Melissa Phillips is an Executive Coach and Leadership Psychologist having accumulated over 10 years of industry experience at the senior management level.

Melissa's professional journey encompasses significant contribution across diverse sectors within the Games Industry. She has worked as Head of Studio, Operations Director and Consultant across of a number of different Game Studios and Organisations.

She held the position of Games Programme Manager at BAFTA Games, where she facilitated the establishment and operation of the BAFTA Crew Games Programme. This initiative catered to individuals with 2-4 years of industry experience, fostering skill enhancement, networking opportunities, and career advancement. Under her guidance, this endeavor rapidly flourished into a vibrant community with a strong sense of identity.

During her tenure at BAFTA, Melissa spearheaded the revival of the BAFTA Young Game Designers Competition, an event tailored for individuals aged 10-18 to pitch their Game ideas and prototypes to the industry. Notably, she engineered an educational card-based game aimed at instructing schools and clubs in game design for children. This educational tool evolved into a professionally produced physical product distributed by BAFTA Games, serving as a valuable educational resource.

Subsequently, Melissa founded her own Community Interest Company (CiC), known as the Games Leadership Network (www.gamesleadership.com) a non-profit venture, designed to provide coaching support and community to both established and emerging leaders within the Game Industry. At the same time, Melissa established the Games Leadership Academy (www.gamesleadershipacademy.com), an online training Academy dedicated to producing Leadership resources and training materials for the Games Industry.

In regards to Education and formal training, Melissa holds Degrees in Psychology (BSc.) Music (BMus.) and Musicology (MA.). Her specialist subject for her dissertation topics on all three degrees focused around Emotion and how people form their identities. She was awarded The Mercers' Company Prize for 'Outstanding Achievement in the Final Year' and The Davis Lyons Bursary Scholarship for her Masters Project.

She is an experienced Coach and Consultant who holds a Diploma in Coaching at the University of Cambridge with a focus on Leadership and Management. Melissa is also an Associate Member of the Association for Coaching, a Coach Member of the International Coaching Federation, Student Member of the CIPD and a Graduate Member of the British Psychological Society.

She has been nominated for Digital Leader of the Year Award, MCV Women in Games Awards, Future Stars of Tech Award, H100 Awards and was named in Gi.Biz’s 100 Most Influential Women in Games.

Recent Professional CPD Attendance, Further Training & Event Attendance:

  • Virtual Skills Development: Using Belbin With Teams - December 2022 (Association for Coaching)

  • Cultivating Resilience Through the Power of Words - January 2023 (Association for Coaching)

  • Coaching and Bereavement in the Workplace with Julia Menaul - January 2023 (Association for Coaching)

  • “What does Success Look Like?” Keynote Lecture at Yorkshire Games Festival - February 2023 (Self - Speaker representing Games Leadership Network)

  • Mental Health First Aid Course - February 2023 (Safe in Our World)

  • WASD Games - March 2023 (Attended as Self, Participated in Games Finance Market)

  • Hertfordshire Co-Coaching Forum - March 2023 (Association for Coaching)

  • BAFTA Games Connects Quarterly: Reaching the Next Level - April 2023 (Self - Speaker representing Games Leadership Network)

  • Bringing the ‘Psykhe’ back into Coaching with Maria Iliffe-Wood - May 2023 (Association for Coaching)

  • Hertfordshire Co-Coaching Forum - May 2023 (Association for Coaching)

  • Somatic Coaching Masterclass with Peter Hamill (Full day course) - June 2023 (Association for Coaching)

  • Develop Conference Brighton - July 2023 (Hosted Epic Lunch, Games Leadership Network Meetup)

  • Imposter Syndrome - Impact, Triggers & Coping - August 2023 (Association for Coaching)

  • Supervision from Cambridge University Tutors ended and switched to the Leadership Psychology Institute - September 2023

  • Creating a Psychologically Safe Coaching Culture in the Workplace with Laura Royal - September 2023 (Association for Coaching)

  • Games Industry Hr Summit, BAFTA - September 2023 (Gi.Biz)

  • Working with Trans People - September 2023 (British Psychological Society CPD)

  • EGX, London - Barclays Rezzed Stage - October 2023 (Self - Speaker representing Games Leadership Network)

  • BAFTA Guru Live, London - October 2023 (Self - Speaker representing Games Leadership Network)

  • Manchester Games Growth Summit 2023 - November 2023 (Self - Speaker representing Games Leadership Network)

  • Barclays Games Council - November 2023 (Self - Speaker representing Games Leadership Network)

  • Barclays Entrepreneur Awards - November 2023 (Guest)

  • Coaching Peer Practice Group Setup, British Psychological Society - December 2023 (Member, meets monthly)

  • Digital Leaders Impact Awards 2024 - March 2024 - Nominee (Self - representing Games Leadership Network)

  • GDC 2024 ’We Need to Talk About Games Leadership’ - March 2024 (Self - Speaker representing Games Leadership Network)

  • BAFTA Games Jury Participant - New Intellectual Property 2024 - April 2024 (Self)

  • BAFTA Games Awards 2024 - April 2024 (Guest)

  • Branching Factor Podcast for Ai in Games - April 2024 (Self - Speaker representing Games Leadership Network)

  • Barclays ‘State of Play’ Event, London - April 2024 (Self - Speaker representing Games Leadership Network)