Of Note - #5 - Spotify backstage, Football Manager, and Abba x Unicef

What happens inside organizations is having an outsize impact on what happens outside. Looking at things through this lens can unlock talent, innovation, and revenue - and in all kinds of interesting ways. Here are three sources of inside out inspiration from the last couple of weeks:

🎵1. Spotify Backstage

Spotify’s open source tech project offers any engineer access to their architecture - while unlocking new revenue streams for the company

Why it’s of note: Spotify’s Backstage project offers engineers a dedicated marketplace with dozens of free plugins developed both by Spotify and its external community. But what makes this particular off note is Spotify creating five premium plugins and selling them as a paid subscription.

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⚽️ 2. From virtual football to pro sports reality

Gamer becomes premier league football manager after mastering ‘Football Manager’ video game

Why it’s of note: The vast majority of top-tier football managers are former star players, seasoned coaches, or both. French Ligue 1 team Reims have taken a different route. Their manager Will Still got his start by playing the video game Football Manager. Oh, and he’s only 30. Who said there was only one path to success?

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🇸🇪 3. Abba’s royalties fund a school in Guatemala

The Swedish pop legends gave the copyright of ‘Chiquitita’ to Unicef

Why it’s of note: Instead of making a one-off donation, all the royalties from Abba’s 1979 hit (which means "Little Girl" in Spanish) have gone directly to Unicef, which has in turn used the income to fund a stream of school and NGO projects across Latin America. And it’s a gift that keeps on giving more than 40 years later.

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Freemium plugins, video games as a career on-ramp, or dedicating an ongoing resource: which of these projects resonates most?