XSET co-owner, esports and gaming host, and PUMA Esports ambassador Erin Ashley Simon believes that while the esports industry has a lot of work to do, women are already driving the industry from the top.
Women may not fully run the world (yet…), but we are surely running esports in ways that most fans don’t assume.
We are running it as executives, leaders, and decision-makers in the industry. We are more than just professional players and/or fans.
If we historically look at the overall structure and development of esports, it has always been a male-dominated industry. And quite frankly, it still is. However, due to the evolution of esports, we are seeing a change in representation behind the scenes as well as in front of the camera.
And even though the representation isn’t quite there yet and we have ways to go, it is changing before our eyes. And it will continue to change since more women are running the industry within various different roles.
This is something that will only increase and so if you aren’t on board with it, well I’m sorry to burst your bubble but…this is the future of esports. And women are part of that future.
More recently, the industry has started to celebrate the groundbreaking roles and decisions women have made in the industry. Whether it is celebrating the new pivotal moments such as Nicole LaPointe Jameson becoming the first African American woman to be a CEO of a major esports organization, or paying homage to the veterans, for example, The Story Mob’s co-founders Anna Rozwandowicz and Nicola Piggott who have helped to highlight the important stories and narratives in esports.
These women have been influential in shaping the very industries we’ve all come to love, whether competitively or gaming as a whole.
And, I’m fortunate and lucky to be among these women now as a co-owner of the new esports organization called XSET.
In this article, I can go on and on about the amazing changes we’ve seen but, I would like to spend the rest of this piece highlighting some of the most influential executive women whose leadership continuously is helping to improve esports/gaming and change the industries for the better. And there are definitely more than what you see on this list but, take the time to learn about these women.
Because why should we wait to give them their flowers when we can now?! Because at the end of the day, women may not fully run the world, but best believe we are running esports.
- Ann Hand – CEO, Super League Gaming
- Christie St. Martin – CCO, Queens Gaming Collective
- Iraisa Jones – Vindex, Director of Human Resources
- Samantha Yu – Astralis, Chief Marketing Officer
- Catherine Bygrave – Head of Publisher and Developer Relations
- Leena Xu – TSM, President
- Tricia Sugita – Flyquest, CEO
- Hannah Reid – ReKTGlobal, Chief People Officer
- Maria Redin – MTG, President
- Yvette Martinez-Rea – ESL, CEO
- Angela Roseboro – Riot Games, Chief Diversity Officer
- Emily Winkle – Riot Games, Chief People Officer
- Claudine Naughton – Activision Blizzard, Chief People Officer
- Gina Qiao – Lenovo, Senior VP, Chief Strategy Officer, and Chief Marketing Officer
- Samantha Harnett – Logitech, General Counsel
- Juli Fan, 100 Thieves – VP of People
- Georgina Workman – Fnatic, Head of Production
- Mei-Ling Rider, G2 Esports – Marketing Director
- Nicole LaPointe Jameson – Evil Geniuses, CEO
- Johanna Faries – Call of Duty Esports, Commissioner
- Julia Wu – 100 Thieves, Director of Marketing
- Riana Manuel – G4TV, Senior Manager, Brand Marketing
- Britanni Johnson – G2 Esports, Head of Creators
- Taylor Heitzig-Rhodes – Queen Gaming Collective, Head of Talent Strategy
- Jaycie Gluck – Studio Director, Wisdom
- Catarina Macedo – Riot Games, Senior Product Manager
- Cristina Amaya – Team Liquid, Head of Events
- Cassie Batinich – Version1/ROKKR, Director of Communications
- Breanne Harrison & Rachel Feinberg – Ateyo, Co-Founders
- Allie Young – Axis Replay, CEO & Founder
- Alisa Jacobs – Queens Gaming Collective, CEO & Founder
- Eunice Chen – Enlight, Founder
- Chelsey Northern – FaZe Clan, Head of Comms
- Morgan Romine & T.L. Taylor – AnyKey, Co-Founders
- Kristen Salvatore – Cloud9, Senior Vice President of Marketing
- Gina Lee – Gen.G, VP of Brand, Activation & Apparel
- Amanda Kane – Gen.G, Associate Director of Talent/Content Strategy
- Christina Kim – Gen.G, Brand Director
- Sue “Smix” Lee – Twitch, Senior Strategic Account Manager
- Lily Lewis – CLG, Marketing Partnerships Manager
- Sarah Schnugget – Outlaws, Partnerships Account Manager
- Hillary Gilmore – 100 Thieves, Head of Partnerships
- Hana Tjia – UTA, Agent
- Briana Frapart – VENN, On-Air Casting and Talent Affairs
- Sarah Brand – VENN, Music & Creative Development
- Lizzie Leader – aXiomatic Gaming, Director of Communications
- Nikolaia Patterson – Team Liquid, Social Media Lead
- Dana Pirkle-Hayberg – CAA, Digital Media & Agent
- Sandra Chen – Team Liquid, Influencer Manager
- Heather Garozzo – Dignitas, Vice President of Talent
- Karina Ziminaite – G2Esports, Head of Content
- Karen Busenleher – Evil Geniuses, Revenue Project Manager
- Ashley Glassel – Version1/ROKKR, Director of Content
- Yangsin Lau Vazquez – NYXL/NYSL, Marketing & Social Media Manager
- Noukky – Cloud9, C9 White Team Manager
- Cary Lambert – G4TV, Senior Director, Brand Marketing
- Sabrina Wong – Evil Geniuses, Culture Program Specialist
- Allie Rooney – Version1/ROKKR, Digital Marketing Manager
- Carol Patrick – Executive Director, CP (Previously Blizzard Ent, ESL, VENN)
- Veronica Saron – Niantic, Product Marketing Manager
- Sarah Michelle Lahti – VENN, Digital Marketing Manager
- Cherry Thompson – Ubisoft Montreal, Accessibility Project Manager
- Hailey Geller – Gears of War, Integrated Marketing Communications Manager
- Hollie Klem – Esports Engine, Logistics Manager
- Kasumi Yogi – Games Done Quick, Director
- Diana Lora – Ubisoft, Account Manager
- Annie Lian – Misfits Gaming Group, Partnership Accounts Manager
- Sarah Dope – Astro Gaming, Influencer Management/Artist Relations
- Audrey Adair-Keene – Red Bull, Senior Communications Manager
- Aliana Miller – Riot Games, Influencer Strategy
- Ashley Kang – Korizon, Founder
- Alyssa Sweetman – Director of Creator Social Impact, Twitch
- Cassandra “Friskk” Reyna
- Dominique Gelineau – Toronto Ultra/Toronto Defiant, Team Operations
- Keisha Howard – Sugar Gamer, Founder
- Emily Gonzalez-Hollanda – Cloud9, Senior Product Manager
- Gaylen Malone – Cloud9, Senior General Manager
- Carolyn Dao – Capcom, Community Specialist
- Molly Dreska – eMLS, PR
- …And more!
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