Image Credit Nick Papadakis via LinkedIn
As we kick of 2026, I wanted to give the game producers out there a reminder and a bit of advice:
Nobody knows quite what you're supposed to do.
Neither do you, when things are going well.
Production is (or should be) a leadership role.
You see the big picture, understand the goal, and then work to get everyone moving towards it within the system's constraints.
You will probably facilitate meetings, have 1:1s, make plans, figure out the vision, respond to crises, submit reports, manage stakeholders, track progress, talk to tons of people, clarify misunderstandings, teach new concepts, repair old systems, and disrupt/establish the status quo.
But none of those things are what you're supposed to do, per se. They are just a bunch of tools that you might use to help the organization you are a part of reach the goal.
Too many organizations and devs think that your job is to do a bunch of specific tasks that seem "producer-y."
Your job is to do whatever is required (within legal and - more importantly - moral bounds) to help the organization meet or exceed its goal(s).
This means that whatever someone has seen a producer do in the past and whatever you've actually done in the past may not be the thing you need to do now, or in the next production role you are in.
Some (few) organizations understand this, and that makes the problem worse.
But if you want to be the most effective producer, your job is to find the goal, make sure it's good, hold onto it, and then move the organization towards it.
If you do that well, you may just help those you lead do something amazing.
If you fail to do that, no matter how good your reports, prescient your plans, efficient your systems, and clear your agendas, you will have failed to be the best producer you could be.
Don't get lost in the weeds.
If you want a deeper dive, I also did a video where I expand on the topic and react to some of the comments I've seen so far.
https://urlgeni.us/youtube/3Z5Aty
This post originated on LinkedIn. Because it resonated there, I figured I'd share it here as well.
Hope 2026 has started well for you!
Cheers,
Ben C.
Building Better Games
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