Sesame Workshop

Sesame Workshop is looking for a Creative Director. As the Creative Director for the Brand Creative Consumer Products / Themed Entertainment team at Sesame Workshop, you’ll lead the creative vision in partnership with Licensing, Publications, and Consumer Products teams. You’ll empower the creative team to ensure brand consistency across innovative products, inspire licensees, maintain brand integrity, and achieve business goals. By providing clear direction and insightful feedback, you’ll catalyze our internal and external partners to deliver their finest work. Your industry expertise will enable you to set quality benchmarks and ignite creative ideation.

Responsibilities

• Define creative standards for Sesame Street’s merchandise and collectibles, collaborating with Consumer Products and Themed Entertainment Teams.
• Provide 3D design support to various lines of business including publishing, licensing, toy design, and soft goods.
• Direct the creation of Consumer Products style guides and creative assets for internal and external teams.
• Communicate the creative vision to team members and partners.
• Ensure licensees receive the necessary assets to bring merchandise offerings to life based on Sesame Street IP, TV, and other initiatives.
• Resource task management through thoughtful delegation based on team skills.
• Oversee relationships and creative projects, ensuring budget and schedule adherence.
• Lead the design of marketing materials, catalogs, sales presentations, and tradeshow materials.
• Navigate creative decisions’ impact on budget and timelines, offering solutions when issues arise.

Qualifications

• Proven leadership, guiding designers constructively.
• Efficient workflow management, resource utilization, and project prioritization. – Consistently deliver fresh, creative ideas to engage customers.
• Strong sense of design, color, and typography.
• Ability to prioritize and meet aggressive deadlines.
• Proficient multitasking and problem-solving skills.
• Comfortable with independent work and effective team management.
• Empower teams through continuous feedback and communication.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and adaptability to feedback.
• Effective collaboration with small teams and cross-functional units.
• Proficiency in Adobe InDesign, Photoshop, and Illustrator on Mac computers.

Required Skills

• Previous experience leading creative teams in consumer products or licensed merchandise.
• Demonstrated ability to steer a cohesive design vision while managing scope.
• Creation and maintenance of collaborative environments across various craft disciplines.
• Level-headedness in change management, conflict resolution, and adapting to creative development.
• Strong written communication and presentation skills, with advanced Adobe CC knowledge.
• Innovative mindset, actively seeking new paths forward. – Social intelligence, strong interpersonal skills, and empathy for creative teams.

Nice-to-Have Skills

• Professional art or design experience in games, entertainment, e-commerce, or marketing.
• Familiarity with Figma. – Experience with multiple franchises and established IPs.
• Enthusiasm for consumer products or collectibles.
• Familiarity with Sesame Street / Sesame Workshop’s current and past releases.

Why Sesame Workshop is the Right Fit for You

• Home to iconic Muppets that have captured hearts worldwide.
• Pioneers of content and educational games that bring boundless joy to children globally.
• Collaborate with an exceptional team of creative talents.
• Embrace a close-knit community united by the goal of creating exceptional, fun work.
• Recognized for award-winning innovation and over 50 years of impactful global service.
• And yes, we’re the proud home of those beloved Muppets.

Join the Sesame Workshop team as Creative Director and play a pivotal role in shaping the creative future of our beloved characters and brand. Through collaboration, innovation, and a dedication to excellence, together, we can continue to bring joy and learning to children around the world.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Minorities/Females/Veterans/Individuals With Disabilities/Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity

Compensation: From $128,000.00 to $150,000.00 per year
Sesame Workshop

Sesame Workshop is looking for a Senior Creative Project Manager. The Creative Project Manager (CPM) is responsible for managing Brand Creative projects ranging across print, digital, video, motion graphics, animation, and production capabilities. Executes internal client requests ensuring on-target, on-time, on-budget and on-brand delivery of marketing, design, and collateral materials. The CPM must exhibit outstanding project management and client communication skills to achieve the highest possible standards in client service. He/she needs basic knowledge of clients’ business challenges to provide communications solutions and project management execution. The CPM will also be expected to participate in creative development meetings to ensure final output is on mark. In addition, the PM will provide project management follow-through and accurate delivery.

Please Note: The stated hourly range in this posting is an average and may not be reflective of individual circumstances. We will review specific salary information during the interview process.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain solid relationships, coordinating and liaising across several stakeholders to understand requested needs, tracking, and delivering against them.
• Collaborates and leads project planning with internal stakeholder requestors, the Brand Creative team, and external vendors.
• Produce and supervise live event videos, deliverables, motion graphics, animation, and print for Sesame live events such as Sesame Workshop’s Annual Gala, Brand Partner Summit, and Licensing Expo show.
• Creates detailed project plan across the project’s lifecycle, from initiation through to project close-out.
• Prepares and leads project kick-off, builds timelines and contingencies, manages budgets, and generates estimates. (Modifies and communicates as needed).
• Ensure all relevant information, such as creative briefs, project details, asset specifications, etc., have been provided and are clear for project initiation.
• Collaborate on creative development and direction with internal stakeholders, design, animators, digital production and show production teams.
• Initiate project review phases and consolidate clear feedback and changes.
• Review internal stakeholders’ change requests and respond with schedule/cost impacts along with alternatives if needed.
• Manage all project-related expectations with internal stakeholders and departmental teams.
• Negotiate timelines and budgets and ensure that all deadlines are maintained.
• Represent the interests of the internal stakeholders and project goals and objectives, in interactions with creative project teams.
• Represent on brand and graphic standards in interactions with internal stakeholders.
• Partner with internal stakeholders to gain approvals and ensure all, legal and branding guidelines are followed to the letter on their assigned businesses.
• Provide final sign-off on projects to ensure compliance with creative brief and project specifications.
• Leverage knowledge and understanding of graphic design, creative and production to facilitate effective communication between internal stakeholders and departmental teams.
• Schedule and lead all project meetings and provide weekly status update meetings for internal stakeholders. Anticipate obstacles to mitigate risk with projects and resources.
• Conducts post-mortem reviews on key projects.
• Responsible for ensuring project-related contracts and invoices are processed on a timely manner.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree, preferably in marketing, communications, advertising or business, or equivalent experience.
• 5+ years of professional-level experience as a project manager or producer either in an external or internal agency.
• 2+ years in a management role.
• Operates independently and completes complex tasks with no supervision, may supervise and have direct reports.
• Knowledge in Microsoft Office 365, SharePoint, Workfront preferred or related Project Management Technology.
• Ad agency/in-house project management experience preferably including print, digital, video, motion graphics, and animation.
• Proven track record for successfully managing strategic branding and creative projects from concept to completion.
• Strong leadership skills with the ability to influence, manage and drive action in on-time and accurate execution of deliverables, balancing between competing priorities while remaining flexible and creative.
• Excellent written, verbal, communication, and presentation skills
• Excellent creative project management skills, unparalleled attention to detail, highly organized and able to multitask effectively.
• Ability to gain internal stakeholder trust and effectively manage expectations.
• Strong understanding of Media and Entertainment marketing and non-profit philanthropic initiatives/ grants/ sponsorships.
• Foreign language skills are a plus.

Skills And Knowledge Required

• Team player with excellent relationship-building skills.
• Operates effectively in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.
• Adept at crisis management.
• Resourceful and solution-oriented.
• Excellent written, verbal, communication, and presentation skills.
• Excellent creative project management skills, unparalleled attention to detail, highly organized and able to multitask effectively.
• Ability to gain internal stakeholder trust and effectively manage expectations.
• Strong understanding of Media and Entertainment marketing and non-profit philanthropic initiatives/ grants/ sponsorships.
• Strong understanding of the creative process as well as design and print/web production.
• Successful track record at client service in a marketing or creative environment.

About Sesame Workshop

Sesame Workshop is the nonprofit media and educational organization behind Sesame Street, the pioneering television show that has been reaching and teaching children since 1969. Today, Sesame Workshop is an innovative force for change, with a mission to help kids everywhere grow smarter, stronger, and kinder. We’re active in more than 150 countries, serving vulnerable children through a wide range of media, formal education, and philanthropically funded social impact programs, each grounded in rigorous research and tailored to the needs and cultures of the communities we serve. For more information, please visit www.sesameworkshop.org.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Minorities/Females/Veterans/Individuals With Disabilities/Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity

Compensation: From $50.00 to $60.00 per hour
Sesame Workshop

Sesame Workshop is looking for an experienced Brand Creative Art Director to work in New York office to build out Sesame Workshop international creative resources, processes and network with regional offices. In Brand Creative, you will partner closely with a cross-functional team spanning Brand Marketing, Audience Development, Communications and the lines of business to establish a global community of practice, and build an international network of brand resources, brand systems and processes. As a relationship-oriented individual, you will help establish a network of talent to deliver on Sesame Workshop and Sesame Street creative expressions. You will oversee and manage key organizational-wide branded initiatives.

Please Note: The stated salary range in this posting is an average and may not be reflective of individual circumstances. We will review specific salary information during the interview process.

Responsibilities

• Work with internal teams to develop a brand creative strategy for global resources distribution in the international space.
• Work with regional offices to empower them to evolve brand resources to meet their local needs
• Collaborate across the organization to aid international One Brand creative strategy to determine resources needed in each region
• From a creative point of view, provide a consistent advocate for brand unity and character standards across lines of businesses [licensing, marketing campaigns, social needs, motion branding, themed entertainment].
• Ensure brand continuity and institute clear approval processes for creative developed internationally to reflect brand cohesion.
• Proven success in leading creative and developing teams with brand goals.
• Strong collaboration skills and works well with a diverse set of roles.
• Excellent relationship-building skills, great communication, solutions-oriented

Qualifications

• 10+ years of brand expertise, international brand experience, preferably in the entertainment branding industry [expertise working with style guides, launch kits, tool kits, brand aesthetic]
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Strong relationship-building skills to grow a network of talent, a natural connector
• Ability to be creative and think outside of the box, conceptualize, identify talent, educate and onboard
• Strategic thinker: global needs vs. local needs
• Proactive problem-solving skills
• Must be an excellent team player with the ability to build, foster and nurture relationships with members of cross-functional teams, a collaborative mindset
• Able to prioritize and manage multiple projects simultaneously in a fast-paced environment
• Work closely to drive engagement around the brand creative to ensure local market needs are met
• Deliver seminar presentations, marketing books, product comps and sell sheets on time for each season
• Work with cross functional teams to facilitate approvals and track creative needs
• Act as liaison between Creative and business team to ensure that all artwork needs are met for new creative development
• Partner with Marketing Operations to create and document standard operating procedures.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Minorities/Females/Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities/Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity

Sesame Workshop