Senior Program Manager

Respawn Entertainment; Vancouver; Hybrid; CAD 141,000 - 204,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonus programs

Comprehensive benefits and retirement

Paid time off

Job summary

Respawn Entertainment, a studio within Electronic Arts, seeks a Senior Program Manager to drive cross-functional initiatives across Production, Technology, Art and Product Management. The role partners with EA central teams to implement governance for AI, talent operations, and outsourcing vendor programs.

Responsibilities include establishing operational frameworks, roadmap cadence, and executive reporting to support Respawn Studios' ambitious creative and business goals.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of program management, project management, or operational leadership experience in video games, tech, or complex creative settings.
• Proven ability to lead by influence and align diverse stakeholders to shared goals.
• Strong background in managing multi-faceted operational programs such as vendor management, talent operations, or tech integration.
• Understanding of game development lifecycles, pipelines, and enterprise AI governance frameworks.
• Excellent verbal and written communication with senior leadership experience.
• Analytical, organizational, and risk-management skills with action orientation.

Responsibilities

• AI Council Operations: lead cadence, roadmap, and governance aligned with central AI initiatives.
• Talent Recruiting Ops: support recruiting workflows and talent evaluation across studios.
• RMO function: establish and run talent mobility and cross-studio staffing initiatives.
• Vendor Operations: oversee external vendors, co-develop studios, and tech partners with clear SLAs.
• Cross-functional execution: coordinate Production, Art, Tech, PM with EA partners.
• Executive reporting: provide concise updates and dashboards to studio leadership.

Skills

Cross-Functional Leadership

Operational Expertise

Communication Skills

Problem Solving

Job description

Description & Requirements

Electronic Arts creates next-level entertainment experiences that inspire players and fans around the world. Here, everyone is part of the story. Part of a community that connects across the globe. A place where creativity thrives, new perspectives are invited, and ideas matter. A team where everyone makes play happen.

Senior Program Manager – Respawn Studios

Location: Vancouver, BC (Great Northern Way) / Hybrid

Organization: Respawn Entertainment (Electronic Arts)

Reports To: Head of Operations, Respawn Studios

Role Overview

Respawn Entertainment is looking for a Senior Program Manager to drive complex, interconnected strategic initiatives across our studio ecosystem. In this highly cross-functional role, you will partner with key leaders across internal game development disciplines—including Production, Technology, Art, and Product Management—as well as central Electronic Arts (EA) partner teams such as the CTO Organization, Talent Acquisition (TA), and Quality Verification & Services (QVS).

You will serve as an operational backbone for high-impact studio programs, initially focusing on AI Council Operations, Talent Recruiting & Resource Management Operations, and Outsourcing Vendor Operations. You will play a crucial role in bringing operational rigour, strategic alignment, and clear execution frameworks to help Respawn achieve its ambitious business and creative objectives.

Key Responsibilities

• AI Council Operations & Governance
• Program Leadership: Drive the operational cadence, roadmap execution, and agenda for Respawn’s AI Council, ensuring alignment with EA’s central AI initiatives (e.g., enterprise AI adoption and spend tracking).
• Technology Adoption: Partner with central CTO teams and studio tech leadership to evaluate, deploy, and support internal AI and machine learning tools (including enterprise digital assistant frameworks and operational chargeback models).
• Governance & Alignment: Establish clear workflows and policy guidelines for responsible AI usage across game teams, ensuring cross-discipline alignment between creative, technical, and legal stakeholders.
• Talent Recruiting Operations
• Respawn RMO Function: Setup and operate the Respawn Resource Management Organization (RMO) function to facilitate internal talent mobility initiatives and cross-studio staffing opportunities with other EA groups.
• TA Partnership: Collaborate directly with EA Talent Acquisition and central enterprise partner teams to streamline recruitment & talent evaluation workflows and resolve hiring bottlenecks for high-priority franchise roles (e.g., specialized concept artists, technical leads, and core discipline directors).
• Pipeline Optimization: Develop operational frameworks to track hiring velocity, forecast resourcing needs, and ensure studio leadership has visibility into key talent pipelines.
• Onboarding & Operations: Enhance operational readiness for new talent integration across multi-studio projects and unique development team requirements.
• Outsourcing Vendor & Partner Operations
• Vendor Governance: Oversee operational frameworks and lifecycle management for external development vendors, co-development studios, and strategic technology partners.
• Strategic Partnerships: Program manage external partner workstreams (such as live operations, technical integration, and collaborative workshops), ensuring clear scope delivery, SLAs, and integration with internal pipelines.
• Financial & Contractual Tracking: Partner with finance and game team producers (ie. External Development Planning & Operations Manager) to oversee accurate vendor contracts, budget allocations, and performance evaluations.
• Cross-Functional Execution & Stakeholder Alignment
• Interconnected Initiatives: Program manage cross-cutting studio initiatives that bridge internal development teams (Production, Art, Tech, PM) and central EA partners (CTO, TA, QVS).
• Executive Reporting & Communication: Deliver clear, concise executive updates, risk assessments, and status dashboards to studio leadership and enterprise partners.
• Continuous Improvement: Continuously assess studio operational frameworks, identifying opportunities to standardize tools, reduce friction, and increase development throughput.

Qualifications

• Experience: 8+ years of program management, project management, or operational leadership experience within the video game industry, technology sector, or complex creative environments.
• Cross-Functional Leadership: Proven ability to lead by influence, build trust, and align diverse stakeholders ranging from creative directors and senior engineers to corporate central teams.
• Operational Expertise: Demonstrated background in managing complex, multi-faceted operational programs such as vendor management, talent operations, resource management, or emerging technology integration.
• Technical & Emerging Tech Familiarity: Understanding of game development lifecycles, game production pipelines, and enterprise AI tools/governance frameworks.
• Communication: Exceptional verbal and written communication skills with experience presenting to senior executive leadership.
• Problem Solving: Strong analytical, organizational, and risk-management capabilities with a bias for action in fast-paced environments.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working within multi-studio game development frameworks or AAA franchise production environments.
• Hands-on experience establishing governance programs, technology rollout plans, resource management/mobility functions, or strategic external partnership frameworks.
• Familiarity with EA internal operational structures or similar large-scale publisher/studio operations.

Pay Transparency - North America

Compensation And Benefits

PAY RANGES

• British Columbia (depending on location e.g. Vancouver vs. Victoria) *$141,400 - $204,400 CAD

Pay is just one part of the overall compensation at EA.

• For Canada, we offer a package of benefits including vacation (3 weeks per year to start), 10 days per year of sick time, paid top-up to EI/QPIP benefits up to 100% of base salary when you welcome a new child (12 weeks for maternity, and 4 weeks for parental/adoption leave), extended health/dental/vision coverage, life insurance, disability insurance, retirement plan to regular full-time employees. Certain roles may also be eligible for bonus and other incentive programs.
• We adopt a holistic approach to our benefits programs, emphasizing physical, emotional, financial, career, and community wellness to support a balanced life. Our packages are tailored to meet local needs and may include healthcare coverage, mental well‑being support, retirement savings, paid time off, family leaves, complimentary games, and more.

About Electronic Arts

We’re proud to have an extensive portfolio of games and experiences, locations around the world, and opportunities across EA. We value adaptability, resilience, creativity, and curiosity. From leadership that brings out your potential, to creating space for learning and experimenting, we empower you to do great work and pursue opportunities for growth.

We adopt a holistic approach to our benefits programs, emphasizing physical, emotional, financial, career, and community wellness to support a balanced life. Our packages are tailored to meet local needs and may include healthcare coverage, mental well‑being support, retirement savings, paid time off, family leaves, complimentary games, and more. We nurture environments where our teams can always bring their best to what they do.

Electronic Arts is an equal opportunity employer. All employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, genetic information, religion, disability, medical condition, pregnancy, marital status, family status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. We will also consider employment qualified applicants with criminal records in accordance with applicable law. EA also makes workplace accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities as required by applicable law.