You’re here! And we’re so flattered.
Thank you, thank you, thank you! Thank you for taking the time to read about the Institute for Esports Leadership.
Why are we so thankful?
- Because there are lots of great organizations to volunteer for.
- Because you have valuable time and skills to offer.
- Because you have high standards.
- And because you’re fun.
Our mission is to cultivate a corps of mindful, inclusive, and effective leaders.
IEL is a volunteer-run organization advancing the use of esports to develop leadership.
We believe that esports (sometimes called professional or competitive video gaming) offer opportunities to practice:
- Team building
- Decision making
- Communication
- Strategy development
- Organization
- Self-discipline
Esports are as valuable for teaching leadership skills as physical sports, and in an era where more people are working on geographically distributed teams, and coordinating intellectual, rather than physical labor, esports may even have some advantages over physical sports.
The esports industry is at an inflection point where the most successful organizations are no longer hobbyists, but professionals. Management and leadership are crucial to succeed in this evolving environment.
We study and promote the intersection of esports and leadership, for the benefit of both.
We’ve run successful events and programs already.
- According to attendees, our first Esports Day was a big success:
- “Great success. Can’t wait to do the next one.“
- “It was a blast, good people, good fun.”
- Our first online Hearthstone League just completed their Finals, and we’re looking toward the second season.
- We’ve hosted 2 other Hearthstone tournaments to experiment with other formats.
- We’ve taught games-based leadership workshops.
- One graduate of our Halo Leadership Academy credits us with helping him get onto a better career path.
We’ve published and spoken on both Esports and Leadership.
- Halo can make you a Better Teammate at Work
- SJ5 – The Business of Esports
- SJ25 – The Future of Esports
- You Can’t Build Culture
- Your Brain is Not as Smart as It Thinks It Is
- The Macroeconomics of Microtransactions (Hopkins, Murphy, Goldwasser, McCabe. 2010.)
- Serious Games: Beyond the Hype (Hopkins, Murphy. 2011.)
We love games and we know business.
We’re lifelong gamers, but we’re not your average enthusiasts. We’re also business pros who know how to run an organization without it devolving into dysfunctional drama.
It’s a volunteer gig for all of us, so we’re not making money, and sometimes we won’t be able to put in the full focus it deserves, but we have high standards for our work and yours. This isn’t a club, it’s a movement. Join the cause.