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22JulCareer paths, Developer Insight, EA Across the Globe, EA Offices across the World, Opportunities, People Comments Off
Tags: Montreal, studio, Visceral Games
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29AprCareer paths, EA Across the Globe, EA Outreach, Opportunities, People, Reflection Point, Uncategorized Comments Off
Amplifying Our Game: Internal Mobility at EA.
EA employees around the globe recently received an announcement from our Global SVP of Human Resources, Gabrielle Toledano, encouraging any and all to be fearless in our approach to furthering our careers – within EA. EA has an active Internal Mobility program in place that encourages all employees to take full control of our career development, and partnered with our management teams, engage in our fully transparent process of internal applications and transfers. There are some guidelines of course, but the bottom line is that EA is committed to facilitating this process, underscored by the belief that our organization is strongest when employees are openly encouraged to grow within. Way to make career dreams possible, EA!
EA and the Japan Relief Effort.
Last month’s devastating earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster in Japan were felt very close to home within the EA community. Our team in Japan is fortunately safe, but they are facing a daunting and uncertain future as their country begins rebuilding and recovering. EA teams from around the world, including Battlefield Heroes, Playfish, Pogo, The Sims, Ultima Online and FIFA Ultimate Team have implemented some creative ways to reach out and help those in need. Some of those campaigns included:
- In-game micro-transactional features were modified to allow players to circumvent EA and go directly to Japan relief organizations.
- At EA Canada, the facilities were used to pack meals for “Kids Against Hunger” – which were then sent directly to those in need in Japan
- EA set up a donation matching program for employees donating to select organizations
In the face of such tremendous challenge, our employees and their families in Japan have voiced their gratitude for the contributions being made by the EA team to the aid of their nation.
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09Oct
How much do you know about Criterion Games? And how do you fancy working for them? Let’s give an insight.
About the Studio
In August 2004, the highly acclaimed Criterion Games joined forces with Electronic Arts. Criterion is a multi-award winning developer, best known for the hit Burnout series:
- Burnout on PlayStation 2, Xbox and Game Cube
- Burnout 2: Point of Impact on PlayStation 2 and Xbox
- Burnout 3: Takedownon PlayStation 2 and Xbox
- Burnout: Revengeon PlayStation 2, Xbox and Xbox 360
- Burnout Paradiseon PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360
Criterion also developed the acclaimed first-person-shooter – BLACK- for PlayStation 2 and Xbox.
So how would you like to work for Criterion Games? What ‘character type’ do they employ? Well Criterion are recruiting, particularly for Contractors.
Criterion is amongst the best game studios in the world with a world class team of game makers at its heart. To be a part of this talented team you need to be passionate about games and committed to being the best in the world at what you do. You need to know what matters to the people who play our games and be passionate about surpassing their, and our, expectations.
About Contracting
Criterion Games have a world class team of full-time employees, and occasionally permanent opportunities arise, but there is also a need to boost their team with the very best in contracted and outsourced staff – giving them the flexibility to quickly ramp projects up when they move from pre-production into production and to seek out the very best skills for their game.
As a contractor, you will earn a very competitive day-rate salary.
Criterion Games is a great Studio to work in, they work hard to manage the work/life balance that is often under scrutiny in the industry – it is possible to make 90 + metacritic games and still have fun as well as a social or family life!
Take a look at www.jobs.ea.com and apply if you have what it takes.
© 2009 Electronic Arts Inc. All rights reserved. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners
Tags: Black, Burnout, Burnout Paradise, Contractors, Criterion Games
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01Sep
If you’re like a lot of people out there, you’ve probably heard your mom or dad say “you’ll never be able to make a career out of playing video games!” at some point in your life. But a group of college students in Baton Rouge, Louisiana are getting their chance to prove mom and dad wrong. EA recently opened the doors on the North American Test Center (NATC) on the campus of Louisiana State University, and the word that EA is in town is spreading fast. Already home to over 100 Video Game Testers, the North American Test Center provides Quality Assurance services to several EA studios across the globe. Partnerships with technical schools (and Louisiana State University itself) are also in the works.
You can keep up with the latest news (and even find the link to apply for a job) on the NATC Facebook page at – www.facebook.com/EABatonRouge.
© 2009 Electronic Arts Inc. All rights reserved. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners
Tags: Game Testers, NATC, North American Test Center, QA
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26Aug
Successful Reference? Welcome to EA.
Next in this series of ‘Recruitment Advice in a Recession’ is prompted by several emails from our readers and this news report by Iain Lee, on the BBC One Show, about lying on a resume/cv. Take a look here for more context: http://tiny.cc/SPCJ6
As the economy struggles free from the grips of recession, unemployment levels are increasingly high across the globe. Finding a job is challenging. Pressures build on people, they have bills to pay, families to support, mortgages to pay. Hence increasingly pressure is building on people to be creative with a resume/cv and embellish achievements or responsibilities held in previous roles. But what are the consequences of getting caught?
Most companies today have ethical guidelines or values which they expect their employees to aspire and live by, (including EA). Common to those values is integrity. Lying on a cv is therefore a breach of those values. “Generally speaking, lying on your CV isn’t a criminal offence,” says Raymond Jeffers, chairman of the Employment Lawyers Association in the UK. “But once you begin obtaining money under false pretences because you have lied on your CV, then that is deception and fraud. It is a very unwise thing to do.”
What sorts of things do people lie about?
- Their age. Taking a few years off hoping this helps them gain interviews
- Their salary. Adding a few thousand to their earnings to boost their starting salary potential
- Their job titles. Becoming a Senior Manager or Director overnight
- Approximations eg equating that a Manager level role in a large company is the same as a Director role in a small start up
- Benefits. The discretionary bonus becomes a guaranteed minimum pay out of x thousand each year
- Company car The Ford Focus becomes an Aston Martin DB7
- Qualifications. Grade inflation eg having all ‘A’Grades. Gaining extra qualifications be it a Degree or Professional Qualifications
- Where you studied Becomes seemingly more prestigous eg Oxford College becomes Oxford University
- Successes. Team successes suddenly become individual successes
- Length of service with en employer. To reduce any gaps in employment, length of service with a company is lengthened
- Gaps in Employment Become gaps for travelling, study leave etc
- Disability. Hiding any disability eg epilepsy from employers in the hope this makes a difference
- Management experience. A team of 3 direct reports becomes 30
- Claiming to have set up an organisation / debating society is a favourite
- Claiming to have spoken at Industry Conferences / Events when they haven’t
- Hobbies. Elaborating hobbies to sound healthy & intelligent. Gym is a favourite, reading high brow books, working for charitable organisations etc
- Reason for leaving previous job.
Some of the above are obviously more serious than others. But all are a breach of the values of honesty and integrity.
Key to any decision about lying / embellishing on a cv is whether a person will get caught. Lying on CVs can be costly, a material falsehood on a CV could well be a fair reason for subsequent dismissal, even if discovered a long time afterwards. What’s more a serious lie in the UK earning someone a job they would not have otherwise obtained is seen as a criminal offence under s.2 of the Fraud Act 2006 -which replaced the traditional offence under the Theft Act of obtaining a pecuniary advantage by deception.
One of the most famous examples in the UK is that of Neil Taylor: he produced a bogus degree certificate to secure the £115,000 position as head of the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals NHS Trust in 2003. After admitting the offence of obtaining a pecuniary advantage through deception, he was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment.
The great thing about the games industry is that it is still small and most people know each other. Therefore, companies can seek opinions on applicants from their existing staff who have worked with them in the past. It’s a small world in gaming and everyone knows each other. Interestingly, more and more individuals publicly post their cv’s/resumes online eg on LinkedIn profiles, hence everyone can see what people claim to have achieved. Those ‘team successes ‘claimed as ‘individual successes’ suddenly become more hollow as friends and colleagues read the claims.
Many companies now take up references either directly or work through a Reference Checking agency. A switched on Company can ascertain much of the embellishments/lies listed above. It is never too late to catch someone. Even when starting a job, details can emerge eg lying about your salary will be picked up via the last employer’s pay slip, which when landing in the new companies accountants department hands, will immediately be able to clarify total earnings for the past year, ie that £50,000 being claimed is seen to be in reality £35,000! That £5,000 bonus was actually £500!
In the US most employers now hire specialist companies to carry out checks on potential employees. UK firms are following suit, hiring companies such as www. backgroundchecking.com. The checks vary between overnight checks making sure that temporary staff are who they say they are to an in-depth examination of everything from credit rating and national insurance to directorships and criminal record.
So, our advice is clear. Tell the truth on your cv. However much being out of work is painful or however much you want to impress to get your dream job. Lying on a cv is a form of gross misconduct, carrying instant dismissal. If this happens, a reference from the dismissing employer is free to state this, hence a future career may be wrecked. Hope this advice helps.
© 2009 Electronic Arts Inc. All rights reserved. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners
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