Sr Manager, Self Publishing Production (Digital Gaming)

Company Description

CREATIVITY IS OUR SUPERPOWER. It’s our heritage and it’s also our future. Because we don’t just make toys. We create innovative products and experiences that inspire fans, entertain audiences and develop children through play. Mattel is at its best when every member of our team feels respected, included, and heard—when everyone can show up as themselves and do their best work every day. We value and share an infinite range of ideas and voices that evolve and broaden our perspectives with a reach that extends into all our brands, partners, and suppliers.

The Team:

Mattel Game Studios’ mission is to harness the power of Mattel's iconic brands and IP to create a wide variety of engaging digital games. Our team is guided by industry leaders with decades of experience in various facets of the gaming industry. We are seeking talented individuals to join us in our mission to create innovative and engaging digital experiences that resonate with our beloved brands. If you are passionate about gaming and eager to be part of a dynamic, forward-thinking team in family entertainment, this is the opportunity for you!

Job Description

The Opportunity: 

Mattel Game Studio is looking for a Senior Manager to lead our game production discipline for a new portfolio of mobile free-to-play games based on Mattel’s iconic brands. This is a leadership role that will drive the end-to-end development process, from initial concept and prototyping through launch, live operations, and ongoing updates. The Senior Manager, Production will oversee a team of producers and act as the key point of contact for both internal stakeholders and external development partners. The ideal candidate is passionate about casual mobile gaming and keeps up to date with the latest market trends and news.

What Your Impact Will Be: 

• Lead the Production Discipline: Collaborate with the Executive Producer to ensure all projects meet deadlines, stay within budget, adhere to the design scope, and align with broader portfolio and quality objectives. Manage, mentor, and inspire a team of 2–4 Game Producers (and other production staff), fostering an environment of collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement. Define best practices and processes for game production, and ensure producers are equipped to execute at a high level.
• Project Ownership from Concept to Launch: Guide projects through initial concept, greenlight, pre-production, development, soft launch, and global launch. Own the concept and playtesting phase for new game ideas – coordinating market research, guiding prototype development, and supervising player playtests to validate fun factor and product-market fit.
• Strategic Planning & Process Optimization: Work with studio leadership to translate high-level product vision into detailed development roadmaps and milestone plans. Drive strategic planning for each title, setting clear goals and KPIs. Identify bottlenecks and risks early; proactively adjust plans and resources to hit targets on time and at quality.
• Cross-Functional Coordination: Partner closely with Game Design, Art, Engineering, QA, Marketing, Community, Live Operations, and Publishing teams to ensure all aspects of the game and go-to-market are in sync. Facilitate communication between disciplines – for example, ensuring the Live Ops calendar is feasible for the dev team, or that Marketing and Community get the assets and features needed for campaigns. Balance the creative ambitions of the team with schedule and technical constraints, keeping everyone moving toward the same objectives.
• External Developer Management: Manage partnerships with external development studios from a production standpoint – establish clear development guidelines, milestones, and deliverables with external dev teams. Maintain a tight feedback loop with external producers and Mattel producers to track progress. Ensure our external partners have the support and information needed, and that they adhere to Mattel’s quality standards, brand guidelines, and timelines. When issues arise, lead problem-solving discussions to keep projects on track.
• Leadership & Team Development: Build a high-performing production team in line with Mattel’s values. Mentor producers and associate producers, providing regular feedback and growth opportunities. Set individual objectives that align with project goals and support career development. Lead by example in promoting a culture of creativity, result-oriented work, and adaptability. As a member of the studio’s leadership group, contribute to broader strategy, studio process improvements, and hiring efforts.
• Risk Management & Problem Solving: Identify development risks, live-ops challenges, and operational gaps early and often. Mitigate risks by adjusting scope, adding resources, or developing contingency plans as needed. Troubleshoot complex production problems – whether it’s a scheduling slip, a quality issue, or a misalignment with a partner – in a calm, solutions-focused manner. Keep stakeholders informed of major changes, and maintain focus on critical priorities when navigating uncertainty or change.

Qualifications

What We’re Looking For:

• 10+ years of experience in game development or product management across various platforms such as social, F2P, mobile, web, console, and handheld.
• 5+ years of experience in a Senior production role in the games industry, including leading the development of game features and services.
• Proven leadership managing production teams – able to direct and develop producers and multidisciplinary teams.
• External partnership experience is highly desired – you have worked with third-party developers or outsourcers and can demonstrate skill in managing remote/external teams to successful outcomes.
• Experience setting up and evaluating external concept and playtests
• Track record of shipping successful mobile F2P games and a deep understanding of free-to-play game development.
• Strong project management expertise – experienced with agile development methodologies (Scrum/Kanban), project tracking tools (e.g. Jira, Trello, Asana), and workflow optimization.
• Comfortable leading meetings and presentations, providing clear direction, and synthesizing feedback from diverse groups (marketing, legal, executives, etc.).
• Demonstrated significant contributions to complex cross-functional projects, successfully delivering quality, adhering to schedules, and balancing scope, capacity, budget, risk, and time.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Exceptional documentation and organization skills.
• A passion for gaming with a deep understanding of the gaming landscape and the game development life cycle.
• Experience with licensed games is an advantage.

The annual base salary range for this position is between $126,400-$188,000.
**This range is indicative of projected hiring range, however annual base salary will be determined based on a candidate’s work location, skills and experience. Mattel offers competitive total pay programs, comprehensive benefits, and resources to help empower a culture where every employee can reach their full potential.

Additional Information

Don’t meet every single requirement? At Mattel, we are dedicated to an inclusive workplace and a culture of belonging. If you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we still encourage you to apply. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

How We Work:

We are a purpose driven company aiming to empower generations to explore the wonder of childhood and reach their full potential. We live up to our purpose employing the following behaviors:

• We collaborate: Being a part of Mattel means being part of one team with shared values and common goals. Every person counts and working closely together always brings better results. Partnership is our process and our collective capabilities is our superpower.
• We innovate: At Mattel we always aim to find new and better ways to create innovative products and experiences. No matter where you work in the organization, you can always make a difference and have real impact. We welcome new ideas and value new initiatives that challenge conventional thinking.
• We execute: We are a performance-driven company. We strive for excellence and are focused on pursuing best-in-class outcomes. We believe in accountability and ownership and know that our people are at their best when they are empowered to create and deliver results.

Who We Are:

Mattel is a leading global toy and family entertainment company and owner of one of the most iconic brand portfolios in the world. We engage consumers and fans through our franchise brands, including Barbie, Hot Wheels, Fisher-Price, American Girl, Thomas & Friends, UNO, Masters of the Universe, Matchbox, Monster High, MEGA and Polly Pocket, as well as other popular properties that we own or license in partnership with global entertainment companies. Our offerings include toys, content, consumer products, digital and live experiences. Our products are sold in collaboration with the world’s leading retail and ecommerce companies. Since its founding in 1945, Mattel is proud to be a trusted partner in empowering generations to explore the wonder of childhood and reach their full potential.

Mattel’s award-winning workplace culture has been recognized by Forbes, Fast Company, Newsweek, Great Place to Work, TIME, and more.

Visit us at https://jobs.mattel.com/ and www.instagram.com/MattelCareers.

Mattel is an Equal Opportunity Employer where we want you to bring your authentic self to work every day. We welcome all job seekers, and all applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, veteran and protected veteran status, disability status, and or any other basis protected by applicable federal, state or local law.

Pursuant to the Los Angeles Fair Chance Ordinance and the California Fair Chance Act, qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment.

Videos to watch:
The Culture at Mattel
Mattel Investor Highlights