Digital Games Lead (Marketing) - 12 month contract

at  The Globe and Mail

COMPANY OVERVIEW:

The Globe and Mail is a national icon and one of Canada’s most recognized media brands. We proudly serve as a trusted destination for Canadians seeking the highest caliber of journalism, and we’ve garnered international acclaim for our data visualization, design, and creative storytelling.
We are committed to fostering diversity and inclusivity by reflecting all Canadians in both the stories that we tell and the composition of our workforce. We are proud partners with organizations like Indigenous Works, Pride at Work, the Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion, and we are a signatory of the BlackNorth Initiative. Recognizing the importance of work-life balance, we offer flexible work arrangements and support programs. We also invest in our employees’ growth through training and mentorship opportunities, enabling you to expand your skills and embrace new challenges.
No matter your position at The Globe, you’ll be an integral part of an organization dedicated to making a positive difference in Canada. Join us.
Role Overview
We are seeking a Digital Games Lead to oversee the creation of puzzles and word games that will engage, challenge and delight our digital audience. This role offers a unique opportunity to combine a passion for interactive entertainment with a deep understanding of user experience and product strategy. As the Digital Games Lead, you will be responsible for overseeing the end-to-end execution of puzzles and word games on The Globe and Mail’s digital platforms. You will collaborate closely with freelance sources, editorial, design, engineering, and data teams to deliver compelling, user-friendly, and innovative games that enhance our digital offering. This is an exciting opportunity to play a key role in growing one of Canada’s most respected digital brands through interactive entertainment. This is a 12 month contract role.

Key Responsibilities

• Product strategy and roadmap: Lead the review, creation and execution of the product roadmap for puzzles and word games, ensuring alignment with The Globe and Mail’s overall digital strategy and audience engagement goals.
• Game design: Work closely with designers, developers and freelancers to create, iterate, and refine games such as crosswords, Sudoku, word searches, and other interactive puzzles. Ensure that games are fun, intuitive, and accessible to a wide range of users.
• User experience and feedback: Working with our digital team, continuously analyze user feedback and game performance metrics to optimize game design, difficulty levels and overall experience. Ensure games are engaging and drive sustained user engagement.
• Content management: Collaborate with editorial teams to ensure the seamless integration of games within The Globe and Mail’s broader digital ecosystem, chiefly the mobile app.
• Cross-functional collaboration: Be an integral member of cross-functional teams, working with engineering, design, marketing and editorial to deliver high-quality games on time and within budget. Ensure smooth communication and project tracking across teams.
• Innovation and trends: Stay up-to-date with industry trends in digital gaming and puzzles, as well as emerging technologies, to drive innovation and keep The Globe and Mail’s games offerings competitive and fresh.
• Subscriber growth: Collaborate with the business development and marketing teams to explore opportunities for growth through premium content, subscriptions, or other business models. Help grow our digital subscriber base through engaging and differentiated puzzle and game experiences.

Qualifications

• Experience: 3-5 years of experience in game design or digital content creation, with a strong focus on interactive products and user engagement. Experience with puzzles or word games is a plus.
• Education: A degree in a relevant field such as Game Design, Digital Media, or a related discipline is often required. Courses in game design, interactive media, user experience (UX) design, and project management can be particularly beneficial. A strong portfolio showcasing previous game design projects, particularly puzzles and word games, can significantly enhance your application.
• Skills:
• Strong understanding of game design principles, user experience, and digital content delivery.
• Strong knowledge of gaming culture and experience with mobile app or web game development.
• Excellent project management skills, with a proven ability to prioritize, manage, and deliver multiple projects in a fast-paced, cross-functional environment.
• Experience working with teams to implement compelling content for users.
• Desirable: Familiarity with subscription-based content models.

VACCINATION POLICY:

All offers of employment with The Globe and Mail are conditional upon the candidate being Fully Vaccinated. To be Fully Vaccinated is defined as someone who has received the full series of a vaccine or a combination of vaccines accepted by the Government of Canada (currently Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca, Janssen) and has received the last dose at least 14 days prior to their start date. To prove they are Fully Vaccinated, all new hires will be required to provide evidence by emailing a copy of their vaccine dose administration receipt(s) to Human Resources prior to their start date. Those seeking exemption based on one or more of the protected grounds in the Human Rights Code will need to provide their request for accommodation to Human Resources for approval. If the accommodation request is not approved and the candidate is not Fully Vaccinated, any offer of employment will be revoked.

• Product strategy and roadmap: Lead the review, creation and execution of the product roadmap for puzzles and word games, ensuring alignment with The Globe and Mail’s overall digital strategy and audience engagement goals.
• Game design: Work closely with designers, developers and freelancers to create, iterate, and refine games such as crosswords, Sudoku, word searches, and other interactive puzzles. Ensure that games are fun, intuitive, and accessible to a wide range of users.
• User experience and feedback: Working with our digital team, continuously analyze user feedback and game performance metrics to optimize game design, difficulty levels and overall experience. Ensure games are engaging and drive sustained user engagement.
• Content management: Collaborate with editorial teams to ensure the seamless integration of games within The Globe and Mail’s broader digital ecosystem, chiefly the mobile app.
• Cross-functional collaboration: Be an integral member of cross-functional teams, working with engineering, design, marketing and editorial to deliver high-quality games on time and within budget. Ensure smooth communication and project tracking across teams.
• Innovation and trends: Stay up-to-date with industry trends in digital gaming and puzzles, as well as emerging technologies, to drive innovation and keep The Globe and Mail’s games offerings competitive and fresh.
• Subscriber growth: Collaborate with the business development and marketing teams to explore opportunities for growth through premium content, subscriptions, or other business models. Help grow our digital subscriber base through engaging and differentiated puzzle and game experiences