Associate Marketing Manager Dolls

col-wideJob Description:

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 Opportunity:
The position will be part of the local Italian Marketing team under the responsibility of the Head of Marketing.
The Associate Marketing Manager Dolls will be key to drive local strategies and plans to gain market share within the Dolls category and to ensure sustainable profitable growth. You will ensure effective, creative, and efficient implementation of brand strategies and plans by working with various business functions and agencies with the objective to grow sales and market share. Furthermore, you act as key interface on the brand for both internal and external stakeholders.
Main responsibilities of the position:
Being the business owner for the Mattel Dolls category and Mattel own IP in its entire scope
Develop deep expertise of the marketplace, retail dynamics and shopper behavior to drive opportunities, mitigate risks and drive customized programs
Drive Franchise execution cross department collaboration
Design and execute local marketing plans in line with global strategies and priorities
Drive portfolio strategies, pricing and launch decisions
Drive A&P strategies deployment and Management
Driving media strategies and plans
Monitoring business results and effectiveness of initiatives. Take actions when necessary
Develop an out of the box thinking to challenge the status quo among the team
Ensure Team development leadership and engagement, leading a team of four people (1 Brand Manager, 1 Ass. Brand Manager, 1 Intern)
What Your Impact Will Be:
Portfolio Strategy, Plans Execution:Develop understanding of the market, retail dynamics, consumer and shopper behaviour in order to drive opportunities and influence product and marketing strategy developmentDevelop Dolls Category Strategy and portfolio for short and long term. Leads workshop for brand strategic alignmentTranslate global strategy into the local context for the market, whilst incorporating the global brand identity for your range. You will team up with the Regional Marketing Team and other stakeholders to streamline your approach. Special focus on PR projects. Identify gaps & build local programs (where relevant)Design and execute local marketing plans in line with global strategies and prioritiesEnsure best effective and impactful amplifications &implementations of Brand strategies and action plans in the countryMaintain constant communication with Market Lead and Regional Marketing team to share expertise of the local market as well as identify synergies, alignment, best practices, and opportunities within the country. Feedback market insights to regional brand to feed into future brand strategyPresent portfolio and brand strategies & plans to key internal & external stakeholders
Franchise execution:Partner closely with Regional Brand Marketing, PR teams, Regional Content, Live events and Go-to-market, local Sales, Consumer Products and local partners to drive sales, revenue and market shareIdentify franchise opportunities in partnership with Consumer Products team and execute joint activation programsClose contact with content team to maximize new content releases and platforms
Line & Product managementResponsible of the SBB & line & pricing architecture for Dolls Category, making sure to align with the wider European directions and merging local nuances and needs in conjunction with sales (P&L, margin, forecasting).Feedback to regional for future product development, top items.Pricing coordination & input to finance teamParticipate in S&OP process: drive quotas hypothesis, lead forecasting direction for the category, Align with sales team & planner. Monitor results.
Media Management & Digital media:Lead agency briefs, Manage local media agency for the execution of brand marketing activities across all different media channelsPartner with Digital team and media agencies to set-up media strategy for the portfolio & brandsDevelop and execute effective and efficient media plans
Management of the Advertisement and Promotion Budget. Plan FY Brand budget - Allocates spends in line with global direction (Strategic input). Distribute to Digital & GTM team & CP/Franchise
Partner management:Manage relationship with Licensors teams (Disney, Universal & Warner)Prepare country decks for quarterly reviews and summitsOrganize regular touchpoints with Licensors in-marketDevelop joint marketing & retail programs with licensors
Track and evaluate business results and effectiveness of initiatives and propose actions when necessary – assess Dolls team accordingly
Team management: coach and develop Dolls team – 2 direct reports and 1 dotted line report
As part of the category leadership team, contribute to team projects
What We're Looking For:
University degree in Economics, Business Administration, Marketing or any other related field (Bachelor/ Master/ Diploma)
Preferably extensive experience in commercial/marketing surroundings preferably in Toys, FMCG or licensed consumer goods, Apparel or Health & Beauty industry
Minimum of 2 year of management or coaching/development experience.
High competitive spirit
Result oriented, winning mentality, competitive, strong will to succeed
Strategic thinking and tactic skills / Design action plans that can be easily applied
Creative and high initiative
Proactive in seeking information
Ability to work in wide variety of projects with aggressive deadlines
Use financial information to make strong decisions
Build and maintain collaborative relationships
Strong influencing skills
Native level of Italian is a must. Fluent in English
Demonstrated a growth mindset by staying curious and continuously learning, embracing challenges, and improving themselves
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.