My guest today is Chief People Officer of 2K, Bobbie Grafeld.  She leads 2K's People Team, including HRBPs, talent acquisition, total rewards, talent and organization development, employee relations, people operations, and DEI. 2K is a videogame publisher managing some of the most creative, respected and premium brands in games today.

Founded in 2005 within Take Two Interactive, 2K develops and publishes interactive entertainment for PC, console and mobile platforms. Their world-class team of engineers, developers, graphic artists and publishing professionals are stewards of a growing library of critically-acclaimed franchises such as Battleborn, BioShock, Borderlands, The Darkness, Mafia, NBA 2K, PGA TOUR 2K, Sid Meier’s Civilization, WWE 2K, and XCOM.

In this episode, I talk with Bobbie about her 6-year career break to start a family and returning to the workforce as an admin at  PayPal. From there she found a path through Walmart to 2K. You’ll hear about HR challenges in tech-related fields, the importance of training managers at every level, AI as an HR tool, and pivoting quickly during the pandemic.

Leaders Playbook is a podcast hosted by Dr. Diane Hamilton and powered by the Global Mentor Network. We share stories about how to drive transformational impact in your organization. We talk with innovative thinkers across various industry sectors to hear about the best tools, resources, practices, and strategies to help you and your team reach the top of their game.

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Discussion Points:

• Bobbie’s non-linear path to 2K
• Surprising differences - perception vs reality in the hiring process
• HR challenges in tech-related fields
• Qualities that stand out in potential tech employees - soft skills
• 2K’s Manager Academy training
• The costs of having poor managers
• AI’s impact on the HR space
• Standing out as a candidate - then and now
• Data - distilling down, and curating/synthesizing to support the story
• Generational differences and communication
• Joining 2K during the pandemic
• Giving back and corporate responsibility
• Building the tech workforce for the future

Resources/Links:

Bobbie Grafeld LinkedIn

2K Website

Global Mentor Network Website

Global Mentor Network on Twitter

Global Mentor Network on LinkedIn

Dr. Diane Hamilton LinkedIn