RPG Evolution - D&D Goes to Work Part I: Adventures in Resume Writing

Playing Dungeons & Dragons teaches a wide range of skills, from complex math to problem solving to team work. How can you convince employers that your gaming experience makes you the best person for the job?

An "Outrageous" and "Off-Putting" Hobby?​

CareerBuilder posted "outrageous and common mistakes" candidates make in job interviews according to a survey. Among the unusual blunders hiring managers encountered, they reported that:

Candidate used Dungeons and Dragons as an example of teamwork.

This survey was conducted online within the U.S. by Harris Interactive on behalf of http://CareerBuilder.com among 2,720 hiring managers (employed full-time; not self-employed; non-government) ages 18 and over. Aja Frost at The Muse agrees, listing Dungeons & Dragons as a "random, unrelated, or off-putting" hobby:

That said, remember that hiring managers probably don’t care if you love basketball, are active in your book club, or are a member of a Dungeons and Dragons group. Eliminate anything that’s not totally transferable to work-related skills (or a really, really epic conversation starter).

Of course, it's never appropriate to bring up an irrelevant example in an interview. However, the manager specifically citing Dungeons & Dragons as a "blunder" because it's used as an example of teamwork. Not everyone agrees with this assessment.

+5 Vorpal Resumes​

The title graphic makes a tongue-in-cheek case for incorporating D&D into your resume, but others have taken it quite seriously. Artist Sean McNally put together his resume as a character sheet. If you think that's an impressive, check out the resume MrDeepImmersion sent to Wizards of the Coast:

One of the Dungeons and Dragons staff members heard from a friend of mine about my passion for immersive gaming and dynamic story telling. They encouraged me to apply for a position in game design. At the time these pictures were taken, I was working full time with Walt Disney Imagineering but was seeking out new opportunities; however, my background is in electrical and computer engineering, so my resume reads VERY dry to companies with heavily creative backgrounds. I figured that I’m only going to get one shot at showing them I’m an diligent worker that understands story-telling and is comfortable with thinking outside the box. So they’re getting my hand-crafted "summoning" tablets which contain wax-sealed scrolls (my resume and cover letter).

His Tumblr picks up the story:

Hey there guys! I heard back from the CEO of Wizards today. While it seems that there is not an available position that meets my skillset, I am proud to report that Mr. Leeds stated that this was by far the most impressive resume presentation that the company had ever seen He also notified me that he intended to pass my resume around to a few yet-to-be-named companies to share with them my passion and professionalism, so I think I may have opened more doors than I originally thought I would! And the recommendation from a CEO is a gift in itself! So I consider this a big victory! I am proud to have showcased my talents and will continue to do so! Thanks for all the support as I put this package together guys! Its because of you all that I aspire to dream big, thanks again!

An edit later amends the story:

HAHA, Got a job and that tablet really helped, though in a way I never expected! This is definitely an opportunity I cannot pass up. I’ll be seeing you guys in August!

These examples are from artists in creative fields. But being a dungeon master or player in Dungeons & Dragons entails quite a few other skills that employers might value.

The Softer Side of Killing Monsters​

The workforce needs "soft skills" more than ever before:

Because despite the supposed “disconnect” of the digital age, humanity is still a very social species, and unless we as individuals understand how to communicate, cooperate, and coordinate with others, we are at a significant disadvantage—especially in the workplace...There's a reason why 77 percent of employers say that soft skills are just as important as hard skills. In a workplace, the diversity in experience, demeanors, age, goals, and cultures, sometimes all on the same team, means we have to be able to juggle a varied set of personalities and end up at the same end point.

Role-playing develops a multitude of these soft skills that have immediate application in a business environment, including the ability to make quick math calculations, strategic thinking, developing leadership and tactical skills with small teams, language skills, and empathetic visualization. Aaron S. Rosenberg, a novelist who has written for numerous franchises (Exalted, Warcraft, and Warhammer to name a few) and ENnie-winning game designer, said:

Roleplaying games have long been underrated, seen as just a silly amusement, when in fact they have invaluable use as a social teaching tool, a narrative exercise, and a situational testing device. This is not to say that roleplaying games can accomplish everything, but they have a great deal to offer people of all ages and walks of life. All they require is the willingness to participate fully, the interest to learn and enjoy, and a little bit of imagination.

In my own personal experience, the value of gaming in the workplace has been invaluable in a variety of professions. As an instructor I taught business classes to small disparate groups. As game master, I perfected reading, eye contact, keeping my audience's attention, developing a speaking voice, being comfortable presenting to an audience, and using props as part of my presentation. These communication skills are critical to business. Ronald Corn, game designer and high school principal who has incorporated role-playing games into school activities, explained in an interview:

Playing cooperative games forces gamers to talk. In order to achieve their goals they are forced to verbalize their plans. Gamers often find that the more they talk-out their solutions the more likely they are to find unique ways to solve those problems.

As a salesperson, I learned to put myself in my customer's shoes. Role-playing develops empathy and role-projection. This skill is a key part of convincing customers to purchase a product. It's also an important part of employee relations -- employee advocacy requires putting oneself in another's shoes. David Millians, a premiere gaming advocate who uses gaming tools in class, shared his view in an interview on how gaming promotes social awareness:

The most important skills are those of social awareness, reading the other players and oneself. One can then alter elements of play and interaction to make it work better for everyone, but it is most important to learn to read the social cues of the players and people at the table.

As a manager, we regularly conduct meetings around a table. Different "players" with their own objectives have to be convinced to work together. We have a time limit (usually an hour) and a goal. Each team member brings specific skills to help the team succeed. Corn elaborated in an interview:

Gaming, especially cooperative gaming, promotes teamwork. In most games players are asked to work together to solve a puzzle, stop a villain's nefarious plans or do something little like save the world. The very nature of role-playing games nearly requires teamwork and forces the players to support each other through their respective roles. Other tabletop games have incorporated a time limit such as Pandemic and thus require players to talk, plan, and implement a strategy very quickly. A perfect exercise for those corporate deadlines.

Sounds a lot like an adventuring party, right? The only thing missing from business meetings is dice. But don't take my word for it. Martin Yale explains in "Knock 'em Dead Resumes: A Killer Resume Gets More Job Interviews!":

A Korn Ferry study once showed that executives with team sports on their resumes averaged $3,000 a year more than their more sedentary counterparts. Now, that makes giving a line to your personal interests worthwhile, if they fit into certain broad categories. If you participate in team sports, determination activities (running, climbing, bicycling), and "strategy activities" (bridge, chess, Dungeons & Dragons), consider including something about them.

Beck and Wade's Got Game discovered that gamers are "committed, team-oriented professionals that play to win." In fact, they found that the more time young professionals have spent playing games, "the more sociable they report themselves to be." This certainly applies to Dungeons & Dragons, one of the most social games of all. But perhaps the best argument for gamers as important team members is that they have learned to fail. Aaron Vanek, Executive Director of Seekers Unlimited, a public charity dedicated to fostering education through live action role-playing (LARP), said in an interview:

I don't think fighting monsters is good practice for conflict resolution in real life, for it demonizes The Enemy and puts forth violence as the first, best solution for resolution. I hope people aren't learning to solve their problems by smacking it with the business end of a longsword. However, conflict can help one in real life through failure. Games allow people to fail without serious real life consequences--professional sports or professional designers not included. I believe it is extremely important for folks to be able to deal with failure--to not resolve a conflict to their satisfaction--and games are a great way to rehearse this real life eventuality.

Failure in business is an increasingly critical skill for companies trying to keep up with the fast-paced world, as outlined in Fast Company's "7 New Skills Needed for Business Success in 2015":

Think of failure as the price of getting an education: It’s alright to fail as long as you're failing quickly, cost-effectively, and learning from mistakes, using the insights gain to improve future tries. Leading innovators are constantly introducing new products, prototypes and solutions, and learning from these efforts, steadily adjusting and adapting these ventures to be more effective until they eventually find success.

There's plenty of compelling reasons to explain the value of your gaming experience in an interview, but what if you don't get that chance? Is it worth putting game experience on a resume that might screen you out before you even get the opportunity to explain?

Finding the Game Balance in Resumes​

Yale adds an important caveat to adding game experience to any job search:

Yes, poker involves critical thinking skills, but it's not worth the bad press your mention can get if the interviewer doesn't understand that it is a game of skill. The rule of thumb, as always, is only to include activities that can, in some way, contribute to your chances of being hired.

It seems context is key. Game experience should be brought up when it makes sense to do so; creative fields and jobs will likely value game experience more than other professions. The interviewer's experience matters to. As gamers become more common, interviewers who are gamers might put higher value on your game experience.

Should you put your game experience on your resume? It depends on a variety of factors, including a careful assessment of the job, the interviewer, and the company. There's an appropriate time and place to discuss Dungeons & Dragons in a job hunt, and only the candidate can make that determination. But managers could do a lot worse than hire a role-player. For the other articles in this series please see:

• D&D Goes to Work Part I:Adventures in Resume Writing
• D&D Goes to Work Part II: Professional Game Masters
• D&D Goes to Work Part III: The Gamified Workplace

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

While I don’t think mentioning D&D on a resume would be a good idea (just like most employers don't care about your hobbies), I do think that some of the storytelling skills gained from playing it can be applied to writing a resume. A good resume tells a story, and that story is your experience, skills, and why you should be considered for the job (okay, and a good resume should also be free of typos and spelling errors).

 

[der_kluge]

This all depends on context. I work in IT. I would never include my D&D experience on my resume. Mostly for two reasons:
A) I have plenty of relevant, applicable IT experience to include.
B) It wouldn't really be professional, because it has nothing to do with my career.

In the examples provided, it would be totally relevant if:
A) I was applying for a position for a game company
B) I was applying for a position in a highly creative environment (animator, writer, etc.)

In fact, if I were to apply for a job at say, Blizzard Entertainment - even as a Database Administrator, it might be fun to include the fact that I enjoy MMORPGs, and have played D&D for 25 years.

 

[Wrathamon]

Also, have a professional email address and not Cheetonazi2099@gmail.com.

I think you can totally use your D&D training and experience for an effective interview.

"In fact, if I were to apply for a job at say, Blizzard Entertainment - even as a Database Administrator, it might be fun to include the fact that I enjoy MMORPGs, and have played D&D for 25 years."

If you were applying for a game team, yes. But, Battlenet or the other admin side ... I would say no. They probably have a hard time keeping gamers focused on non-game tasks and would love some devs and admins that have no desire to work on the game stuff

 

[Ranes]

I hope my CV/resumé-writing days are behind me. If not, I wouldn't mention D&D, certainly not outside of a games industry application. However, reading this has given me an idea. If, during an interview, the interviewer asked me what I would do if I disagreed with an order given by a superior, I'd be tempted to roll a d20 right there and - regardless of the result - raise my eyebrows and say, "Ah. It appears I'd kill him and take his stuff."

 

[DMZ2112]

And then, sometimes, you post a game-design-specific resume on Monster.com and get hired into pharmaceutical regulatory writing despite your resume being almost inappropriately specific. I was /mortified/ when I inadvertently caught sight of my resume in my employee file at work a few years after I'd been hired and I recognized it as my gaming resume.

Whatever works, I suppose, but I definitely come down on the "don't mention D&D" side of the argument.

 

[I'm A Banana]

All resumes are essentially an arbitrary process of looking impressive using mostly tangentially relevant skills to someone you've never met before.

I say this as a person who makes hiring decisions.

I'd probably be well-disposed to you if you played D&D, because I know the skills it involves. My boss, maybe not so much. But if coach a sports team, I won't give a frig, but my boss knows what goes into that, so she'll be impressed.

Most resume advice is like diet advice - mostly irrelevant an ineffective.

The time you could be spending honing your resume would probably be better spent trying to network. In terms of hours of investment put in to jobs received, knowing a person is more efficient than knowing a thing.

For that, a D&D group can be a huge networking opportunity - I play with quite a few professional contacts. And knowing that you're a person they trust and that they could hang out with is basically the heuristic used in most hiring on a practical level. Cross that threshold, and you're over the biggest hurdle.

Changing that baseline is kind of the professional project I've been engaged in for the last half a year or so.

 

[jedijon]

Except, as part of the article points out, there are times when putting your D&D hobby on your resume would be invaluable. You'd need to be careful that the job, company, and industry would actually value your inclusion of D&D on your resume, but with the right match it could put you ahead. And not just when applying to WotC!

But for your average, non-creative job, yeah, leave it off.

And those times where a reference to D&D WOULD be "invaluable" would be properly described as anecdotal or statistically insignificant. Moreover, familiarity with these two terms will take you farther in your chosen career path than roleplay ever could. And I applaud your mention of average; if not quite in the way you intended.

 

[jedijon]

Here - I'll say it differently...any hobby stuff on a resume = 'I'm weird'.

Any NON-professional stuff on a resume = 'I lack experience'.

Bringing up D&D even during interviews is only going to be a good play if you can determine both that your audience is receptive and that it's relevant. We're supposedly a group of experts at make believe- so I'll leave that one up to you.