Creative Lead - Future Lab

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:
The mission of Mattel Future Lab is to broaden play innovation, expand reach, and develop new business that takes advantage of and responds to disruptive opportunities, ushering in an array of innovative products and play experiences that nimbly cater to the evolving needs and wants of our dynamic audiences. The Future Lab Discovery Team is responsible for evaluating and validating new concepts for market fit and user experience/value prior to moving them into production.

The Opportunity:
We are seeking a dynamic and experienced Creative Lead to join the Future Lab Discovery team. This role provides an exciting opportunity to imagine and explore innovative products, experiences, services, and platforms that will pioneer the future of play.

What Your Impact Will Be:
As Creative Lead you will ideate and validate tech-enabled product concepts through iterative Discovery sprints based on empathy, ideation, prototyping, and testing. Your responsibilities will include designing physical products and digital experiences, creating compelling presentations and brand-authentic prototypes, facilitating brainstorms and informal research sessions. Throughout the process, you will partner closely with Product Management and Tech leads and work with them to determine which concepts should move forward to production. You will also collaborate with UI/UX designers, toy designers, digital producers, Consumer Insights, and Marketing. In all you do, you will champion design excellence, the voice of the consumer, and the values of the brands with which you work.

• Generate break-frame play experiences based on Mattel’s beloved IP that cater to evolving consumer needs
• Lead creative for regular and frequent sprint cycles to evolve and validate concepts
• Execute design and media assets necessary for validating concepts - includes graphics, prototypes, audio/video
• Participate in the development of product strategy and vision for high-complexity products and platforms
• Build strategic consensus between team members, internal and external partners, and executive leadership
• Advocate for the consumer and the needs of the business
• Present concepts to cross-functional teams and executive management

What We’re Looking For:

• 8-10 years design experience
• Ability to work autonomously and in a team environment
• Advanced understanding of design principles and practices - including Design Thinking, Circular Design, Toy and/or Consumer Product Design, UI/UX
• Ability to prove out ideas through sketch, prototype, and user journey mapping
• Experience with Design Sprints and the “fail fast” mindset
• Knowledge of and experience with emerging technologies – AR/VR/MR, AI, Robotics, 3D Printing, Voice/Speech Recognition, Blockchain, Haptics, Metaverse
• Proficient in Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, etc.)
• Knowledge of 3D CAD (Creo, Alias, Rhino 3D is a plus)
• Experience in game design and/or content design a plus
• Excellent communication and presentation skills
• Belief that play can make the world a better place

The annual base salary range for this position is between $104,800- $152,000.00.
**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.

Don’t meet every single requirement? At Mattel we are dedicated to building a diverse and inclusive workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. 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.

Our Approach to Flexible Work:

We embrace a flexible work model designed to empower a culture of growth, optimism, and wellbeing, where every employee can reach their full potential. Combining purposeful in-person collaboration with flexibility, our focus is to optimize performance and drive connection for moments that matter.

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 more than 195 countries in collaboration with the world’s leading retail and ecommerce companies.

Mattel is recognized as a Great Place to Work™ and as one of Fast Company’s Best Workplaces for Innovators in 2022.

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

Mattel is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer where we want you to bring your authentic self to work every day. We welcome all job seekers including minorities, females, veterans, military spouses, individuals with disabilities, and those of all sexual orientations and gender identities.

Videos to watch:
The Culture at Mattel
Mattel Investor Highlights