Growth and Demand Gen Lead

Playground

New York (NY)

On-site

USD 160,000 - 200,000

Full time

14 days+

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Benefits offered by this job

Equity

3 weeks PTO

Health, vision, and dental benefits

Education stipend $1,200/year

Free lunch daily

Autonomy and ownership

Collaborative, ambitious team

Growth opportunities

Job summary

Playground is seeking a Growth & Demand Gen Lead to shape where and when we reach buyers. You will own outreach investment strategy, test new channels, and drive revenue and pipeline with a rigorous experimentation framework.

You will oversee Events and Field Marketing, partner with Sales to maximize pipeline, and build lifecycle programs that reactivate dormant leads while guiding a fast-growing team with strong ownership.

Qualifications

5+ years of experience in growth marketing, demand generation, or a related function.
Proven experience testing and scaling multiple acquisition channels from scratch.
Track record of generating $15M–$30M+ in incremental annual pipeline within a fiscal year.
Strong understanding of how marketing programs translate into pipeline and revenue.
Experience building lifecycle, nurture, or reactivation programs tied to measurable KPIs.
Strong analytical and strategic judgment — you're comfortable making decisions with imperfect information.
Experience developing experimentation frameworks and determining when to kill, iterate, or scale a program.
Ability to influence cross‑functional partners and direct the priorities of others without formal management authority.
Excellent communication and ability to operate independently in a fast‑paced startup environment.
A builder's mindset: you enjoy creating systems and programs that don't already exist.

Responsibilities

Own Outreach Investment Strategy: Decide where we should invest time and budget across events, partnerships, and other demand generation programs.
Build & Test New Channels: Develop a structured framework for testing unfamiliar acquisition channels and ABM opportunities.
Drive Revenue & Pipeline: Connect marketing activity to business outcomes and build programs that generate pipeline.
Own Events & Field Marketing: Lead conference and speaking calendar and maximize pipeline from events.
Build Lifecycle & Reactivation Programs: Develop systems to turn existing leads into active opportunities.
Influence the Marketing Team: Provide strategic direction to team members without formal management authority.
Seize the Opportunity: Test new channels and scale successful ones.

Skills

Growth marketing

Demand generation

Acquisition channels

Analytics & measurement

Lifecycle & nurture programs

Experimentation frameworks

Cross-functional influence

Financial impact / pipeline ownership

Strategic decision making

Independent contributor

Job description

About Playground

Playground is working to make excellent child care accessible to all. Playground has built best-in-class software to manage all aspects of running a child care business. We believe providers should focus on providing incredible child care — the kind of work that only people can do — and that software should manage the rest. We’re building the child care management platform that eliminates the administrative work of running a center.

About Playground

Playground is at an inflection point — and poised to grow extremely fast. We recently raised millions of dollars, have several statewide contracts, and are working with thousands of schools across the country. Additionally, our founders were recently honored as Forbes 30 Under 30.

We are a team of owners who are not afraid to dive into large, complex problems. If you're excited by the opportunity to shape how one of the fastest-growing companies in child care reaches its customers — and want meaningful ownership over growth and demand generation –

About The Role

Join Playground's Marketing team as our Growth & Demand Gen Lead and own where and when we reach our buyers.

This is a highly strategic, hands‑on role focused on identifying, testing, and scaling new ways to generate demand and pipeline. You'll evaluate where we should invest across events, partnerships, outbound and inbound programs, while building a rigorous framework for testing channels we haven't proven yet.

The ideal candidate is someone who doesn't just execute an existing playbook — they build the playbook. You'll bring strong revenue judgment, turn ambiguous opportunities into measurable experiments, and know when to kill, iterate, or double down on a program.

This role will also help influence the day‑to‑day priorities of a Senior Paid Media Specialist and two marketing coordinators, while remaining an individual contributor for at least the first six months.

What You'll Do

Own Outreach Investment Strategy:

Decide where we should invest time and budget across events, partnerships, and other demand generation programs. Evaluate what's working, identify what's stagnating, and determine where we should double down or change course.

Build & Test New Channels:

Develop a structured framework for testing unfamiliar acquisition channels, from online community development to ABM dinners and other emerging opportunities. Establish clear criteria for when to kill, iterate, or scale a program.

Drive Revenue & Pipeline:

Connect marketing activity directly to business outcomes. Build programs that generate meaningful pipeline and develop a clear understanding of what is driving demand, conversion, and revenue.

Own Events & Field Marketing:

Lead Playground's conference and speaking calendar, from identifying high‑value opportunities through execution and post-event analysis. Partner closely with Sales to maximize pipeline generated from every event.

Build Lifecycle & Reactivation Programs:

Develop systems that turn existing leads and prospects back into active opportunities through email, marketing automation, nurture, and other lifecycle programs.

Influence the Marketing Team:

Help guide priorities and day‑to‑day execution for the Senior Paid Media Specialist and two marketing coordinators, providing strategic direction without relying on formal management authority.

Seize the Opportunity:

Playground is a place where doers thrive. If you see a promising channel, test it. If something isn't working, figure out why. If you see an opportunity to create a new growth lever, run with it.

What You Need

5+ years of experience in growth marketing, demand generation, or a related function.
Proven experience testing and scaling multiple acquisition channels from scratch.
Track record of generating $15M–$30M+ in incremental annual pipeline within a fiscal year.
Strong understanding of how marketing programs translate into pipeline and revenue.
Experience building lifecycle, nurture, or reactivation programs tied to measurable KPIs.
Strong analytical and strategic judgment — you're comfortable making decisions with imperfect information.
Experience developing experimentation frameworks and determining when to kill, iterate, or scale a program.
Ability to influence cross‑functional partners and direct the priorities of others without formal management authority.
Excellent communication and ability to operate independently in a fast‑paced startup environment.
A builder's mindset: you enjoy creating systems and programs that don't already exist.

Compensation

Salary for this position is $160,000–$200,000 base + equity, subject to standard withholding and applicable taxes. Actual compensation will be determined based on factors including individual qualifications, relevant experience, expected impact, scope of the role, market demands, and specific work location.

Why Join Playground