Sherenne Johnson - CM Project Manager at Keywords Studios
Sherenne Johnson (She/Her) is a CM Project Manager for Keywords Studios (KWS), an external development partner that provides services ranging from Art to Localization to Player Support for clients around the world. An aficionado for indie games, she loves to talk with others about up-and-coming indie projects, and you will find her retweeting the ones she finds on her Twitter. I had the opportunity to ask Sherenne a few questions about her work, the industry, and indie games!
Can you tell us a little bit about your career journey? What made you realize that Community Management was for you?
My work experience started in retail as a customer assistant, and while I worked my day job, I began volunteering as a social media manager for a gaming community and their connected esports team - during our meet-up events at places like Insomnia Gaming Festival, I was always the one taking photographs and sharing updates on my own personal profiles, so the role was sort of thrust on me to help gain eyes on the esports team in the hopes to attract partners and sponsors, whilst also encouraging viewers to become part of the community. This sudden taste of social media and community management made me realise how much I enjoyed creating content and engaging with others, so I began looking to make it my career.
It took a little bit of time, but eventually, I secured a part-time role as a CM (Community Manager) for a gaming adjacent company whilst also freelancing on other gigs for indie games, esports teams and marketing agencies which allowed me to develop my skills further and network along the way.
I took a position at Keywords Studios in November 2020 as a Community Manager, specialising in social media, and I got the chance to work with some exciting clients but, as they say, all my best work is under NDA! However, I can tell you that the team at KWS is super supportive, providing me with new opportunities and mentorship, which lead to me being promoted to Senior CM, CM Lead, and, more recently, CM Project Manager.
What does being a CM Project Manager entail, and what does your day-to-day on the job look like?
It varies from day to day depending on what's happening behind the scenes. On quieter days I can be working on new pitches, researching upcoming opportunities, building out documentation and checking in with my team to ensure things are running smoothly and anticipating any incoming blockers. On the busier days, I can be spending hours in interviews and onboarding sessions to get new projects up and running, reaching out to clients and feeding information back to the appropriate individuals, and helping bridge gaps when there are problems such as sick days or tricky problems to solve.
As I've moved into higher leadership roles, I've become farther removed from the day-to-day CM tasks, which might not be for everyone, especially if you enjoy getting involved with your communities and creating events and content, but it's been super interesting to see what keeps projects running at a higher level and being the one to ensure that projects are on track and successful.
What advice do you have for women and femme people who want to pursue a Community Management leadership position like yours?
Keep expanding your knowledge by signing up for newsletters, training sessions & seminars, etc - I can highly recommend Victoria Tran's CM newsletter and the Mental Health First Aider training organised by Safe In Our World. The more you can learn, the more you can dive into new opportunities - and there are a lot of free resources available out there. While you're learning, don't be wary of sharing your knowledge - part of being in a leadership role is supporting others to achieve the best they can and spotting gaps in their experience that you could potentially help fill, and there's every benefit to kicking this off early.
Also, shoot your shot - everyone keeps repeating it: you miss 100% of the shots you don't take. Even if you don't think you're qualified for a position, apply and give it a go - you never know if you might be exactly the sort of person a team is looking for.
Is there anything you would like to highlight from your time being in the games industry?
Two things, the first: You don't need to have a fully fleshed-out social media presence, complete with content plan and engagement strategy for your own personal platforms to be able to succeed. I honestly thought that to get anywhere in the games industry, you needed to be online all the time and networking. Sure, it's nice to be able to show what you can do, but especially when you work on social media platforms as your day job, it can be really draining to also be managing your own stuff outside of work. I envy the people that seem to manage it with ease, but I typically stick to sharing things I find interesting and/or funny and liking other people's posts.
The second is that the industry is not as intimidating as it first looks. There are some amazing people in this industry that are willing to give you insights into how they do things, places to look if you need more info or even provide mentorship if you require it. Don't be afraid to reach out if you see someone talking about something that interests you.
I know you are a fan of indie games, and you retweet the indie projects you come across on your Twitter. Is there a particular women-led indie project you have seen recently that you feel hasn’t gotten enough attention? If so, where can we find them?
Upcoming game: Camper Van: Make It Home - think Unpacking but in a camper van, and you get a pet to bring along on your travels! The team headed up by Anabel Sanchez has recently wrapped up a successful Kickstarter for the game and I can't wait to see how development goes. You can join me in following them here: https://twitter.com/malapatastudio
Game out now: I feel like the KWS CM team would be sorely disappointed in me if I don't mention Garden Galaxy by Anneka Tran. This is a casual, idle game where you collect coins over time to spend on randomised drops of various items to decorate your garden with. It came out last December, but prior to that, it had a successful demo where many of us had several hundred hours of playtime and it got its own dedicated channel for us to share screenshots and ideas - so of course, we all bought it at launch. You can follow Anneka here: https://twitter.com/annekatran and find the game here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1970460/Garden_Galaxy/
Want to discover more indie games? This is a bit of a cheat, but I wanted to shout out Patch Magazine, which is a gaming mag all about indies. After being a subscriber for several months, I met some of the wonderful team members at the most recent Insomnia Gaming Festival, and I think they deserve a shout-out! You can find their Twitter here: https://twitter.com/thepatchmag
