A Gaming Director focused on driving revenue & building fantastic partnerships. Currently looking to party up for the next adventure.
Intro
Oh hi there. Welcome welcome. Come on in.
I’m Joe. Lovely to meet you. A born gamer & passionate marketer, I’ve absolutely loved the last 12 years delivering value in gaming.
In 2014, I started out building my own executive search business during the rise of esports by launching The Esports Roundtable Podcast interview show & hiring talent for Riot Games & Comcast as well as a number of esports organisations across EMEA, NA & APAC.
Pivotted out into the world of marketing & partnerships by moving half way around the world to the US for a few years & then back again to London town to build & execute highly successful brand partnerships & publishing GTM activations for Riot Games (via SportFive), Meta & Activision Blizzard.
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A huge Staffie fan, film geek & DND player. What my friends know me most for is my goofy energy, depraved sense of humour & my empathy.
Work
What’s my superpower? Aside from cooking a mean breakfast & saying hi to every dog I see, I believe mine is listening.
No skill is more fundamentally critical in the modern workplace.
Use your ears and mouth in the appropriate proportions & good things tend to follow. Be that for internal teams or external stakeholders. By leaning into people & building great processes - success follows.
Practicing EQ-led listening, utilising nine years experience delivering for brands & a deep passion for gaming - that’s a box I’ll happily live in.
Where I excel:
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Unlocking the gaming landscape as a steward of the community & active player.
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Identifying, negotiating & executing authentic partnerships which educate & entertain.
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Converting & executing global launch strategies into EMEA’s top markets. A deep network of EMEA agency, brand & IP owners.
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Portfolio
Testimonials
“Joe was great while we worked together in 2023 & bridged the gap between the two brands’ objectives - Diablo and Burger King - and on ensuring the project was delivered in full within a very short timeline with excellent results.”
Andrea Beer, Global Marketing Director - Burger King International
“Joe is a such a great partner to work with. Worked with him on several projects over the last few years.
He is creative, is pushing hard, is smashing timelines (no matter how tight they are) and always stays positive while doing so.
Whoever hires him will get a real star and I hope we will work together on more projects in the future.”
“Joe & I collaborated on a number of exciting prospective partnerships across the ABK portfolio. His tenacity, gaming knowledge & approach to detail was always appreciated. Whoever gets the chance to work with Joe next will be very lucky!”
Pelle Sjoenell, Chief Creative Officer, Activision Blizzard King
“Joe makes collaboration both enjoyable and effective. He seamlessly adapts to change, thinks big, and is willing to dive into any project with a cheerful demeanor. Working with Joe is a pleasure.”
“I had the pleasure of working with Joe as we embarked on the ambitious task of setting up the global partnership team across Activision Blizzard and King. Joe's multifaceted skillset truly sets him apart. Joe possesses the rare ability to wear many hats with ease and effectiveness. His creativity shines through during ideation sessions, bringing fresh ideas to the table. When it comes to setting up processes, his attention to detail ensures that every step is planned and executed. What's more, Joe is a great collaborator. He seamlessly works with diverse teams across the organization and with external vendors. Despite the fast-paced and often unpredictable nature of partnership projects, Joe maintains a sense of calm and humor that not only makes the journey enjoyable but also inspires confidence and positivity in those around him. Each partnership project comes with its unique set of timelines and challenges. In this environment, Joe's expertise truly shines. He is remarkably detail-oriented in partnership meetings, consistently asking smart questions that ensure we do not overlook any crucial details. In sum, Joe's blend of creativity, meticulousness and collaboration makes him an outstanding partner and colleague. I wholeheartedly recommend Joe for any future endeavors he chooses to pursue. His contribution to any team or project would be valuable and truly transformative.”
Jia Zheng, Sr. Director, Product Management, Publishing, Riot Games
Career History
A highly accomplished commercial marketer for brands with over 9 years of experience, holding a track record for creating strategic campaigns which delight consumers. Consistently overdelivering via a blend of creative, commercial & Gen-Z audience expertise.
Energized by collaboration & actively accountable to my own-development by practicing situational leadership which naturally informs an self-starting & agile approach to delivering projects across complex global matrix organizations. Driven by passion & proactivity to develop trust-led relationships with internal teams, senior stakeholders & external partners.
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In my last role I served as de-facto PMO for ABK Global brand partnerships - building operational structure to shift partnerships strategy away from ‘one-offs launch collaborations’ to ‘integrated multi-franchise / multi-year partnerships with brands’.
Identified, evaluated & negotiated a global Universal Music Group x Activision Blizzard King strategic partnerships circa $2M+ in 2022.
Owned & account managed c-suite brand relationships with Pantone, Nike, Dove, Budweiser towards signing multi-year-multi-franchise strategic partnerships with Activision Blizzard King IP.
Led the execution of an existing global partnership with NVIDIA x Blizzard EMEA as PMO. Delivering NVIDIA’s most successful launch campaign in Europe with D4. Delivered $1m+ in game sales revenue, 13m views+ from 150+ creators in all Tier 1-3 markets.
Identified, negotiated & executed Burger King x Diablo 4 APAC as PMO. Consulted brand stakeholders to a decision, rolled out across global matrix organization. Delivered above target LTO sales in 20 days, $1m+ media spend & $1m+ incremental media investment.