#15 - Melanie Seidner: Retail to Gaming, Wake-Up Calls, and Running Fast

This week I spoke with Melanie Seidner, a Hoo by association, with her son graduating UVA in 2024. She’s now the VP of Digital Storefronts at Warner Bros.

The Rundown:

I got my very first job out of college while I was interviewing at a career fair.

Since then, I’d say my career spans two halves.

The first is in retail working at The Gap, Old Navy, and Walmart. I followed my curiosity and what was innovative at the time. Retail is a really old industry, but e-commerce was in its early days and I got an opportunity to learn more about that side of the business.

That gave me the skills which allowed me to transition into the video game industry, spanning the second half of my career.

Electronic Arts was looking to build up a direct-to-consumer PC video game business and they were looking to bring people with this skillset into their organization.

Since I had experience in direct-to-consumer coming from e-commerce in retail, I was able to provide value and jump ship into a brand new field.

That eventually led me to where I am today. Still in gaming, but now at Warner Bros.

The process of getting my first job went very smoothly. It was a competitive role, I did well in the interview, and graduated school knowing I had a job.

Because of that ease, I was a little entitled when I got there. Not working as hard and phoning it in a bit.

I thought that work would be like school – every year, you level up, but I had a rude awakening after the first year.

Out of the 12 trainees in our group, 10 got promoted and 2 did not, including myself and my best friend in the program.

It was a real wake up call and reset my attitude early on. I realized how much I still had to learn and began to take more initiative.

If you’re the type of person who prefers to work independently on projects and is uncomfortable with ambiguity, you wouldn’t enjoy my job.

I always like to ask “What should I have asked that I didn't?"

Put simply, “What am I missing?”

This question can unlock great insights; after all, you don't always know what you don't know!

#1 - The gaming audience is much more diverse than people expect.

A lot of people have a misperception of a gamer being a guy sitting alone in his mom’s basement with the lights off.

In reality, there are so many people who play games that wouldn’t call themselves “gamers.”

For example, my sister loves playing Elder Scrolls to relax and my mother in law loves Words With Friends.

#2 - Games encourage socializing 

There’s a lot of press about games being isolating or encouraging anti-social behavior.

One of the biggest trends I see in the industry is players using games to build social networks and connections.

Be willing to ask for what you want.

I didn’t get my first bonus until I asked, even though I was eligible for one.

When I had kids and a full time job, I was able to get an adjusted working schedule which didn’t have any precedent. The opportunity only presented itself after I asked.

Secondly, focus on your strengths. We talk a lot about feedback and improving areas of weakness, but you're going to be so much more successful if you spend 80-90% of your time doubling down on your strengths.

Don’t expect to turn into a zebra if you’re a leopard. If you’re really good at running fast, don't spend all your time figuring out how to go with the flow. Find a role or industry that needs fast runners.

Just make sure you don’t trample the people you’ll need along the way.

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