Inside Dream 11’s Dream Team: How Dream 11 is Redefining Talent, Culture, & Jobs

The Indian gaming industry is no longer an underdog. With a projected market value of $7.5 billion and over 250,000 new jobs expected by next year, the space is growing at a pace that’s rewriting playbooks.

At the heart of this transformation is Dream11, an Indian sports fantasy platform that’s not just riding the wave, but also helping create it. Behind the scenes, Kevin Freitas Freitas, CHRO at Dream11, is helping shape a Dream Workforce that thrives on purpose, autonomy, and community.

In the second episode of Taggd India’s Decoding Jobs: Lighthouse Series, presented in collaboration with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), two industry leaders dive deep into the talent strategies fueling this growth:

– Mr. Kevin Freitas Freitas, CHRO, Dream11 – The architect behind Dream11’s high-performance culture and employer brand.
– Mr. Devashish Sharma, the Founding Member & CEO of Taggd– A visionary shaping India’s workforce transformation.

Together, they decode how Dream11 is building unstoppable teams, fostering innovation, and driving inclusion in one of India’s fastest-growing industries.

Key insights from the discussion are-
– Creating future-ready careers
– Purpose-driven hiring
– Diversity beyond numbers
– Building and maintaining Employers Branding

You can find the podcast here:

India’s gaming industry is no longer on the sidelines, it’s entering its big-league moment. With the sector projected to touch $7.5 billion and add 250,000 jobs in the coming year alone, it’s fast becoming one of the most dynamic arenas for innovation and employment.

For Dream11, this isn’t just growth- it’s evolution. The company stands at the forefront of a vibrant ecosystem where entirely new career paths are emerging: fantasy sports analysts, gamification architects, sports content creators, and brand storytellers. These weren’t even on the radar five years ago.

As gaming evolves from entertainment to a cultural mainstay, Dream11 is helping shape what the future of work in this industry looks like.

It’s not just about building apps; it’s about building meaningful careers that bridge sports, technology, and creativity. In the next decade, the talent landscape will be unrecognizable from today- and Dream11 is already charting that trajectory.

Hiring top tech talent is a challenge, but retaining them is a whole different game. At Dream11, engineering roles aren’t siloed technical jobs—they’re central to shaping how India experiences sports. This sense of purpose is what sets Dream11 apart in the crowded race for tech minds.

While many companies compete with perks and pay checks, Dream11 focuses on creating an environment where people feel they’re building something bigger than themselves.

Engineers are empowered to solve real problems, innovate at scale, and leave a lasting impact on how millions engage with fantasy sports. It’s not about free lunches- it’s about feeding a deeper hunger for challenge, autonomy, and impact.

In the world of sports, every winning team needs variety- fast bowlers and steady batsmen, wicketkeepers and fielders. Dream11 applies the same logic to building its ow Dream Team.

For them, diversity isn’t a checkbox; it’s a strategy for excellence. The company has nearly doubled its gender diversity—from 10% in 2017 to 22% today—not by quotas but by reimagining who gets a seat at the table.

But diversity means little without inclusion. At Dream11, psychological safety isn’t jargon—it’s operationalized through everyday practices like the “no HiPPO” rule, which ensures the highest-paid person’s opinion doesn’t drown out others.

Everyone- from interns to executives—is encouraged to challenge, debate, and shape decisions. When people feel seen and heard, innovation follows.

The proof of Dream11’s inclusive culture isn’t in policy documents—it’s in moments of truth. One such moment came in 2018, just as the company was about to launch a major brand refresh.

A global agency had designed a sleek new logo, shirts were printed, and a marketing shoot was scheduled. Then, leadership did something radical: they asked the entire company for feedback.

The response was swift and loud- employees hated it. Most companies would have pushed forward anyway. Dream11 hit pause. Despite sunk costs and looming deadlines, the logo was scrapped.

The brand team returned to the drawing board, this time with voices from across the organization shaping the outcome. That decision didn’t just save a logo- it cemented trust.

When employees know their opinions carry weight, they don’t just work for the brand; they become its ambassadors.

At Dream11, learning isn’t an isolated activity—it’s cultural muscle-building. The company approaches development like preseason training: immersive, intense, and continuous. Initiatives like “Champions at the Stadium” bring in athletes, industry leaders, and domain experts to inspire and educate.

Hackathons are not limited to engineers; everyone joins, because innovation has no job title.

Perhaps the most empowering tool is the “learning wallet”—a no-cap budget that employees can use to pursue any course, workshop, or experience that fuels their growth.

From mental well-being to productivity, from tech upskilling to creative exploration, learning at Dream11 is as holistic as it is personal. The goal is simple: grow the individual, and the organization grows with them.

In today’s ultra-competitive talent market, everyone wants to hire the “Virat Kohli” of their industry. But while flashy offers may bring top talent through the door, only authenticity keeps them.

Dream11 understands this deeply. During hiring, the company makes clear promises—autonomy, impact, challenge—and then delivers on them, consistently.

Employees stay not because they have to, but because they believe in the mission: changing the way India engages with sports. It’s a rare alignment of passion and profession, where the thrill of the game extends into the workplace. People don’t just clock in—they suit up for a bigger cause.

Dream11’s employee value proposition doesn’t hide behind buzzwords. It’s inspired by Netflix’s celebrated “freedom and responsibility” model, but shaped for a homegrown, sport-obsessed audience. The EVP hinges on two simple yet powerful pillars: impact and fun.

The company wants Dreamsters (as employees are called) to feel the weight of their contribution—and the lightness of joy while doing it. This isn’t culture theatre. It’s an authentic expression of what happens when people love what they do and who they do it with.

At Dream11, purpose isn’t painted on the walls—it’s woven into the work. And that’s how you build not just a business, but a movement.

The podcast wrapped up on a powerful and optimistic note. Kevin Freitas highlighted that while Dream11 may have laid the foundation, the future will be shaped by a growing ecosystem of players, companies, and innovations, all contributing to building something much bigger—multiple castles, not just one.

Devashish Sharma concluded by acknowledging the significance of Kevin Freitas’s insights and their impact beyond the industry, noting that these conversations feed into broader discussions across academia, government, and business through platforms like the India Decoding Jobs report.

Tune into the full episode to hear Kevin Freitas and Devashish Sharma break down the future of India’s talent landscape. So, whether you’re an HR leader, job seeker, or policymaker, Dream11’s approach offers lessons in:

• Scaling a high-growth startup
• Balancing automation with human connection
• Making DEI a business priority, not just an initiative