Sr. Director of Global Game Development takes prize in Land-Based
Dubravka Burda, GTECH Sr. Director of Global Game Development, has won the Leader of the Year Award (Land-Based) at the 5th Annual Women in Gaming Awards. The title was awarded to Burda during the awards gala at the Jumeirah Carlton Tower Hotel in London on Friday night, June 6, 2014. The Leader of the Year category identifies a woman working in the land-based gaming industry who has proven the ability to lead in a positive environment and has helped to inspire and guide her team to internal or external success. A panel of 10 independent industry judges selected the winner from a group of six finalists. “Dubravka’s leadership and commitment to excellence directly influences GTECH’s strong game development pipeline, which consistently provides our customers with compelling and high performing game content,” said Victor Duarte, GTECH Sr. Vice President, Gaming and Content, and Sr. Vice President, North American Commercial Gaming. “Congratulations to Dubravka for this well-deserved recognition from her industry peers.”
Since Burda began her tenure in gaming in 1997 as a mathematician, she has grown from overseeing commercial casino games to also developing Video Lottery Terminal, Amusement With Prize and interactive content; and from managing a small team in Graz, Austria, to also leading groups in Moncton, Canada; Las Vegas, U.S.; Belgrade, Serbia; London, U.K.; and Växjö, Sweden. Her exceptional management skills have led to her successful leadership of more than 300 employees at GTECH’s game development studios around the globe. Most recently, Dubravka’s group was behind the development of the SPHINX 3D™ casino game, a unique glasses-free 3D experience that has garnered critical acclaim and has won three major industry awards in late 2013 and 2014. Along with Burda, four GTECH women were finalists across various categories, including Chief Technology Officer Rachel Barber (Innovator of the Year); Italy Senior Vice President, Legal Counsel Claudia Ricchetti (Industry Achiever of the Year, online or land-based); Game Development Manager Tatjana Vesel (Star of the Future); and Corporate Communications Manager Rhonda Whittaker (Hidden Talent of the Year, online or land-based). In addition to recognizing outstanding women in the gaming industry, the Women in Gaming Awards also support Breakthrough Breast Cancer, a U.K. charity committed to breast cancer research, campaigning and education (www.breakthrough.org.uk).