://ko-fi.com/peterbottomley
Top 3 resources from the episode:
- The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons in Creative Leadership from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company
- That Will Never Work: The Birth of Netflix by the first CEO and co-founder Marc Randolph
- The Imagineering Pyramid: Using Disney Theme Park Design Principles to Develop and Promote Your Creative Ideas
Chapters
0:53 – Defining a Dlala game from day 1
4:48 – Finding the right development partner
11:22 – How to lock the direction you want to move in & work with your team
15:40 – Dealing with creative disagreements
19:15 – Losing your temper
34:27 – Delegating work
38:00 – Differentiation between Game Director and Lead Design and communicating the vision to the larger team
44:50 – Figuring out the team structure
50:25 – Having patience when communicating your ideas
59:10 – Setting strong pillars
1:01:39 – Using OKRs
1:05:15 – Resources
1:10:22 – How to contact Aj
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