Before working in the iGaming field, you worked in IT companies. Tell us, what is the difference between recruiting in “IT” and in “gambling”?

The main difference between hiring in IT and gambling lies in the degree of openness and universality of the market. IT is a broader field, and finding candidates in it is easier due to the scale of businesses. If you enter a query in LinkedIn Recruiter to search for people with the position “Affiliate Manager” and keywords “iGaming|Gambling,” you will see 4.4 thousand results. But if you search for a Software Engineer in a bank the same way, there will be 780+ thousand results. In gambling, the market is closed, narrow, and heavily tied to networking, and the strength of a personal brand plays a huge role. As a result, the approach to hiring in gambling becomes informal, selective, and much more dependent on connections than in IT.

Before scheduling the first interview with a candidate, what do you pay special attention to in the resume? What would you recommend candidates pay attention to in their resumes when applying for positions in the gambling niche?

Before inviting a candidate for an interview, I primarily look not just at overall experience but at its applicability in our context. It is important that the person not just lists metrics like ROI, retention, or the number of deposits but provides specific context for them: which GEO they worked with, on what platform, in which tier — TIER1, TIER2, or TIER3. These nuances are critical because user behavior and approaches to working with them differ radically in different GEOs. If a person successfully worked in TIER3, it does not mean that the same methods will work in TIER1 — and vice versa.

I also pay attention to details that are often overlooked: whether the platform was custom-built or white-label, what specific tasks the candidate had, whether they had the opportunity to influence processes or just worked “as usual.” It is important for me to see that the person understands exactly how they achieved their results. Not just “was a team lead,” but who exactly they worked with, how many people were under their management, how they built interaction with the team and related departments. Often, a resume sounds impressive, but in reality, behind a beautiful description, there may be no real managerial or operational workload. That is why I always look for informal markers of adequacy, maturity, and the ability to navigate a complex, interconnected structure.

In your opinion, how easy is it to enter the gambling industry in 2025 without prior experience in gambling?

If we talk about entering the niche, it is possible, especially for junior positions. We have hired people without experience: in CRM, in support. Sometimes a person grows from scratch to a product role. It all depends on the desire, involvement, and willingness to learn. It is important that the person does not have inflated salary expectations at the start. Sometimes you have to compromise: for example, enter with a lower position but with perspective. Networking also plays a role — we have had people join the team simply after talking at meetups.

During interviews, what red flags do you notice in candidates?

The main criteria by which I determine red flags are the candidate’s misalignment with the company’s values. One of the company’s main values is honesty and openness. If the interviewee gets confused in their statements, gives different versions of the same situation, exaggerates their language level, or clearly inflates metrics, it leads me to think that we are not on the same path with this person.

And what qualities in people and employees are most valued by BROFIST, and by what markers do you identify green flags?

As with red flags, I determine green flags by the candidate’s competencies, which correspond to several other company values:

Proactivity is the habit of acting a step ahead: independently seeing a problem or opportunity, proposing a solution, and launching it without someone else’s prompting. A proactive team can achieve incredible results while others look for excuses; we seize opportunities.

Communication skills and the ability to work in a team — this includes the skill of providing quality feedback and conducting constructive communication with colleagues. Sometimes people see competitors/enemies/obstacles in each other; we strive to see support, help, and resources in each other. As the saying goes, one hand washes the other. Outstanding results are achieved by the team, not by an individual. That is why we value this.

Ability to grow — it is about the ability to adapt to new challenges faster than competitors. It is about an open mind, readiness to accept feedback, and the courage to recognize growth areas within oneself and the strength to nurture a professional within. It is important to be, not to seem. And to be a master means to constantly become one. That is why we value candidates with a high ability to grow.

Tell us a bit about employee adaptation at BROFIST. What does the company pay special attention to when onboarding new employees?

At BROFIST, we view onboarding through the lens of four types of adaptation — organizational, social, professional, and psychophysiological. None of them can be “turned off,” otherwise the person will either get lost in processes, burn out, or remain a stranger in the team.

The goal of onboarding is to turn a newcomer from an “outside observer” into a productive, confident, and satisfied team member within the first three months.

Organizational adaptation — understanding how the company is structured: the department’s mission, key processes, and connection points with other teams.

Social — feeling like part of the team: a buddy mentor, meeting immediate colleagues, quick access to the informal chat.

Professional — a clear 30/60/90-day plan, first small tasks, and success metrics so that there is a tangible result already in the first week.

Psychophysiological — a healthy work rhythm, assistance with relocation or adapting to a new work format to preserve energy throughout the adaptation process.

All this creates good ground for a newcomer to quickly grow into an autonomous employee who feels like a fish in water in any work situation.

During interviews, adaptation, and successful probation, what is the percentage ratio of the role of soft skills and hard skills?

I always look at the combination of hard and soft skills while understanding that hard skills can be developed, but soft skills are much more difficult. If a person has ambition and motivation, we can help develop hard skills — provided we have the time and resources for it. But empathy, initiative, communication skills — these are either there or not. These are not things that can be quickly developed during the probation period.

At the start, I assess what the person brings with them. If they have gaps in hard skills, we can set this as a task for a period: give direction, give a test, see how they handle it. But if the person lacks the soft skills necessary for their position — cannot establish communication with colleagues, shows aggression, looks for excuses instead of ways to solve problems — we will most likely not work well together, no matter how technically strong they are.

Sometimes we consciously hire “for soft skills,” especially when it comes to juniors — we look at how engaged the person is, how they communicate, how they respond to feedback. The main thing is that there is someone to work with and room to grow.

As in IT companies, many in gambling do not understand the role of the HR department and are quite skeptical about it. Tell us in detail about the role of the HR direction in companies.

HR is not an administrative department and not about “entertaining employees.” It is about systematic, sometimes invisible work that directly affects how people feel within the team and how effectively they can work. If everything is set up well in the company, no one remembers HR. But it is like air: it is invisible until it disappears.

Our task is to keep both the business and the people in focus. We do not take sides; we help them understand each other. We convey to the business where people are struggling, where tension is building up, where something needs to change. And at the same time, we explain to people what limitations the company has, why certain processes are built, and how everything works.

HR is about creating a space where employees can be effective. Where they do not have to suppress irritation or deal with chaos but can focus on their work. Where it is clear whom to approach to solve a problem. Where there is trust, not fear of making mistakes. It is not about “making it pretty.” It is about making it genuinely comfortable for the team to work together.