Design Program Manager

Netflix is one of the world's leading entertainment services, with 283 million paid memberships in over 190 countries enjoying TV series, films and games across a wide variety of genres and languages. Members can play, pause and resume watching as much as they want, anytime, anywhere, and can change their plans at any time.

The Team
At Netflix, the Brand Creative Studio is an in-house team of Strategists, Creatives, Designers, and Producers who identify and create culturally relevant and commercially rewarding ways for Netflix, and our partners, to delight our fans and the world. We help conceive and execute a variety of creative programs across a range of different shapes, styles and sizes of partnerships, with brands across many categories. We are united by our core belief that compelling strategy coupled with creative & executional excellence can strengthen our brand and business performance. Primarily, we work with five core business units, each focused on distinct outcomes, but who all serve one overall Netflix mission, “To Entertain The World”: 

Partner Marketing: Expand the reach of our service and grow our subscriber base
Brand Partnerships: Create culturally impactful marketing to promote our titles
Integrated Marketing: Create highly creative custom solutions for the most ambitious advertisers on our ad-supported offering
Ads (B2B) Marketing: Enhance engagement and drive preference with advertisers
Brand Marketing (B2C): Enhance the reputation and garner greater brand love

About The Role
The main purpose of this role will be to manage all design project pipelines - including those planned as well as reactive by focusing on driving strategy to pixels by collaborating with a multidisciplinary team of designers. Along with establishing operational workflows, to ensure success in scaling and infusing design systems work across the company. You will collaborate with the Lead of Brand Production in partnerships with the Director of Design to own the development of the design vision, content, and execution of key initiatives while  establishing and optimizing best practices. Examples include design programs across brand, advertising, company initiatives, and other creative programs that foster collaboration and spark innovation. Your work will play a pivotal role in shaping an environment where designers feel inspired, supported, and connected to honing their craft.

Within the Brand Creative Studio, Creative Production brings the creative vision to life by focusing on how the idea will be operationalized and implemented. This will cover everything from program management, to mapping resources, to timeline and financial management, to cross-functional coordination and partnership/agency management (and more). In many ways, Creative Production functions as the Executive Producer of the campaign - and this role is essential to managing, communicating and bringing the design vision to life. 

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop the brand design operations and workflows, so the creative team can focus on innovating on key initiatives effectively and ensure that our partner teams bring innovation to life

• Partner with design leadership, creative studio production & XFN teams to establish roadmaps and maintain them through understanding business priorities and cultivating strong relationships across both marketing and product design functions.

• Design and drive a complex creative pipeline from end to end, including prioritization and planning, resource management, and program tracking.

• Establish and activate engagement models and cross-functional collaboration channels with key design partners and stakeholders, balancing multiple priorities and business demands

• Partner, pitch, design, and communicate ideas to Design leadership, and align programs with broader company and team objectives.

• Manage program logistics from concept to execution & rollout. Including creative development, executive presentations, experience design, brand guidelines & toolkits along with post-moretem impact assessment.

• Facilitate knowledge-sharing and best practice exchange among design team members to strengthen team cohesion and professional growth.

• Continuously iterate and improve programs based on feedback, industry trends, and evolving team needs.

• Advocate for our brand design initiatives by ensuring the design team has time and space to apply rigorous design practices in the annual planning lifecycle

Program Management

• Manage program risks and drive issue resolution as it relates to meeting the overall schedule and quality commitments.

• Develop a project plan that drives timeline, budget and key cross-functional stakeholder milestones. Partner with the design team &/or lead creative agency to develop and adhere to the plan. 

• Clearly identify, explain, and communicate progress, status, expectations, dependencies and risks to creative studio leadership, business stakeholders and team members.

• Anticipate bottlenecks and propose solutions in advance. Lead problem-solving when elements of a design initiative go off-course during execution - making key decisions so we can continue to deliver without compromising overall creative vision. 

Creative Development Management

• Input into creative development and operation teams to ensure we can both produce and scale initiatives for global activation. 

• Review all design concepts for feasibility, ensuring the initiative can be made on-time, on-budget and within reasonable risk. 

• Partner closely with the creative studio production & cross functional operational teams on planning rollouts and in selection of creative partners, if applicable. Own development of agency SOW/estimate, if applicable. 

Global Implementation

• Partner closely with the cross functional operational teams for flawless and impactful execution. This includes executional oversight and coordination of all multi disciplinary design elements (video, print/ooh, digital, social media/content, activations/events, PR, presentations, etc.). 

• Act as key liaison for design initiatives across business verticals supported by creative studio including the brand management team

• Act as the co-lead alongside the design team in any bespoke executions to ensure the smooth running of the development to execution, taking into account all requirements. 

• Ensure all necessary assets are reviewed, approved and delivered on-time - to all necessary cross-functional partners (internal, external and agency partners). 

• Coordinate with key internal Netflix teams for optimal amplification of the campaign. 

Operations

• Manage all tasks and resourcing on key projects so they move smoothly and efficiently and all tasks are properly assigned. 

• Input into workflow and resource management for the entire team, anticipating and planning for thoughtful freelance and agency support.

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR

•  8-10+ years working in complex global consumer, entertainment, design focused and/or technology brands either in house or at agencies

•  An incredible eye for detail, expert communicator, connecting the dots when others cannot and simplify complex issues and questions. Comfortable working with multiple teams and stakeholders across the company and ability to be flexible with priority pivots.

• Experience with complex global design systems and their workstreams, including multiple physical and digital media, light to heavyweight executions, local cultural environments, and partnership with agency partners. Understanding of motion related design elements is a plus.

• Deep understanding of the design process when building guidelines, toolkits, and on air graphics along with print, digital and OOH

• Able to think outside the box on what operations or program management mean - you have the ability to enable and inspire designers and do not get caught in brand guidelines policing.

• Unafraid to get their hands dirty, and demonstrates a bias to action. Should be humble, curious and collaborative.

•  You thrive in a fast-paced environment, possess a high level of intellectual curiosity, and demonstrate strong judgment in the face of ambiguity.

• Easily builds rapport with cross functional operational teams around the company to earn trust and ensure optimal outcomes and partnerships with the brand design team.

• A strong background working with internal and third-party tools, preferably tools designed for program tracking, management, and project collaboration.

• Ability to cultivate relationships and efficiently communicate across multiple cross-functional partners - internal, external and agency partners 

• Operational management within an agency or design studio environment is a plus. 

• Prior relationship management experience is a must.

• Works effectively and enjoys the interplay across multiple teams and stakeholders 

• Strong attention to detail and analytical problem-solving skills

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills

• Bias to action, proactive & innovative by nature

• Understand, advocate, and embody the company’s values and team goals.

Our compensation structure consists solely of an annual salary; we do not have bonuses. You choose each year how much of your compensation you want in salary versus stock options. To determine your personal top of market compensation, we rely on market indicators and consider your specific job family, background, skills, and experience to determine your compensation in the market range. The range for this role is $170,000- $360,000. Netflix provides comprehensive benefits including Health Plans, Mental Health support, a 401(k) Retirement Plan with employer match, Stock Option Program, Disability Programs, Health Savings and Flexible Spending Accounts, Family-forming benefits, and Life and Serious Injury Benefits. We also offer paid leave of absence programs.  Full-time hourly employees accrue 35 days annually for paid time off to be used for vacation, holidays, and sick paid time off. Full-time salaried employees are immediately entitled to flexible time off. See more detail about our Benefits here. Netflix is a unique culture and environment.  Learn more here.

Inclusion is a Netflix value and we strive to host a meaningful interview experience for all candidates. If you want an accommodation/adjustment for a disability or any other reason during the hiring process, please send a request to your recruiting partner.

We are an equal-opportunity employer and celebrate diversity, recognizing that diversity builds stronger teams. We approach diversity and inclusion seriously and thoughtfully. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, ancestry, national origin, caste, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression, age, disability, medical condition, pregnancy, genetic makeup, marital status, or military service.