CEO of 9Pandas, Julia Sotnikova, discussed whether the leader of an esports club must understand the games

According to her, top management should have at least a superficial knowledge of the disciplines. 

"Of course, it's not necessary for top management to dive as deep into the game as a coach or analyst does. But understanding how everything works there, even at a superficial level, is possible and necessary. I've been doing this myself. I took lessons from seizing. He showed me maps, all the spots and team tactics. Then I ran around like a schoolgirl asking questions.

It's very cool and interesting. I did it to understand what's happening inside the game." - Julia Sotnikova

Earlier, former manager of the 9Pandas team Aldar “Jamba” Dzhambinov spoke about what he is currently doing in the organization and why he decided to step away from working as a manager

"Yes, I've taken a break from managing the Dota 2 roster because I decided to focus on my health and generally needed to address many personal matters. Moreover, after two years of living in Belgrade, some moments needed to be addressed. And in general, I've become a bit tired of working with players. This doesn't specifically relate to the current roster. It's been accumulating since 2018.

I decided to take a break in February but didn't yet know what I would do in the following months. After returning from vacation, I went back to the office where I was offered a new position, and I decided that I needed to try my hand at something new.

We haven't made any official announcements because right now I'm just trying it out, I'm still on probation, so to speak. As if if it doesn't work out, then, I hope, I can always go back. But I've been in management for the last six years, and it was time to move on to something new. Moreover, last year was successful for the Dota 2 roster, but the players went their separate ways, and it was the most suitable moment.

Right now, I'm working in the creative group and helping with the content that the organization plans to release with the CS2 and Dota 2 roster players. I oversee our YouTube channels, and social media, interact with SMM, and work closely with production."