The Differences We Leverage
The Nex Way · Post #3
Last week, we welcomed our 100th team member.
Nex is growing fast. We’ve nearly doubled in size in the past year. But here’s the thing— We’re not hiring for one archetype. We’re not building a team of clones.
We’re building something much harder—and much more powerful:
A team that can hold the tension and leverage the differences.
The Tension We Hold
Dreamers and Doers. Most of us are somewhere in between. Some are vision-first, asking where we want to be in 10 years and working backward. Others ground us in reality and ask, “What are we shipping this quarter?” We need both mindsets.
Doing the Right Things vs. Doing Things Right. Strategy and execution. Intuition and precision. We need people who start with “why,” perfect the “how,” and deliver the “what.”
Researchers, Developers, Production. Researchers crave breakthroughs. Developers chase progress. Production teams obsess over reliability. These aren’t competing goals—they’re different commitments to excellence.
First-Principles vs. Established Playbook. First-principle thinking challenges the status quo. An established playbook helps us move fast. We reinvent the wheel when we must, and roll with the best wheels when we can.
Conviction vs. Data. Past data would advise against building another motion game console—they didn’t last. Nex jumped in with conviction. Now we leverage data to chart the path to sustainability. The best decisions come when conviction and data meet.
0-to-1 Chaos vs. 1-to-N Scale. Explorers, hackers, and founders-at-heart thrive in the chaos. Builders of systems and repeaters of magic shine in scale. To win long-term, we need both—reinventing ourselves and scaling what works.
Pushing Boundaries vs. Pushing Efficiency. One explores what’s never been done and keeps us original. The other refines, streamlines, and scales what works—making us sustainable.
Specialists vs. Generalists. Specialists push us forward with depth. Generalists connect dots and bring glue. Both are essential.
Which House Are We?
Stephen Saiz, our VP of Publishing, asked me during our last field trip to Orlando’s Epic Universe:
“Which Hogwarts house are you?”
So I asked the one who knows me best—ChatGPT, who has the deepest account of how I think (please don’t tell my wife).
She said I have the mind of a Ravenclaw and the nature of a Gryffindor: fearless, determined, risk-taking… and stubborn.
So then I asked myself: what about Nex?
Co-founder Tony Sung? Ravenclaw. Curious. Analytical. Rigorous.
Co-founder Reggie Chan? Hufflepuff. Loyal. Hardworking. The heart of the team.
Stephen himself? A Gryffindor who wishes he were a (good) Slytherin. Resourceful. Strategic. Ambitious.
And I realized: one answer isn’t enough.
We’re Building Hogwarts
We’re not building one house. We’re building Hogwarts.
We thrive because of our differences. That’s why Nex works.
Hogwarts stands the test of time. And so will Nex.
Protecting What Makes Us Special
When you grow fast, it’s tempting to simplify— to default to one mindset, one type of hire, one way of working.
But if we do that, we lose what made Nex special.
We’re not here to be just a toy company.
Or just a console company.
Or just a games company.
Or just a consumer subscription company.
We’re building something new— a new category, a new experience, a new kind of play, with purpose.
And to do that, we have to protect and nurture our diversity of minds.
Because that’s what gives us range, builds our resilience, and catalyzes our growth.
Building Together
The best teams don’t all think the same way.
They know how to disagree well.
They know when to step up—and when to step back.
They know how to leverage the differences.
That’s Nex.
And we will keep building—together.
P.S. This almost went out as “The Balance We Strike.” But Tony challenged me—it sounded like compromise, not conviction. He was right. The Differences We Leverage better reflects who we are: intentional about differences, and committed to protecting them.
P.P.S. This is the third post in The Nex Way series. The first two were “The Language We Use” and “The Promises We Made.” All of these started as my opening remarks at Nex’s town hall. This one you just read is from earlier this month—so I’ve finally caught up.