About Us
Tryhard is a boutique consultancy who finds opportunities and solves the challenges of our clients in a diligent and personable manner. We are a unique blend of gaming industry veterans and entrepreneurs that have extensive experience in the fields of business management, marketing, esports, event operations, and product development.
Our passion is video games. Video games are one of the largest sources of entertainment globally, yet many brands have very little awareness of the lifestyle of gamers or how to communicate with them. Many companies outside of the games industry also struggle to make meaningful business connections to large publishers in the same way they would normally connect with their music or movie industry counterparts.
Our mission is to connect the games industry and other consumer focused business communities. We work hard and play hard.
The Tryhards *
Matt Marcou
Founding Partner
Matt is a pioneer of new engagement and monetization strategies in the video game industry. Many of his initiatives have become hallmarks of the esports industry, including the MADDEN NFL Championship Series (EA Sports) and the League of Legends World Championship (Riot Games). These initiatives have generated hundreds of millions of content hours and tens of millions of dollars in revenue.
Jordan Trabue
Founding Partner
With over 20 years of experience in the video game and esports industry, Jordan is a seasoned expert. He has excelled in competitive tournaments and secured capital for his start-up companies in Silicon Valley. Jordan’s skill sets encompass revenue growth, sponsorships, partnerships, brand activations, and investment raises.
Megu Kobayashi
Chief of Staff: Marketing & Operations
A seasoned leader, Megu has over 20 years of career experience in marketing with a focus on direct-to-consumer channels and execution. She has worked at a variety of industry leaders including Ogilvy, IAC, and Logitech and has been in the gaming space for over 14 years.
Jarett Andretti
Executive Director of Business Strategy & Partnerships
A graduate of North Carolina State University, Jarett carries on the Andretti family legacy as a Director of the CheckIt4Andretti Charitable Foundation. He has worked alongside companies ranging from startups to multibillion-dollar organizations across industries including home improvement, automotive, motor oil, health coverage, and more.
Stephen Stagliano
Head of Sales & Business Development
With over a decade of experience across gaming, entertainment, and live events, Stephen spent seven years at Riot Games leading global partnerships across esports and interactive entertainment. He is also co-founder of Story Games, an AI-powered narrative RPG studio. At TryHard, Stephen drives revenue through strategic partnerships, sponsorships, and business development across gaming, media, and emerging platforms.
Ron “Rambo “Kim
Senior Consultant
Ron’s passion for gaming started as a full time professional gamer winning multiple world-championships. He then became the head coach for Tier 1 organizations and shares his learnings on his YouTube channel with nearly 200K subscribers. He has extensive corporate experience focusing on partnerships, content, social media, digital marketing, events, and product development.
Nick Bee
Senior Associate
Nick has been a foundational element for many of the largest gaming programs today. Over two decades, he has helped to lead the charge on programming and operations as well as partnerships between publishers and developers.
Mike Murphree
Account Manager
With 18 years of experience in entertainment media, Mike has made significant strides in content production, influencer marketing, branding, advertising, and tournament organization, amassing over half a billion views on content he has produced. His work has received recognition from major brands such as PlayStation, IGN, and more. At the heart of his work lies a profound commitment to community, treating his network as family and fostering lasting connections within the industry.
Jon Mumm
Senior Technology Consultant
Jon has worked as a full-stack software developer and product manager for over 15 years—from seed stage startups to IPO, and big tech. He focuses on helping early stage product development teams get to launch and beyond. Prior to working in tech, Jon built a subscription content service for Counter-Strike players and was deeply immersed in the emerging esport scene.
Jon Brdecka
Project Manager
Jon brings over 15 years of gaming industry experience, specializing in customer relations, product development, and on-site activation. At SteelSeries, his negotiation and interpersonal skills proved vital in collaborating with top gaming organizations, companies, and content creators. He drove brand awareness and strengthened esports community connections while shaping gaming culture and fostering key industry partnerships.
Advisors *
John Teymoorian
Senior Advisor
John has served as a leader in global business and product development at multiple billion dollar video game companies. Most recently, while at PlayStation, he established the company’s vision and long-term strategy for competitive gaming.
Matthew Archambault
Executive Brand Advisor
Matthew Archambault is a commercial ecosystem builder with 20+ years of experience creating revenue frameworks and partnership models across gaming, technology, and digital entertainment. Matthew specializes in building brand partnership ecosystems and go-to-market strategies for emerging formats at the intersection of entertainment, technology, and creator platforms.
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* – The team members listed here are a combination of owners and independent contractors of Tryhard Consulting.
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