XDS 2023 | Efficiency Is Everything: What The Airline Industry Can Teach Us About Ext Dev Strategy

Dave Sanderson | Senior External Development Manager | Phoenix Labs
As ExDev in games matures as a discipline, there is much to learn from other sectors that have successfully optimized complex business-to-business operational systems.
The airline industry is a sprawling web of partnerships where efficiency and risk management are paramount. This presentation examines several strategies airlines use to optimize their operations, and in doing so reveals valuable insights into how devs and service providers can better organize themselves - and ultimately create better games.
This presentation explores three operating models from the airline industry: Hub and Spoke, Point-to-Point, and Virtual Hub. By examining the advantages and disadvantages of each, learn the relative merits of applying such models to External Development. Learn actionable strategies to optimize outsourcing practices, increase efficiency, and deliver high-quality games in collaboration with great partners.
Both game developers and service providers will be better able to answer the question, “What does good ExDev look like for us?”
About XDS: External Development Summit (XDS) is the only annual, international games industry event held in Canada, with a primary focus on external development for art, animation, audio, co-development, QA and localization.