Lessons and Wins by Andreea Popescu

Three years ago, my journey as a Development Manager with Electronic Arts started with my strong desire to enter the gaming industry.  Captivated by emerging trends and driven by curiosity, I was eager to join this dynamic environment and tackle challenges unlike any I'd faced before. I wanted to learn new things and push boundaries. The gaming industry is constantly evolving, with new technologies and innovative trends reshaping how we create and experience games. This context made EA's onboarding process even more exciting.

The Onboarding Experience

My onboarding process was immersive and supportive. EA's onboarding practices are exemplary, featuring mentorship programs and detailed training modules that ensure new employees are well-prepared. I was amazed by how each interaction with my manager was clear and straightforward, with a defined outcome. Every time I had a question, I received the information, specific link, or contact that could support me.

Fun fact: I started with 2 days off as it was close to Saint Andrew's Day and National Day in Romania. I received my laptop and access very quickly, and I appreciated that all the training and onboarding materials were logical, well-structured, and included videos, examples, and the right amount of information. There were also transcripts suited for all types of learning preferences.

The GAME was ON for me! This is the place I was looking for. It wasn’t just about learning the essentials, but also about connecting with the company’s culture, values, and mission. This holistic approach helped me align with EA's goals and values right from the start.

It's amazing to see how each interaction with stakeholders represents each company’s value. Everything feels authentic, natural, and easy to grasp and understand.

The structured yet flexible onboarding allowed me to dive deep into quality assurance processes and methodologies specific to EA. This balance of structure and flexibility helped me gradually achieve my onboarding objectives. EA's onboarding process stands out for its structure and flexibility, allowing new hires to adapt at their own pace. Feedback from newcomers is actively sought and used to refine the process, ensuring continuous improvement.

Everything fits together like a puzzle, where you build your knowledge and skills step by step, connecting what you have already gained in your experience. The energy that ignited this spark to build the puzzle of my experience was the trust I received from my manager, senior leadership, and experienced colleagues in the industry. This trust was reflected in all my actions with my direct reports.

Wins Along the Way

The biggest win from the very beginning was the fact that each interaction was meaningful. I had the opportunity to meet in person some of my interviewers and other colleagues that I had previously seen in online videos—content that helped me prepare for the interview when I was in the phase of discovering more about EA. It’s amazing how one day you watch a video about quality design roles and the next day you are part of an internal activity or company event with these amazing people.

Seeing projects I contributed to succeed was incredibly rewarding. It reaffirmed the impact of teamwork, dedication, and great synergy with other teams from different locations. Being included, heard, and understood rapidly allowed me to do what I enjoy most: being a people leader and combining project management with developing others while developing myself.

The journey significantly enhanced my confidence and leadership skills, benefiting both my career and personal life. Your previous experience matters: it’s important to analyze how all you know fits into the right place, whether it's driving an initiative, shaping an idea, inspiring a team member, monitoring progress, or providing constructive feedback that leads to results.

Work-life balance is another gain for me. I can focus on my professional growth, support my team, and inspire them to achieve good results. I learn new things while being a mother, wife, and daughter, and I still have enough time to meet my friends. My son thinks every game in the world is made by EA (despite knowing we have competitors!). When I get home, we explore his ideas for future games. It's wonderful to have this equilibrium in my life. My son is proud that his mom works for EA. 

Establishing a network of colleagues and mentors provided a strong support system, crucial for professional development and overcoming my challenges.

Overcoming Challenges

A key lesson was embracing continuous learning. If you think you have learned and seen everything in your industry, wait and see what EA holds for you. 

It’s okay to filter through the noise and let your work be your legacy. Yet, do not forget that, like a game, you need to upgrade yourself constantly with new features—meaning skills relevant to your team, project, and industry.

I learned that a strong foundation is valuable, and it’s healthy to restart this cycle with each iteration, moving quickly and learning at a higher speed than I was used to in other industries. Each day brought new technologies and methodologies to learn, test, and consider for their applicability to the team's current work or future iterations, enhancing my personal growth and contributions to the team.

There are lots of acronyms, data, and information, yet it is important to focus on the essentials and align them with the needs, direction, and vision of the business and your role. 

Becoming a great leader is a marathon, not a sprint, especially if you come from another industry like I did.

If you look, for example, at game breaks in American Football, the energy expended on each play is explosive—full force, full effort. It’s more like weightlifting than running. There’s a recovery time requirement for peak performance, which also served as an inspiration for me. 

In NHL games, this allows teams to regroup, coaches to strategize, and the ice to resurface before the next period begins. So, we need to recharge and restart, either during the onboarding period or after important milestones.

Experiment, fail, learn, adapt, and move forward. As a leader or team member at a specific project milestone, you need to get past the pain of making mistakes and enjoy the creative energy that comes with learning from them, like in a post-mortem exercise after a milestone or an entire iteration. In a fast-paced industry, adaptability is key. Quickly and efficiently adapting to changes became a vital skill, helping me smoothly navigate through new topics, meetings, or other projects.

Another important lesson is that it’s valuable to celebrate your small wins as a leader, not only from the team’s perspective. Intermediate milestones fuel you to keep your energy up.

Remember my puzzle metaphor: when you have enough pieces to form an image—a small victory, final for a patch, or passing a major milestone—it’s time to celebrate. Enjoy the momentum with your team, and then move on to the next challenge.

Embracing Opportunities

I believe that change is the only constant, an idea I often share with my team during our syncs. The key is to transform challenges into opportunities and approach every situation with a growth mindset.

From my perspective, at EA, your development is limitless if you are open to exploration. Take advantage of times with lighter workloads to learn and develop your skills. Try online learning platforms, watch recordings of podcasts or inspirational speakers at EA, volunteer for company events, participate in hardware donation initiatives, or join the Benefits team to explore a wide range of opportunities. I'm passionate about helping others grow, and these experiences have been instrumental in my journey.

Looking Forward

The past three years have been transformative. The lessons learned, challenges faced, and victories achieved have shaped my career and enriched my life. I'm excited to continue growing and contributing to EA's success, knowing that with resilience, adaptability, and a supportive network, any challenge can be overcome, and every goal is within reach.

Joining EA is more than just a career move for me—it's a chance to be part of a unique, dynamic, and innovative community. Here, your passion for gaming and creativity will thrive as you collaborate with talented individuals to shape the future of entertainment, building games and experiences that entertain and engage massive online communities. Embrace the opportunity to push boundaries, learn continuously, and make a real impact in a company that values diversity and innovation, motivating you to develop constantly and inspiring others to do the same.

Three years later, I’m still building this puzzle day by day. I like what I have built so far, yet I know there is still much to learn.  I'm fortunate to learn from the best people in this industry.

I'm telling you, your journey with EA could be the start of something extraordinary. Get in the Game and make play happen at Electronic Arts Romania.