Sr Manager, Integrated Planning & Franchise Management

Full Time Job
Job Summary:

The Senior Manager will partner closely with the TWDS Franchise Management team and the Integrated Planning team in role with shared management and planning responsibilities focused on the support of Disney Live Action (DLA) and 20th Century Studios (20CS). In this role, the Senior Manager will support the mobilization of all DLA/20CS franchise films, facilitating key planning milestones, aligning resources, and collaborating across the company in support of content and franchises to maximize the value of Studio brands. Additionally, the Senior Manager will support brand strategy functions related to the ongoing support of existing and new franchises to optimize commercial potential while protecting the brand integrity and security of the underlying content IP particularly in partnership with Studio Marketing and Production.

Responsibilities:

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to the following:
Franchise Management
• Develop and manage strategic plans for assigned franchises/properties with the goal of achieving the financial business goals for the content across the enterprise while maintaining the interests of Studio Marketing and Production teams to prioritize resources.
• Manage ongoing franchise processes and milestones, including rollout planning and execution as well as Creative Pitch and GPK development and implementation and Marketing Show & Tell, cross-company plan review with Marketing and Production as required.
• Drive franchise agenda items during regular meetings with cross-company partners including Marketing, Consumer Products, WDI, etc.
• Engage Multicultural Engagement team and cultural consultants as necessary
• Partner with Legal team in implementation of AROs as it relates to Franchise management
• Support post-analysis as requested and elevate best-practice and process improvement recommendations

Integrated Planning
• Spearhead early alignment (Mobilization) of cross-company strategies by working with Content Studio Leadership
• Collaborate with International regions to ensure alignment and on-going support of the content
• Facilitate cross-company engagement to guide early planning, XLOB alignment, and track results
• Frame business issues in order to identify opportunities and priorities
• Champion financial data analysis and content research from quantitative and qualitative data sources; Identify trends and patterns, and recommend further actions to support Studio business
• Participate in meetings including agenda solicitation, notes, and follow-ups; in addition to acting as a project manager, which includes making timely decisions, taking action, and using the available data to solve key issues & problems
• Ongoing communication across LOBs and Franchise partners

Brand Stewardship – Franchise Management
• Serve as day-to-day advocate and expert on behalf of assigned film/franchises and act as brand steward and educator to cross-company partners who are less familiar with the material including facilitation of creative deep dives when required
• Liaise with Studio Production and filmmakers in the communication of strategy and franchise plans (as needed) to support the collection of assets and to facilitate approvals
• Garner strategic, creative, and marketing alignment with key stakeholders including Theatrical Marketing and DPEP
• Support merchandise programs, experiences and creative submissions with an eye on brand quality assurance and theatrical marketing alignment. Provide creative input in style guide and branding guide development other creative interpretations (ie. Digital Game concepts, WDI concepts, etc.)

Brand Strategy & Analysis – Franchise Management
• Partner with Vice President in developing and managing ongoing strategic plans including brand strategy, franchise/property analysis and research. This includes managing special strategy projects that draw insights from across brands and research partners that leverage learnings that can be applied across studio.
• Contribute to multi-year portfolio strategies and maintain a long-range strategic viewpoint across new and legacy franchises with the goal of achieving financial business goals of business partners.
• Manage Vault strategy for long-tail planning and anniversaries, including research analytics and brand tracking

Basic Qualifications:

Education/Experience Required:
• Bachelor's Degree in Communications, English, Business Administration or Equivalent experience.
• MBA Preferred.
• Minimum 7 - 9 years of experience in a brand marketing, franchise management, product development/licensing, business development or marketing role.
• Demonstrated strength in marketing competencies with particular strength in positioning and brand development.
• Previous Disney experience preferred.
• Experience and proven track record with a premier media/entertainment company or with a consumer packaged goods company preferred.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Highly collaborative and team-oriented work style.
• Excellent computer proficiency – Mac & Windows: Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Keynote, Photoshop.
• Strong people skills, including the ability to work effectively with other executives, filmmakers, assistants and staff at all levels.

About The Walt Disney Studios:

For over 90 years, The Walt Disney Studios has been the foundation on which The Walt Disney Company was built. Today the Studio brings quality movies, music and stage plays to consumers throughout the world. Feature films are released under the following banners: Disney, including Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios, Disneynature, Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm. The Disney Music Group encompasses the Walt Disney Records and Hollywood Records labels, as well as Disney Music Publishing. The Disney Theatrical Group produces and licenses live events, including Disney on Broadway, Disney On Ice and Disney Live!. Ours is a culture of innovation, inspiration and collaboration that brings together visionary artists, gifted technologists and savvy business minds to conjure up magical entertainment experiences for a global audience.

About The Walt Disney Company:

The Walt Disney Company, together with its subsidiaries and affiliates, is a leading diversified international family entertainment and media enterprise with the following business segments: media networks, parks and resorts, studio entertainment, consumer products and interactive media. From humble beginnings as a cartoon studio in the 1920s to its preeminent name in the entertainment industry today, Disney proudly continues its legacy of creating world-class stories and experiences for every member of the family. Disney's stories, characters and experiences reach consumers and guests from every corner of the globe. With operations in more than 40 countries, our employees and cast members work together to create entertainment experiences that are both universally and locally cherished.

This position is with Walt Disney Pictures, which is part of a business segment we call The Walt Disney Studios.

Walt Disney Pictures is an equal opportunity employer. Applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, protected veteran status or any other basis prohibited by federal, state or local law. Disney fosters a business culture where ideas and decisions from all people help us grow, innovate, create the best stories and be relevant in a rapidly changing world.

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