Women in the Gaming Biz: College and Beyond

After hearing about a Microsoft employee’s alleged run in with homophobia in the workplace, I’ve had serious thoughts about pursuing a career in games. There aren’t many women in the industry and it looks like intolerance can run rampant on both the consumer and employee side of the business. But things may be looking up.

G.I.R.L. Scholarship

Sony Online Entertainment (S.O.E) is now accepting applications for the 2009 G.I.R.L. Scholarship. The Scholarship was created to help educate and recruit more women into the field of video game production and design. Sony is doing a good thing here. Check out the qualifications and instructions if you’re interested. 

A Woman in the Gaming Biz: Susan Panico

Gaming and Technology conferences are a hassle for me. It involves alot of money between tickets and travel. So why do I go? I go for the panel discussions. At panels I get to see and hear from game designers, marketers and other tech/gaming business leaders.

When I see a woman on a panel I’m instantly enthralled with her. Why? It’s a rare treat. The panels are usually dominated by men. So, its great to see a woman sharing her perspective with the audience.  

I had one of those moments at GamesBeat when Susan Panico took the stage. [I wasn't able to attend but VentureBeat streamed the entire conference on the web ::hint hint GDC::] She spoke about her work at Sony Computer Entertainment. Ms. Panico shared her thoughts on Playstation Network’s ability to serve independent game developers as a digital distribution hub.

This brings up two things. Sony might actually be walking the walk. The company sponsors a scholarship to bring more women into games. And they have a woman like Susan in a leadership position and she’s out there speaking at conferences.

I also wonder why we don’t get to see more women at panels. Are women not making themselves available to participate? Are they unintentionally left out of the panel selection process? There aren’t many women working in gaming and tech. That’s why I think its important to make sure they are front and center at conferences and panels.

I prefer to see an accomplished woman speaking on stage to the clueless sexy booth babe on the exhibition floor.   

So what do you all think? And how are the GDC panels shaping up?

Tagged as: gamesbeat, gdc, sony online enterntainment, Susan Panico, venturebeat, women in the gaming industry