Sloppy work or poor directions - Sony presentation on how much they cost and how to measure it
This presentation shows how key performance indexes are used at Sony to manage quality and costs of outsourced work. If you're a sloppy artist (unwelded verts, uneven mesh density, bad uvs, etc.) then this will give you some concrete numbers on how much your sloppy work costs. It also works the other way by showing the costs of unclear direction and management.
https://youtu.be/X23-4CAt7ic
https://youtu.be/X23-4CAt7ic
Replies
I've been watching presentations from outsourcing and HR expos and it's very informative. I think we can learn a lot about how we artists are perceived and valued from these expos, for example Linkedin Talent Solutions (also called Linkedin Talent Connect) gave me some real insight into how every action we take is monitored, packaged and sold.
Artists starting out today hoping to get a job will be put through automated systems and if you aren't aware of how those systems work you will be at a disadvantage.
Not only will this make the client's artists happier, it will also save many costly feedback loops - think of the time wasted on skype and email. Think of the time wasted due to time difference. Think of the increased "lost in translation" potential that exists in every feedback loop. The fewer feedback loops the better - give your outsourcer all the info they need to get those assets right at their first shot!
Great points - finding the right balance of documentation. Not every studio can afford to hand-pick documentation for the outsourcer, but it does cost us time when we have to dig through tons of docs just to find out what concerns us and what doesn't. Outdated docs are also a major annoyance for us. Us figuring out YOUR pipeline wastes YOUR money - because we could just use that time to get art done.
When dealing with outsourcers in different cultures, language is also very important. Slang, colloquialisms, complex language, abbreviations can all cause confusion and can be difficult to communicate. Another important thing is to clarify how literally your outsourcer should take concept art and what level of freedom they have in regards to interpretation of instructions and concepts. This should be clarified beforehand. Some clients want to double-confirm everything, others totally trust us, others don't clarify yet complain after all the work is done (please don't be that client!).
Another good thing to keep in mind is quality vs. speed; Basically: quality, price, speed - pick 2. It's important to communicate to your outsourcer where you can compromise and where you can't. Of course we aim to please in all 3 areas, but practically there is often one that comes up short unless you have a tip top super perfect pipeline. E.g. quality for unimportant props may be different from quality for hero assets. Tech accuracy may be, to some clients, less important, for certain assets than for others. We can also see this in the checklists clients give us - some clients are quite relaxed, yet others are super strict and bounce back assets due to minor things. If it's not obvious, communicate it to your outsourcer to avoid time wasted in feedback loops.
the overage from generic issues in a bar graph is quite the eye opener.
When I read the header in the OP, my eyesbrows lit up seeing this "unwelded verts, uneven mesh density, bad uvs, etc.", because I thought those were all fundamentals 3D artists were taught to avoid.
As a studio, you can forget all those hassles when you work with an outsourcer. They have a pool of artists or teams to pick from at negotiatable package prices (per asset, per map, per week, etc.) and there is no issue with hiring or firing because everyone is already on-board. And if your game needs DLC or an expansion or a part II, 6 months later, then you just come back to your outsourcer and say that you need the same team again for more work - they already know the drill.
Basically the outsourcer doesn't just do art - you also outsource training, team-building, team management and hardware/software setup. And you don't have to fire entire teams at the end of the project (like in gig based VFX production). At they outsourcer they will just work on something different after your project is finished. Especially with projects from big studios who share tech and engines a lot of experience carries over from project to project.