Director, Editorial

Why PlayStation?

PlayStation isn’t just the Best Place to Play — it’s also the Best Place to Work. Today, we’re recognized as a global leader in entertainment producing The PlayStation family of products and services including PlayStation®5, PlayStation®4, PlayStation®VR, PlayStation®Plus, acclaimed PlayStation software titles from PlayStation Studios, and more.

PlayStation also strives to create an inclusive environment that empowers employees and embraces diversity. We welcome and encourage everyone who has a passion and curiosity for innovation, technology, and play to explore our open positions and join our growing global team.

The PlayStation brand falls under Sony Interactive Entertainment, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony Corporation.

Role overview:

The Director, Editorial will be the vision and the voice of the PlayStation Store to over 100 million loyal gamers. With a deep love and passion for gaming as a prerequisite for this role that will act as a key member of the Store team. They will present compelling content experiences that drive engagement, discovery and excitement for our global audience. They will reflect the biggest trends in global gaming culture, curate standout games, craft compelling narratives and highlight stories and collections that will resonate with our players.

This is an opportunity to champion the gaming community, support studios and publisher both big and small, and shape how players connect with their favourite next game. Ultimately, they will help elevate the PlayStation Store experience to one that is fresh, engaging and personalised, and adds such value to our players that they want to visit it daily. And in so doing will contribute to commercial success through increased engagement, conversion and spend.

They will work closely with internal partners to develop plans to evolve the PlayStation Store into a daily destination for Players by contributing through improved player editorial and content. In partnership, they will also deliver a strategy that aligns with SIE brand objectives and ultimately resonates with Players. They will deliver compelling editorial experiences through the optimisation of current touchpoints and will also seek to develop new and innovative executions and formats.

They will implement the Store Editorial strategy and will further develop an integrated editorial planning process to support coherent storefront delivery. They will ensure that game launches, promotions, priority campaigns, awards, industry and community events are supported in way that balances publisher and player growth objectives.

What you'll be doing:

• Develop and deliver plans that improve discovery, engagement and impact across PlayStation’s storefronts with the vision of evolving the Store into a daily destination for players.
• Oversee the creation and delivery of integrated, high-quality editorial experiences across all storefront touchpoints in collaboration with direct and matrix teams. Deliver inspiring, timely and pertinent editorial that drives improved player discovery and engagement.
• Identify and feature high-quality games that reflect emerging trends, seasonal themes, and player preferences.
• Stay up-to-date on gaming trends, genres, and innovations to maintain a fresh and dynamic store experience.
• Develop thematic collections and stories to inspire and engage players. Help to tell stories behind the games and their developers, that foster a deeper connection between players and creators
• Brief creative design assets that are visually stunning and develop creative copy for banners and campaigns that captivate users
• Devise and maintain editorial practices and standards that ensure that featured games meet the high standards for quality, innovation, and player experience that PlayStation is trusted for.
• Translate the vision and strategy into objectives and key results frameworks, building well defined programmes to positively impact objectives.
• Deliver editorial oversight across storefronts ensuring that content is delivered to the highest standards of quality, aligns with tone-of-voice guidelines and is coherent with PlayStation strategies. Ensures that content is factually accurate and adheres to legal and ethical standards.
• Develop an integrated Editorial planning process, a campaign and content calendar, processes to support optimisation and continuous improvement, and the implementation of regular data led reviews. Ensures that Editorial plans are included in Store end to end planning processes.
• Develop, oversee, and optimise Store Editorial performance on an ongoing basis and further ensuring that activities support achievement of Store commercial targets.
• In collaboration with others, deliver improved insight, data and reporting to support continuous improvement and optimisation of editorial experiences.
• Encourage experimentation and innovation within the Editorial Team, promoting new formats and storytelling techniques and delivering industry leading innovation and execution. Will ensure that testing approaches form a cohesive part of wider Store experimentation plans.
• Seek to develop new and innovative editorial experiences to augment cross-platform integration and storytelling and will identify and propose opportunities for narrative expansions and spin-off content across the PlayStation ecosystem. Working with matrix teams (Social, Marketing, Product, I&A) will develop storefront capability and supporting functionality.
• Accountable for leading and inspiring teams, fostering a collaborative hybrid culture that encourages and supports high performance, creativity innovation and data led decision making.
• Responsible for ensuring the highest standards in hiring, training and development, retention, and employee satisfaction. Will act as a team mentor and coach to support exceptional performance delivery.

What we're looking for:

• 10+ years or equivalent of editorial experience in the gaming industry, with a proven track record of managing editorial teams and successful content initiatives.
• Experienced editorial leader with a deep understanding of gaming audience engagement, editorial content development and an understanding of evolving digital media landscapes.
• Proven track record of managing editorial teams and successful content initiatives.
• Passion for the games industry and gaming combined with deep commercial instinct is essential. Must possess a deep understanding of gaming culture and trends.
• Demonstrable experience in curation and creative writing with the ability to craft engaging, persuasive and informative copy.
• Exceptional leadership and interpersonal skills, with the ability to motivate and inspire direct and matrix teams.
• Demonstrable experience of managing multiple partner groups in a global environment with the ability to work successfully at all levels across an organisation
• Experience of working in digital first environments and managing a direct-to-consumer editorial function.
• Demonstrable experience of developing detailed and impactful editorial strategies, to drive customer discovery, engagement and commercial impact.
• Experience of using data and insight to develop editorial plans. Strong analytical skills to interpret player data and adapt content strategies accordingly. Experience of developing deep understanding of customer trends and behaviours.
• Higher education in Creative Writing, Communications, Journalism, Marketing or a related field is an asset.
• Experience and comfort of delivering in a high energy, fast paced and changing environment.

Benefits:

• Discretionary bonus opportunity
• Hybrid Working (within Flexmodes)
• Private Medical Insurance
• Dental Scheme
• 25 days holiday per year
• On Site Gym
• Subsidised Café
• Free soft drinks
• On site bar
• Access to cycle garage and showers

Equal Opportunity Statement:

Sony is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All persons will receive consideration for employment without regard to gender (including gender identity, gender expression and gender reassignment), race (including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin), religion or belief, marital or civil partnership status, disability, age, sexual orientation, pregnancy, maternity or parental status, trade union membership or membership in any other legally protected category.

We strive to create an inclusive environment, empower employees and embrace diversity. We encourage everyone to respond. 

PlayStation is a Fair Chance employer and qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records will be considered for employment.