Game Design Director

We are looking for an insightful and innovative Head of Game Design to join our Innovation Lab leadership team, helping to shape the future of mobile gaming. This role requires a strategic thinker with a growth-hacker mindset who can understand, anticipate, and act on market trends to develop high-potential game concepts. Reporting to the Head of Innovation Lab, you will provide creative and practical guidance to solve user problems, optimize performance, and build commercially successful games. Key ResponsibilitiesInnovation Through Market Insight:Monitor, analyze, and anticipate trends in the mobile gaming industry to drive internal innovation and identify game concepts with high growth potential. Data-Driven Concept Development:Partner with Product Owners and game designers to find user-centric solutions informed by data. Interpret player feedback, analytics, and UA performance metrics to refine gameplay and design. Growth-Hacker Mindset:Leverage a growth-hacker’s approach to user acquisition, recognizing opportunities to drive game growth through innovative concepts, agile strategies, and data-based decisions. Creative Leadership:Lead and support a team of four Product Owners, inspiring creative boundaries while maintaining practical, data-driven design. Strategic Collaboration:Collaborate with the Head of Innovation Lab and other leaders to align game innovation with company goals and market demands. Hands-On Problem Solving:Provide direct support in making critical product decisions and pivot when necessary to meet performance targets and user satisfaction. Industry Awareness and Trend Spotting:Stay at the forefront of gaming trends, best practices, and emerging user acquisition techniques to ensure projects are cutting-edge and responsive to player needs. Project Quality and Oversight:Ensure games meet high standards in design, usability, and engagement by overseeing timelines, milestones, and quality control. Enterprise Mindset:Act as the ambassador and key liaison between the Innovation Lab and the broader Aristocrat business, fostering collaboration with teams like Consumer Insights, other game, and R&D teams to identify synergies and drive cross-functional cooperation. What We're Looking ForExperience: 10+ years in mobile game development in creative or R&D roles, with at least 5 years as a Game Designer. Proven success in developing and launching top-grossing mobile games. Strong understanding of user acquisition principles, with an experimental approach to driving user growth and engagement. Excellent communication skills to articulate ideas, inspire teams, and advocate for innovative design solutions. Proficiency with analytics tools, UA dashboards, complex in-game economy systems, and mathematical modeling. Why Product Madness?As part of the Aristocrat family, we share their mission of bringing joy through play, with a world-class team creating top-grossing titles like Heart of Vegas, Lightning Link, and Cashman Casino. With 800 team members globally, headquartered in London with offices in Barcelona, Gdańsk, Lviv, Montreal, and a remote team across the USA, we are a truly global powerhouse. We prioritize our People First principle, fostering an inclusive culture where our team members can grow and thrive. In 2024, we received the Global Inspiring Workplace Award and a bronze Stevie at the Great Employers awards in the 'Employer of the Year - Media and Entertainment' category. So, what’s stopping you? Travel ExpectationsNone Additional InformationWe are unable to sponsor work visas for this position. Candidates must be authorized to work in the location on a full-time basis without visa sponsorship.#J-18808-Ljbffr